This is not an endorsement.
For transparency, I am providing my answers from my application to Women’s Democratic Club of Utah 2024 Candidate Endorsement survey so that my positions on these questions can be shared with constituents.
Q1: Are you a member of the Women’s Democratic Club? (Yes/No)
Yes.
Q2: Are you a registered Democrat? (Yes/No)
Yes.
Q3: If you are in a partisan race, are you running as a Democrat? (Yes/No)
Yes. Running in House District 44 against incumbent Jordan Teuscher (R)
Q4: The Equal Rights Amendment is a proposed amendment to the United State Constitution designed to guarantee equal legal rights for all American citizens regardless of sex. It seeks to end the legal distinctions between men and women in terms of divorce, property, employment, and other matters. For more information, please see: https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/.
Do you support the ratification of the Equal Rights Amendment (ERA)? (Yes/No)
Yes.
Q5: What office are you running for?
Utah House, District 44
Q6: Is this your first time running for THIS office? (If no, please explain in the comments.)
Yes.
Q7: Is 2024 a re-election campaign for you? (Relevant if you are a currently elected official.)
No.
Q8: If you have previously run for ANY office, please tell us briefly about your other races.
I have not run for an office previously.
Q9: Please tell the Candidate Support Committee a bit about why you are running for office.
I’m running against Jordan Teuscher to unseat him, and become the Utah State House Representative in District 44. It was a tough year, with moves towards rhetoric. A large number of bills that felt like an onslaught of nationally-promoted bills (many originating from Florida, Texas) that were intended to overwhelm. This was a really rough, exhausting, demoralizing session.
- DEI attacks in public education and employee sectors
- LGBTQ Rights, trans bills, bathroom bill
- Women’s Rights/Reproductive Rights
- Civil Rights
- Voting Rights
- Workers Rights (2 bills against recertification, get rid of career service protections)
- 1st Amendment, Pride Flags, “Neutral” classrooms, book bans
- Intrusion of Religion on Public Education, school chaplains, 10 commandments in schools
- trickle-down economics tax cuts, and attacks on Public Education funding through voucher expansion, tax cuts that fund education
- “Lean Budget” non-funding for transportation, public transit, education
- Sovereignty Bill (SB57) – essentially pushing the US federal courts to sue Utah
If we are going to make change, we need people in the Legislature who will listen to constituents and work on local issues. My part is standing up and saying that I can do a better job than Jordan Teuscher, who received an “F” in the 2023 Progress Report from Alliance for a Better Utah. My part is actively working to unseat someone who has forgotten how to represent the southwest corner of Salt Lake valley and Utahns generally.
Q10: Please tell the Candidate Support Committee about your political race/campaign.
I’m running in House District 44, which is a primarily residential district that encompasses the north and west of South Jordan city (28 voting districts SJD002-5, 7-11, 15-21, 27-31, 33-37, 45 and 62), and the southwestern edge of West Jordan city (4 voting districts WJD058-61).
HD44 registered voters profile:
49.4% Republican
31.5% Unaffiliated
13.4% Democratic
5.7% Other
In order to win in this election cycle, I need to appeal to enough moderate republicans, and motivate unaffiliated and democratic voters to show up and vote for me. My hope is that the extreme partisanship of the 2024 legislative session and the anticipated divisiveness of the 2024 election cycle will push interest in my campaign. I need to build name recognition and visibility on local issues facing Utahns.
See https://utah44.com/a-democrat-running-in-a-red-district/
See https://utah44.com/hd44-demographics/
Q11: Please provide your campaign website.
Q12: Please tell the Candidate Support Committee about your funding needs.
This is a new campaign, and I’m literally starting from nothing. I will need funding or in-kind services for printing of literature and signage, photography, video, targeted social media campaigns, and access to local media. In addition to static references like the campaign site and social media accounts I need to push information to district voters as well (email, video, debates, radio & television).
I anticipate that groups typically begin to invest in viable candidates around the March 30 caucuses, and am reaching out to organizations who would be interested in supporting my campaign through endorsements, donations, feet on the ground and for door-knocking campaigns.
Q13: The WDC will be endorsing Democratic candidates and this means that we will formally announce that you are an endorsed candidate and provide a graphic that you may use for your campaign. We will promote the endorsement on social media and in our official communications. In the past, some candidates prefer to receive financial support but NOT a formal endorsement. This is often the case if someone is running in a nonpartisan race (like school board or city council). Please note that you may receive financial contributions without seeking the formal endorsement.
Would you like to be endorsed by the WDC? (Yes/No)
Yes.
Q14: All financial contributions must be reported in campaign disclosures with the name of the organization that made the donation.
Would you like to receive financial support (donation) from the WDC? (Yes/No)
Yes.
Q15: All endorsed candidates are asked to submit a short biographic sketch. Please provide in this section. (Limit 500 words).
My step into politics is based on where we as a community stand today. Divisive legislation and social campaigns are without empathy, that are breaking the networks in place for us to be informed, that are tearing at the fabric of our nation. There is an infiltration of local school boards, and the introduction of legislation in states that comes from national platforms that do not have our common interests in mind. There is disinformation in social media that is meant to be divisive, that tears on the intent and good will of society. I’m stepping into politics because the “our” in our voice needs to be represented. I have enough shared experience and humility to know that I should listen and understand before I speak, and that my actions affect a community that I love and have much respect for.