I urge you to vote “No” on SJR2 Proposal to Amend Utah Constitution – Statewide Initiatives.
It is exceedingly clear that some members of the Utah legislature do not want to listen to Utah voters as they continue to submit bills that would make it harder for citizens initiatives to be passed. In 2024, HJR14 and its implementing statute HB284 failed when attempting to pass similar language. Sen. Lincoln Fillmore was the Senate Floor Sponsor for those failed bills, and is now the 2025 Bill Sponsor of SJR2.
Citizen Initiatives are literally a tool for “We the People” to have a voice when our representatives don’t effectively represent its citizens. The resolution introduced this week is seeking to take away legislative power from Utah citizens, and give that authority to the Utah legislature. Keep in mind that if this passes, state legislators are TAKING AWAY POWER from Utah voters. Powers to introduce important legislation. Powers to approve constitutional amendments. Powers that belong to us unless we give them away.
There is a REASON that Citizens Initiatives exist. Our LAST AND SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT privilege is to raise a vote to the people when our representatives either lack political will or (in Utah) suffer under a super majority that obstructs the people’s will. Republican leadership wants to change the Utah constitution to limit the will of the people, and effectively neuter Citizen Initiatives by making it harder for initiatives to pass, and allowing the legislature to override successful ballot measures.
Lincoln Fillmore is my Senator, and he does not represent my voice, or other voting constituents in Senate District 17 with this bill.
Gregory Green, Resident Senate District 17 South Jordan, Utah
Jordan Teuscher is back with the introduction of HB267 Public Sector Labor Union Amendments, with added provisions that effectively destroy public employee unions in Utah. Key language of the bill takes away collective bargaining rights, which is a fundamental characteristic of a union. He repeatedly submits bills attempting to dismantle worker rights, and he consistently targets our public employees every time.
Among other things, the 2025 bill language seeks to:
End collective bargaining – prohibits a public employer from recognizing a labor organization as a bargaining agent for public employees; and prohibits a public employer from entering into collective bargaining contracts. Because public employees are not covered by the National Labor Relations Act, Teuscher is targeting them.
Prohibit the use of public property – (think schools, parks, libraries, community centers, and the public employee workspace) for groups conducting union organizing or administration. For example, if teachers wanted to meet in the library at the end of the day to discuss topics that might include information about their UEA membership, they would not be allowed to do so.
Mandate reporting to the Labor Commission – (assumed the Utah Labor Commission although this is not defined in the bill) there is direct concern about why the labor commission would need any financial accounting or member count of a legally separate entity. The public employer could certainly provide information to the Labor Commission on the number of members with payroll deduction of dues, but members who pay directly and choose to remain anonymous should be allowed to do so without fear of retribution. Similarly, the amounts of spend by a labor organization for representation, lobbying, donations, activities, or giving should not require disclosure to the Labor Commission. The members are the stakeholders of the labor organization, not the Labor Commission.
Kills Retirement for Some Public Employees by forcing former public employees who were previously part of the Utah Retirement System to exit that system if they are later employed by a labor organization
Introduces ambiguous definition of “Political purposes” that can be broadly interpreted as any literally any conversation or action if it results in a decision or action. See lines 124-127 of Chapter 32, Part 1, Section 101(4).
Authorize the Utah State Attorney General to pursue compliance through civil actions if they fail to prohibit public employers from collective bargaining (although no mechanism of reporting a dispute is provided.) See lines 274-275 of Chapter 32, Part 3, Section 301(2).
Unions are one of the most important tools to address the disparity of wealth distribution, and a legitimate tool to manage the welfare and way of life for Utahns. Teuscher has submitted bills in past legislative sessions that work against worker rights. We are facing anti-union actions from a national level to degrade unions in Utah. Groups like ‘Workers for Opportunity’ and ‘Mackinac Center for Public Policy’ are engaging with conservative legislators to introduce legislation veiled as “worker freedom”, but in reality represent a furthering of “right-to-work” policies that weaken labor laws and tear down worker rights. Teuscher is a copy/paste legislator introducing right-wing legislation from ALEC that was also run in Texas and Florida. He’s doing the same thing working with the Foundation for Government Accountability (FGA) whose focus is to push, repackage and franchise conservative agendas. He literally takes his cues from national right-wing think tanks rather than representing the people of Utah.
This is the third attempt by Jordan Teuscher to push this form of union-busting bill through the legislature.
Each year that Teuscher introduced legislation to actively dismantle worker rights for public employees, it has been killed due to overwhelming opposition from the public.
A patent lie:
“Businesses have to make a profit or they go out of business. Government never goes out of business,” he said. “Because of that inherent obstacle with public sector collective bargaining, it really doesn’t make sense to continue to do it in our state.” – Rep. Jordan Teuscher, Fox 13 interview (Jan 22, 2025)
To suggest that public employees are tapping an unlimited resource of payroll funding simply because they work for a government entity is ridiculous. The ability to negotiate, (including collective bargaining) for a prevailing wage, let alone any wage, is material to any employee regardless of their employer or the industry that they work in.
Teuscher is an acolyte of the legislative supermajority. He is a primary sponsor of copy/paste legislation that works against the freedoms of Utah voters, including attacks on worker rights. We need to unseat people like him and fill those seats with candidates who will defend our rights and keep us free of the kind of government interference that we are seeing.
Throughout the election, I haven’t been a big fan of polls, mainly because numbers aren’t always what people think they are or want them to be. Perhaps the only poll that I relished was a GOP sponsored poll from Right Insight that went out via mobile, which was so messed up no-one who received it could respond properly. I was delighted that the Utah Republican Party had spent so much money that was botched from poor programming, a failure to test, and an incredibly bad rollout.
On the other hand, election results are the real data we campaign to see. Election night results will post on Tuesday. I may lose, but I revel in the progress we made in this district. The fight isn’t over, not by a long shot.
What We Face
House District 44 is decidedly a very red district. With 52% of registered voters listed as Republicans, it’s daunting to think that a rival candidate could run successfully here and have a significant impact on the “safe seat” for the GOP that was carved out in 2020.
An uphill battle: A win would require most registered Democrats and Unaffiliated to vote for me along with a margin of Republican voters. A democratic campaign would have to focus on issues that would compel constituents to vote against their party line.
Sizing Up The Opponent
When Teuscher first ran for office in 2020 it was a Presidential election year and there was the COVID-19 pandemic. He ran in Utah House District 42 before the redistricting took place, and when Utah was experiencing the COVID-19 pandemic. In the second election in 2022, it was a mid-term election cycle with lower voter turnout in a newly defined Utah House District 44. The last election had also produced an odd strategy for voters outside the Republican party to register as Republicans in order to affect the closed primary of the Utah GOP. The idea had been to successfully promote more moderate candidates during the GOP primary to give better options for all voters in the general election. This also had the unwanted effect of bolstering the number of voters registered in the Republican party. Suffice to say, these two past elections would not provide substantial data for me to work with as a comparative example to build from. There was good data showing that Unaffiliated voters tended to lean Democratic though, and the influx of new voters in Daybreak community was appearing to make our District more purple than it had been.
There were (and still are) significant issues with the bills introduced by Teuscher since he has been in office. You can see his voting history in the Alliance for a Better Utah annual progress report, which grades politicians against comparable positions for Good Government, Equal Rights, Sustainable Future and Strong Communities. Teuscher received an “F” in 2024, 2023 and 2021; and a “D” in 2022. Teuscher votes against public education, is a primary sponsor of anti-union legislation targeting Utah public employees, and sponsors bills that weaken Utah voter rights. He is a source of bills from copy/paste legislation promoted by conservative right think tanks (when a particular legislative issue is trending across states, there is a good chance that Teuscher’s name is attached to the Utah version of the bill). Anyone who isn’t completely indoctrinated in Fox News rhetoric recognizes that he does not represent local issues or engage voters.
I decided to register as a candidate when the Salt Lake County Democratic Party had found no-one who was willing to run in our House District. It was January 4 (the night before candidate registration closed) that I made the decision, and I said then that if I registered I would not run as a “name-only” candidate; I would invest myself to run in earnest and fight for the seat. I was a first-time candidate, running as a Democrat in a primarily Republican district against an incumbent. I knew enough to know that I didn’t know what I was about to get into.
I knew that there were key issues for me to run on. Teuscher’s anti-union rhetoric, and his clear stance on de-funding public education were clear problems. I personally was upset at his regular comments about getting rid of students with learning disabilities because I happen to be a Special Olympics dad and proud parent of a kid with an Intellectual or Developmental Delay (IDD) who had successfully navigated through Jordan District public schools. I’m incensed by his willingness to lie in the face of constituents about the intent and impact of his bills, and his anecdotal stories that obscure data and real public sentiment.
I Was Told I Wouldn’t Win
In politics, it’s often a numbers game before the impact of issues, political climate or social sentiment are considered. In the early months of my candidacy I was told by a party officer who will remain un-named that I wouldn’t win, and should consider a smaller race in the future. Important races were selected not based on issues where we had to win, but on what districts were considered “flippable”. Essentially, they weren’t focusing on our message to voters, but put emphasis on these statistical outcomes. The difference here is in what you consider the return on interest (ROI) of the campaign. Did you win a seat? Did you help an upstream/downstream candidate? Did you affect a topic in a positive way? Did you recruit voters? Did you grow alignment to the party? In election races, the focus this year was on winnable seats, and mine was not one of them. It was a numbers game, defense of principals be damned. From the perspective of the county and state Democratic party, mine was purely a supporting role as they focused on other races.
I was slotted into the strategy of “contest every race” that sought candidates (often name-only) to run against opponents in every district, so that voters could feel like a choice was present – even if it was admittedly a false choice. I will die on the hill that candidates who register to run should be qualified, align to the democratic platform, actively campaign, and be supported. Elections are not a raffle, they are fought and won. If I was going to put my name in an election hat, then I would run a campaign. I was not going to sit by.
Endorsements and Fence Sitters
An important aspect of campaigns is the seeking of endorsements, which can be helpful in a number of ways. Endorsements can be visible. They can be financial or for in-kind support. They can be hands-on with the supply of volunteers to help during events and canvasing. Endorsements can even provide access to mentoring or education on topics. In most cases, an endorsement of any kind helps greatly. The lack of an endorsement can equally be to the detriment of the campaign. What bothers me about these groups is that they expect candidates who sought endorsement to infer future support for their cause when they choose to do nothing. As in any relationship, it becomes more guarded and tentative when you realize they don’t have your back.
I was disappointed by organizations that chose not to endorse me in order to hedge bets so that they could preserve future working relationships, but I understood the need for diplomatic decisions. Politics is politics. There were some organizations that made decisions with no transparency or feedback, and some that seemingly worked against their own best interests when endorsing candidates. In one example, an organization had sent out exactly one letter to its members in the election year, advocating against a piece of legislation that had been sponsored by the person they then later endorsed. And there were organizations that sought to extend requirements for endorsement by writing affirmations that extended beyond their platform or caucus, like a labor union that wanted unfettered 2nd amendment guarantees before they would endorse (I was not endorsed by that particular union).
What is important was that I was able to secure key endorsements from Labor, from Education, from Issue and Identity Caucuses, and for Freedom of Religion. These mattered greatly to me because the message from these backings was that the people in these groups were being disenfranchised, and wanted better representation. Teuscher was hosting or voting for bills that take away personal rights, that de-fund public education, that dismantle workers rights. Coming together to fight him for the legislative seat was appropriate and timely.
Monumental Screw Ups for Teuscher and the Utah GOP
There were several big events that took place over the summer where I gained advantage. The Utah legislature’s over-reach was finally getting checked by the Utah Supreme Court in four ongoing cases. The Utah GOP was making their clear over-reach visible, and were getting tied down in expensive legal battles that Utahns were footing the bill for.
1)Utah Supreme Court decision on LWV Utah vs Utah State Legislature In July of this year, the Utah Supreme Court passed by unanimous decision to allow the League of Women Voters Utah to proceed with their claim that SB200 violated Utahns’ state constitutional right to alter and reform their government. The court remanded the case back to the trial court where it will be decided. This was a major victory for Utahns, and the Republican legislature immediately lamented the decision, including Jordan Teuscher.
2)Injunction on Utah Trigger Law Upheld In August this year, the Utah Supreme Court rejected Utah’s request to overturn the preliminary injunction blocking SB174, the state’s abortion trigger ban, from taking effect. Again the Republican legislature blasted the “liberal Utah Courts” for having the audacity to check them (remember checks and balances)? Jordan Teuscher even wrote a note about it.
3) Citizen Ballot Initiatives Yet another Utah Supreme Court decision, this time to allow the case against the Utah Legislature’s willful disregard of the people’s voice for new district maps. The gerrymandering case is allowed to proceed at a lower court.
4) NetChoice Wins, Do You See The Pattern? In September, the courtsblocked Teuscher’s Minor Protection in Social Media Act with a preliminary injunction for violating first amendment rights. The plaintiffs gained significant ground in the case when the judge confirmed that the Utah law breached constitutional rights.
The “Emergency” that Wasn’t: How Amendment D Shaped Up It was during the Democratic National Convention in August that the Republicans decided to call an emergency legislative session to address the applied checks to their unbalance. The “emergency” was a ploy to bring Republican legislators together to craft a new ballot initiative that, if approved, would change the Utah Constitution and strip voter rights away from Utah constituents. Their problem was that to make this change, they needed voters to approve a constitutional amendment. Jordan Teuscher was the house sponsor of SJR401, which became Amendment D to strip Utah voters of legislative rights (This was blocked by Utah Courts on Sep 12, 2024 for deceptive language, and for not following due process). Teuscher was also the House floor sponsor of SB4002 ‘Ballot Proposition Amendments’ to jam through Amendment D, which was voided on ballots.
Ballots were printed before the Supreme Court decision that voided Amendment D took place, and the deceptive language of the ballot question became a public issue. The question implied foreign interference was a problem (it wasn’t, and never has been). The question failed to clearly state that the bill removed voter rights, and granted the legislature authority to override successful ballot initiatives passed by Utah voters. It was an outright sham.
Of course, Teuscher went online to defend the Amendment he was sponsoring. I broke the video down to call out the disinformation presented by Jordan and the Utah GOP.
Seeing Red? Vote Green
Jordan Teuscher is our representative, but he’s failing to serve constituents here. He is backing seriously flawed bills that end up in court. He’s an acolyte of the right wing and is a primary sponsor of the kind of cut and paste bill language from “foreign interests” that he accuses other parties as doing (every accusation is a confession). He doesn’t represent our values, he doesn’t serve our community, or the interests of Utah voters. My job has turned into asking you to vote for what’s best for you, what’s best for our district, and what’s best for Utah by helping me unseat Jordan Teuscher this election. I want to drop the rhetoric and focus on what’s best for Utahns. If you want to see my proposed 2025 legislation, take a look at https://utah44.com/proposed-2025-legislation/.
Get involved – to be anything other than a Republican in Utah means that you have to be active, and you have to make your voice heard. We need individuals who are dedicated, who can engage their party, become delegates, train to become candidates, and are committed to running in future elections. This has to start NOW to be qualified and ready.
Engage with active bills – you can follow legislation at https://le.utah.gov/bills/bills_By_Session.jsp. Learn who your legislators are, how to engage them, and how to testify when bills are being debated on the floor.
None of this is easy, but it matters greatly to be involved and to be part of positive change. If we don’t fight to defend our rights, and if we don’t actively engage, then we give ground.
It would be unusual. Utah House District 44 is a red district carved out in 2020 specifically to make it a safe Republican district. Jordan Teuscher has won two elections, first in the old District 42, then in the new District 44. He is the incumbent, a native Utahn, a lawyer, a member of the church, and a Republican. All of these traits bode well for a politician seeking votes from the voter base in South Jordan and West Jordan. It would take monumental effort, or possible re-districting, to move constituents towards another candidate.
But 2024 is not a usual year. Partisan politics have become historically raucous. Natalie Cline, then a member of the Utah State Board of Education, was censured for social media attacks against a high school athlete who she insinuated was transgender (the player is not, and that shouldn’t have mattered regardless; the fact that Cline would go after a high school student and draw dangerous attention towards her was unacceptable). The legislature holds the ability to impeach a public official, and although there were vocal calls that Cline should be impeached, the GOP majority could not muster the backbone required to impeach one of their own. The Utah GOP moved decidedly right at convention while the Republican base grew weary of the rhetoric – more moderate candidates like Spencer Cox and Celeste Malloy collected signatures to guarantee that their names would survive convention to appear on Republican primary ballots. The Republican convention produced a number of hard-right candidates like Phil Lyman and Trent Staggs who would eventually lose against their more moderate opponents.
General Session kicked off with bills attacking individual rights. At the beginning of general session this year, Utah House Speaker Mike Schultz started the legislative agenda to drive through GOP-sponsored bills whose language originated from outside of Utah: an anti-trans bathroom bill; shutting down DEI in public schools; and book bans. Utah followed a string of conservative states like Oklahoma, Missouri, Florida and Texas that pushed the same copy/paste legislation.
Jordan Teuscher also re-introduced his signature anti-union legislation that actively worked to dismantle worker rights for public employees, but this was killed due to overwhelming opposition from the public. Teuscher was also the sponsor of HB185 ‘Primary Ballot Requirements’ to remove candidates who qualify through signature gathering process, which also failed. This would have affected all parties, but particularly the Republican party. The Republican delegates are much further right than your regular Republican in Utah, and in a closed primary they were attempting to change the rules to make it more difficult for moderate Republican candidates to participate in Utah’s election process.
It was not a good start. Someone commented that the six weeks of general session was six weeks of responding to bad ideas.
Thankfully, there are checks and balances. It was after a number of Utah Supreme Court decisions (first to uphold an injunction against the legislature’s anti-abortion trigger law, and shortly after determining that the gerrymandering case against the legislature had legs and could continue to be actioned in a lower court) that the Republican-led House decided to call an emergency session. What was the emergency? The will of the people, apparently. During the session, Jordan Teuscher was the House sponsor for SJR401, which would change the Utah constitution to remove the people’s legislative power of citizen initiatives. Teuscher was also the House floor sponsor of SB4002 House Sponsor of ‘Ballot Proposition Amendments’ to enable jamming through Amendment D, and Amendment A in 2024, which were both voided by the Utah Supreme Court. The worst part? In what should be called an ethics violation, Senate President Stuart Adams and House Speaker Schultz wrote particularly misleading ballot language that described Amendment D as the opposite of what it was; a power grab by the Utah legislature.
What was the emergency? The will of the people, apparently. Rep Jordan Teuscher leads when it comes to taking away the rights of voters and obstructing candidates from public office.
Utah voters are frustrated by the extreme partisanship of the Republican legislature. Their inability to self-manage outrageous behavior in their party, followed by egregious attempts to dismantle personal rights of Utahns, then disrespect voters with outright lies and a request for us to vote against our personal interests, is pushing constituents to look closely at their representatives and claimed party values. The Republican party even admitted to its own over-reach as it attempted to gaslight voters.
The Utah GOPs under-statement of the year.
We need real representation. The Republican legislature is betting that they will survive the 2024 election cycle so that they can continue to introduce more bills sponsored from out of state, that work against the better interests of Utahns and don’t reflect who we are.
There were no Republican candidates who challenged Teuscher this year. Third parties decided not to back a non-partisan candidate in this race, likely because they didn’t see an investment in what was considered a safe red seat. I joined the race as a protest vote, but have found support after the series of events (above) that were hand-delivered to me by the Republican party. In fact, they are nervous enough to start throwing money at the end of the race to stabilize their (now questionable) candidate.
We are closing in on the last week of the election cycle. Less than half of the voters in the House District have cast their votes so far (filter on HD44), and I will be lucky to see narrower margins than were in the past against my incumbent opponent. I’m here to say that we could win, if enough voters are tired of the litany of bad bills, expensive litigation, constitutional violations and breaches of individual rights that the Utah Republican party has produced this year. Teuscher is a primary sponsor of some of the worst bills. We can continue to fight his bad ideas in the legislature, or we can unseat him and bring in a new representative who will defend voter rights, and begin to work for the people of Utah.
We can win this. One of the constitutional powers you have is to elect representatives. That power can also be used to unseat a legislator who doesn’t represent your issues and values. Please use that power. I’m asking you to use your voice and vote by Tuesday, November 5… and I would truly appreciate your vote.
When I started running for office on January 5 this year, I was starting a long learning curve to onboard as a candidate in the Utah political scene. Every day was something new for me, and at times it was overwhelming to consider what was left to accomplish before it was over. As we get to the end of this campaign I want to give thanks to the people who were my tribe for this work. I would not be here without them.
First and foremost, my family Angela, Risa, Natalie and Aaron deserve recognition for putting up with me throughout this whole thing. Campaigns are stressful, and they have seen every side of me since I filed to run. Thank you for your support, and your patience, and for putting up (to here!) when I could only take so much sh!## during the campaign (that’s a Eurovision Song Contest reference). Angela was always the one to tell me to hold on and think about it before I pressed the ‘send’ button. Natalie was and is my manager of social media. Risa and Aaron were the willing volunteers at every corner of the campaign.
Dr. Lori Taylor – without Lori’s mentorship and guidance I would not be here. Without a co-commiserator and planner of things, I would not have any of my wits left. Lori’s commitment to the party, her persistence in fighting for principals, and the immense respect I have for her are what led me to joining to become a house district vice-chair, then a candidate for the Utah House District. I have leaned on, texted, called and spent time with Lori more than anyone else throughout this campaign. She is always clear, she is willing to say the things I don’t want to hear but need to hear, she is honest, and she truly cares about what we’re doing; and that makes her invaluable to me. Thank you, thank you, thank you Lori.
Rep Ashlee Matthews – who calmed my panic and doubt, who talked me through the first days and shared her story, then encouraged me to find my voice so that I could build a message that would resonate with voters. I am deeply grateful for her time (all during the 2024 general legislative session) to speak with me as I was starting my candidacy.
Catherine Voutaz – whose always-positive and always-pragmatic outlook offered fresh perspective when I needed to hear it, and whose organizing capacity for the southwest region candidates was astounding. She shared her experience and brought candidates together so that we could leverage our campaigns more effectively for city and county events. She helped me understand that positive, consistent outreach was critical is setting paths for conversations to build.
Wendy Davis – who first shared her experience in her book The Fight You Don’t See, then provided one-on-one discussion about outreach and data analysis so that she, Lori and I could design a strategy for outreach in HD44. Her education, political background, experience, empathetic guidance and assurances were invaluable to me. I’m indebted to her kindness and willingness to talk.
Darlene McDonald – who embodies the spirit of democracy. Darlene connects my community together like no other because she has gone before me and made the road that I follow. She and I have a bunch of connections, the least of which I look like Michael McDonald, and she’s married to a Michael McDonald. Seriously though – I’m indebted to Darlene for being someone that I can talk to at any time, and she’ll be there.
Amber Hendrix – from the Salt Lake County Democratic office, who I found trust and alignment with. Amber navigated me through questions and concerns about party operations, and was a voice of reason throughout the campaign. Amber did a lot of the lifting in the campaign with her outreach and engagement on behalf of the Democratic party that was essential to getting things done.
Jennifer Miller Smith – who is an absolute gem because her cause is true, her commitment is high, and because she is straightforward and plainly speaks her case. I admire her integrity and the number of roles she fills in places across the democratic party. She truly embraces democratic values. She supports her causes with a passion I have yet to see from anyone else.
Jade Velazquez – from the Salt Lake County Democratic office, who has a plan and the persistence to see it through to a successful end. He also works with grace and humor, and is an example that we all can follow.
Sen Luz Escamilla – whose gift was to spend time with me at a Union meet and greet to clarify my message and better understand how to communicate with voters. She didn’t know me, she corrected me when I thought she was Angela Romero, and she was graceful enough to still give her time and some highly needed instruction to a new candidate. I am sincerely grateful, and I won’t mistake her again when I meet her.
Jacob Lawson – who has the ridiculous capacity to always, always engage where he needs to be. Jacob was my outreach and my eyes in voting districts. He constantly asked what could be done, and was essential for lit drops and canvassing in South Jordan and West Jordan. In my campaign, Jacob is the face of the new generation of politics coming to Utah, and I can’t be more proud to have him as part of the team.
Olivia Anderson and Elliott Kauffman – from the Utah State Democratic office, who created training and delivered candidate fundamentals to me and a host of new candidates at all levels. I really started to get a better picture of everything that needed to be done as we walked through weekly trainings and Elliott’s fun storytelling.
Scott Bell, who literally brought the bell. Best volunteer and hang-out partner for sign pickups. He has a great background story, and there’s even a story about the bell. He’s engaged and supports area candidates, and he shares ideas. We need more people like Scott who jump in and help out any time. He is also a great Sunday coffee house partner.
Kate Staples, who I have mad respect for. She began in a 3-way race for HD39 and had to deal with some brutal political BS at the start regarding staying in the race as a Democrat or working with a campaign strategy to back an unaffiliated candidate. She made a difficult decision to withdraw, but one she was able to be comfortable with. She was ethical, she earnestly campaigned, and her decision was based on what was best for her and for flipping the district. I know that was difficult, and she did it with grace. She also has the best shoes of anyone in this list.
Joel Frost, Sheila Srivastava, and Kent Setterberg – part of the Fantastic Four for county elections, these three were regular engagements for me in campaign events, and I needed a little of their good energy. Joel is the consummate dude, Sheila has the engagement, and Kent is the warmth and heart of good politics. I appreciate all of the work you have put in, yet still had extra to share on the campaign road.
Mimi Setterberg – who deserves recognition on her own for starting and running a campaign from scratch. She is the person behind Kent’s campaign, and truly is up and coming with the work that she has put into things. I’m excited to see what she does in the future.
Eli McCann and Skylar Westerdahl – for opening up your family to meet with me, and giving me an opportunity to talk with Republicans in my District. Your level of trust, and willingness to introduce me to neighbors is something that I’m grateful for. You work in the principal of kindness first, always.
Brad Asay, who was the first person who told me that he thought I could win. I didn’t say it then but I was truly grateful that you got behind me and supported my campaign. Those words mattered greatly then, and your hands-on support afterwards was motivating to me. Thank you.
These are individual thanks, and there are rightfully more who aren’t here. I will probably publish this and realize who I left out (and I apologize for that).
My message here is to recognize that this campaign, and my work is a collaboration. Almost everyone I mention here are new to me since January, but they have leaned in and offered advice, or their experience, or their support and their hours to help me get here. I can’t do this alone. It’s 10 days out from the general election today, and I’m counting on your votes to finish this. Regardless of where the election goes, know that I am grateful to those who stepped up.
Your voice matters, and your voice is your vote. Please vote this election cycle.
Recently, I was surprised by a tone-deaf endorsement of Teuscher from Jim Moss @epsomjrm, Chair of the Utah Board of Education @utboardofed. Jordan is no friend to teachers or to public schools. Why Jim endorsed a legislator who attacks public employee interests, defunds public schools, and hasn’t bothered to be present at any of the public schools in his district during his entire tenure in the House is the poorest and most partisan thing he could do as a board member of USBE.
“Jordan’s dedication to supporting students and teachers, and encouraging parent engagement has made a significant impact.” – Jim Moss, who clearly doesn’t know what he’s talking about
Teuscher is no friend to teachers
Jordan has repeatedly attacked public employee associations, including teachers associations like the Utah Education Association (UEA). During general session this year, Teuscher wrote HB285 to make it more difficult for public employees to organize and collectively bargain for safe working conditions, decent wages and benefits, and legal protections. In 2023, he wrote HB241, an anti-union bill designed to starve public unions of money and kill their ability to operate at all in the organizations they serve. Both bills failed to pass due to overwhelming opposition.
It’s worth noting that I have endorsements from the Utah Education Association (UEA), Jordan Education Association, Utah Parents for Teachers, and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT).
Teuscher wants to defund (not defend) public education
This is what Jordan Teuscher said when talking about the 2023 HB215 Utah Fits All Scholarship voucher program:
“as these students come out of public schools, a lot of time, and I’ve heard this from teachers, a lot of times they’ll have to spend, you know, 80% of their time on 20% of the students because it’s just not the right fit. You know, maybe they have a disability or, you know, a learning challenge or something, they don’t learn the same way. And so if we can get those students into schools that focus on that need, and then the teachers can spend all their time dealing with the other 80% of the teachers [sic] it’s a total win-win for everyone. And that’s what I intend, that’s what I hope to see as it moves forward.“ – Jordan Teuscher
Teuscher writes poor legislation that gets tied up in courts
Teuscher wrote HB464 to allow parents to sue social media companies, and SB194 (i.e. the Utah Minor Protection in Social Media Act) that successfully passed but was immediately challenged in courts and subsequently blocked for violating first amendment rights. In the court’s response they stated “The court recognizes the State’s earnest desire to protect young people from the novel challenges associated with social media use,” … “But owing to the First Amendment’s paramount place in our democratic system, even well-intentioned legislation that regulates speech based on content must satisfy a tremendously high level of constitutional scrutiny.”
Although it’s good to protect our children from online harms, we need competent authors for legislation who aren’t simply showboating for votes, then leaving us with costly court fees.
Teuscher wants guns and religion to replace diversity and free expression in schools
Teuscher voted for the anti-trans bathroom bill (HB257)
Teuscher voted for indoctrination in public schools (HB269 and HB514)
The bottom line: Teuscher doesn’t care about public employees, including teachers. He doesn’t care about our system of public education and is willing to undermine its funding and supports. How a USBE Board member could endorse him as a candidate is antithetical to the interests of public education, and disrespectful of the community of educators who represent and defend public education in Utah.
I’m writing to you because you are an important member of the Republican Party in Utah House District 44. I know that you are a committed member of your party, but I’m asking you to consider voting for me – a Democrat – in this election. There is good reason.
For the past two elections, the incumbent Jordan Teuscher has represented South Jordan and West Jordan communities in House District 44, but he’s failing to serve constituents here. He doesn’t represent our values, he doesn’t serve our community, or the interests of Utah voters. I’m asking you to vote for what’s best for you, what’s best for our district, and what’s best for Utah by helping me unseat Jordan Teuscher this election. I’m reaching out because I want to drop the rhetoric and focus on what’s best for Utahns.
Teuscher leads, and actively works against Utah voters better interests, including yours:
Teuscher was the House floor sponsor of SJR401, which became Amendment D to strip Utah voters of legislative rights (This was blocked by Utah Courts on Sep 12, 2024 for deceptive language, and for not following due process) – he now says that he will run it again
Teuscher was also the House floor sponsor of SB4002 House Sponsor of Ballot Proposition Amendments to jam through Amendment D, and Amendment A in 2024, which are both voided on our ballots.
Teuscher voted for HJR14 to make it more difficult for Citizen Initiatives to pass (Failed/Not Passed)
Teuscher sponsored HB185 Primary Ballot Requirements to remove candidates who qualify through signature gathering process (Failed/Not Passed). This affects the Republican party, and as much as you may be vested in your closed primary, he’s attempting to change the rules to make it more difficult for Republican candidates to participate in Utah’s election process.
Teuscher is writing bills poorly that are caught up in expensive legal battles that Utah eventually loses:
Teuscher sponsored the Minor Protection in Social Media Act (Blocked by Utah Courts for violating 1st amendment rights) – this was a good idea but executed poorly because it ignored first amendment rights in the bill language.
Teuscher defends Amendment D (which I tear apart here) with misinformation and lies. The cost for taxpayers to write the bill, publish on ballots, defend lawsuits and ultimately lose BADLY is not just embarrassing, it’s expensive.
Teuscher also decries the Utah Supreme Court decisions to allow the Gerrymandering case to proceed in the lower court, as well as the injunction upheld by the Utah Supreme court on Utah’s trigger law. Checks and balances are expensive when Jordan is involved.
Teuscher actively works against the better interest of our public (state, county, municipal, school and first response) employees
Teuscher was the sponsor of HB285 Labor Union Amendments to weaken public employee rights (Failed/Not Passed).
He repeatedly submits bills that dismantle worker rights, and he consistently targets our public employees every time.
Teuscher doesn’t care about religious freedoms
Teuscher was the House floor sponsor for SB150 Exercise of Religion Amendments to protect discriminatory acts based on religious belief (Passed)
Teuscher voted for HB269 to add Ten Commandments to public school curricula (Passed, expect civil liberties groups to file suit)
With vouchers, the 5 elementary schools, 3 middle schools and 1 public charter in our district lose funding. Vouchers take our tax-payer dollars and move them outside of our district to private schools or home school programs that don’t have the same accreditation, accountability or performance that our public schools have.
If you made it this far, thank you. We need a better voice in the Utah legislature. I’m asking you to consider making a vote for me based on your conscience and for better engagement.
Be Well,
Greg Green Candidate, Utah House District 44 running against Jordan Teuscher
The best explanation is that Brad Wilson sponsored the bill before he left for his Senate race so that he could curry favor with rural Republicans, who embrace the idea of a Constitutional Sheriff. Of course, Brad lost any more opportunity when his campaign didn’t survive in the Republican Primary to John Curtis.
The bill originated as 2023 HRJ010, and was one of the last bills that Brad Wilson sponsored before he left office last year. In the October 4 podcast of City Cast Salt Lake, Robert Gehrke of the Salt Lake Tribune opines that it was downplayed.
Wilson says it doesn’t really change anything, but there is this undercurrent, this philosophy in conservative circles of a constitutional sheriff, which says that the sheriff is the supreme law of the county. This kind of plays into that. You can’t have a constitutional sheriff unless your sheriff is in the constitution. – Robert Gehrke (paraphrased)
The Constitutional Sheriff movement is about sheriffs having the power to interpret and enforce the constitution. Amendment C has nothing to do with sheriffs enforcing the constitution or giving sheriffs extra power. But it does embed the election of the Sheriff in Utah’s constitution, rather than simply have a law in Utah code. And Gehrke’s line of thought supports this idea of a Constitutional Sheriff in Utah.
Another suggested explanation for Amendment C was that Republicans were angry with Salt Lake County Sheriff Rivera, and threatened to change the law to make Sheriffs appointed instead of elected so they could remove her. However this doesn’t make much sense. The appointment would be by the local authority, and Salt Lake County is predominantly Democratic. By election law, impeachment is still possible. Republicans in the legislature know this, and with Brad Wilson and Stuart Adams as sponsors, there is zero chance that they were seeking to preserve Sheriff Rivera’s electability.
2023 was a tumultuous year for the Salt Lake County Sheriff and UPD. It’s worth noting that 2023 HB374, sponsored by Rep Jordan Teuscher, removed the Salt Lake County sheriff as CEO of the Unified Police Department and ultimately dissolves the agency in 2025, leaving Holladay, Midvale, Millcreek, Kearns, Copperton, White City and Magna to find new law enforcement services.
Rivera opposed the Teuscher bill to separate UPD from the Sheriff’s office in 2023, then decided she was okay with it. I’m wondering if this is another case where the GOP did something and she was like, what the hell but okay.
For the record, the Salt Lake County Democratic Party does recommend a “For” vote. I requested more information, and this statement was provided:
“As the Salt Lake County Democratic Party, our primary role is to support Democratic candidates who serve our community, and we are proud to stand behind Sheriff Rosie Rivera. Voting “Yes” on Amendment C is crucial because it ensures that the position of sheriff remains an elected one—decided by the people, not appointed by officials. By doing so, we protect the democratic process and safeguard the accountability that comes from direct elections. This is not only important for Sheriff Rivera, but also opens the door for more diverse candidates, including women and people of color, to compete fairly for the role. A “Yes” vote on Amendment C would enshrine in the state constitution that every county will elect a sheriff to serve four-year terms. This maintains the voice of the community in choosing its leaders and supports a fairer, more inclusive system of representation.”
Both side provide similar arguments on how elections or appointments make the community better. Elections allow anyone who meets qualifications for the office to run and hold the position, and are considered “safe” from political disputes while in office. This also means that an elected sheriff can run off the rails (think Joe Arpaio in Arizona) and not suffer consequences. Appointments make a sheriff more accountable to leadership and the community but can become tangled in political controversy. Appointments are more likely to be a cis-gendered white male, so if diversity is your thing you may want to elect your sheriff.
We don’t have a clear picture of the “why” behind this amendment, but it’s safe to say that the need to transform how a sheriff takes their role in Utah counties isn’t at risk today, and has little chance of being altered as a law in the future. Changing Utah’s code so that the election of a Sheriff is written into the Utah Constitution seems to only serve the narrow purpose of making right-wing conservatives think they are one step closer to having their version of a Constitutional Sheriff within Utah’s borders.
There isn’t a clear picture on whether to vote “For” or Against” Amendment C, but I am voting against it without a compelling reason to change the existing law.
For transparency, I am providing my answers to a survey from the Salt Lake Tribune so that my positions on these questions can be shared with constituents.
The Salt Lake Tribune is reaching out to competitors in this year’s election to help voters understand candidates’ policy positions in the Salt Lake Tribune 2024 legislative candidate voter guide.
To make this easy for candidates and readers, we’ve created a simple Google form with open-ended and yes/no questions. The open-ended questions have a character limit to ensure fairness in answer length for each candidate in the race. Questions that require written answers will be edited for grammar and clarity.
Jeff Parrott, The Tribune’s politics editor, can respond to any questions, concerns or comments and can be reached at jparrott@sltrib.com.
1) Utah’s largest electricity provider has canceled plans to replace its coal-fired power plants with nuclear power and has walked back comments about investing in clean energy. Should Utah be looking for more sustainable and less fossil fuel and carbon-dependent energy sources? If so, how? (150 chars)
Answer: We need to embrace clean energy by investing in development of clean energy tech & producing jobs to replace economies built on fossil fuel industry.
2) Water scarcity continues to be a challenge for the state. Recent legislation has attempted to conserve water and to get more water to the Great Salt Lake and Colorado River. Should Utah do more to subsidize homeowners’ efforts to conserve water? What other steps should be taken to deal with water scarcity? (250 chars)
Answer: Water rights are coming to a legal loggerhead, and we need to prepare for a revision on shared water resources. Reshape ag with less water intensive crops and stock. Revise community plans to support water conservation and more shared spaces.
3) What policy changes would you support to address Utah’s affordable housing crisis? (250 chars)
Answer: Infrastructure (public transit/broadband) to incentivize suburban growth, revised permitted use for combination business/residential, improve multi-generational tenancy & ADUs, home improvement programs, small home (<1200 sq/ft) and starter incentives
Oct 8 update (not part of my survey response): I met with some homeowners who had concerns about zoning changes in South Jordan residential properties that could negatively impact lifestyle and traffic in their area, and agree that these are legitimate concerns. Planning commissions are a first point of contact for residents to discuss city and county strategies, but there should be priority given to existing residents who wish to keep existing zoning laws that protect their investment in spacious communities that afford privacy and quiet space.
4) Following the Utah Supreme Court’s recent decision to keep a near-total abortion ban blocked, anti-abortion lawmakers and advocates called for additional legislative action to circumvent the court-ordered injunction. Would you support banning abortion after six weeks? (Y/N)
Answer: No
5) Would you support a state constitutional amendment to ban abortion? (Y/N)
Answer: No
6) Should there be other restrictions on reproductive health care — especially fertility treatments like in vitro fertilization? (150 chars)
Answer: Services need to be generally available to the public that start with appropriate sex education in schools, and no bans on reproductive health care.
7) Are you voting for or against the constitutional amendment that removes the requirement that income taxes be used for education and social services? Why? (250 chars)
Answer: Against. Legislators want access to spend that money, and force public education to compete in the general fund. This is one more step to dismantle public education in Utah.
8) A Utah judge has voided Amendment D and said votes for or against it cannot be counted, but the state is appealing. Do you support changing the Utah Constitution to guarantee that the Legislature can repeal or amend ballot initiatives? (Y/N)
On Saturday, September 28, Sen Lincoln Fillmore, Rep Susan Pulsipher, and Rep Jordan Teuscher held a townhall at Bingham Creek Library in West Jordan. The recording we captured is below, and starts at question #3 because we arrived late. I start with my own comments before linking audio, and leading into a summary of the discussion.
MY TOP PRIORITIES My obvious first objective is to unseat Jordan Teuscher. Having said that, my top priorities for 2025 would be as follows, noting that in the past Utah’s General Session is 6 weeks of responding to bad ideas:
Support redress following a court decision on LWV Utah v. Utah State Legislature by re-implementing the Independent Redistricting Commission, then implementing maps based on their recommendations before 2026 elections begin
Address government overreach (citizen initiatives, defend constitutional checks and balances, private access to medical, first amendment)
Address Prioritization of bills
When infrastructure bills are seconded to who is allowed to use a bathroom, we have a problem. When books are banned in public schools, when phones are banned but guns aren’t, we have a problem
When “good enough to get by” isn’t, we have a problem
Support our public schools
Support their funding, support the teachers, support the librarians to do their jobs.
Improve cost and quality of living
cost of living (rent/affordable homes), clean air, public access, transit, services
On Amendment D, the Utah Supreme Court said: “The peoples’ right to alter or reform the government is constitutionally protected”
There are no “superlaws”. There have never been any foreign interests introducing legislation through Citizen Initiatives into Utah
The Utah Supreme Court noted that the Legislature cannot overturn or repeal an initiative without a compelling reason
Utah is 2nd to Wyoming in the nation for restrictions on passing a citizens initiative
In 2018 there were 3 ballot initiatives: Redistricting, Medicaid Expansion, Medical Marijuana. None of them were implemented as passed.
There is a national trend in Republican states to make it harder to pass initiatives.
LWVU v. LEGISLATURE “Therefore, we hold that when Utahns exercise their right to reform the government through a citizen initiative, their exercise of these rights is protected from government infringement. This means that government-reform initiatives are constitutionally protected from unfettered legislative amendment, repeal, or replacement. Although the Legislature has authority to amend or repeal statutes, it is well settled that legislative action cannot unduly infringe or restrain the exercise of constitutional rights. Consequently, when Utahns exercise their right to reform the government through an initiative, this limits the Legislature’s authority to amend or repeal the initiative. This does not mean that the Legislature cannot amend a government-reform initiative at all.Rather, legislative changes that facilitate or support the reform, or at least do not impair the reform enacted by the people, would not implicate the people’s rights under the Alter or Reform Clause. Legislative changes that do impair the reforms enacted by the people could also survive a constitutional challenge, if the Legislature shows that they were narrowly tailored to advance a compelling government interest.”
2024 BALLOT QUESTIONS
County Proposal 8 – FOR – reauthorization of the 0.1% ZAP tax
SLCO Bond $507M ($60/YR over 25 Years) – FOR
Amendment A – voided by the Utah Supreme Court on October 9, 2024
Amendment B – FOR – State School Fund from 4% to 5%
Amendment C – AGAINST – County Sheriff elections (currently elected in the state, not necessary to enshrine in Utah Constitution)
Amendment D – voided by the Utah Supreme Court on September 25, 2024
FEDERAL LANDS I think my time in office is going to be better spent on helping constituents in a more direct way like mental health services, education, housing etc.
Responding to comments from Sen Lincoln Fillmore about reclaiming the 70% of federal lands in Utah:
Does getting back the 70% mean they want to get rid of Utah tourism money to the National Parks? How do we pay for the management of the lands?
Does the 70% figure also include military bases like Hill and Dugway? Are we getting rid of those too?
How will we keep lands public and at the same time increase our tax base?
How will Federal jobs be affected? What is the plan to help all the people affected?
Where is the money to cover lost resources? Are we going to buy them or rent them back? Like the 31 engines and multiple firefighting helicopters from the BLM? https://www.blm.gov/programs/fire/regional-info/utah
TOWNHALL QUESTIONS (RECORDED)
Q3: On Citizen Initiatives
Pulsipher – Legislative Process doesn’t mention appropriations and rules
Audience comment: “open” is not truly open when a supermajority owns priority and calendar
Fillmore – we’ve spent time on this, lets move on
Teuscher – brings up Social Media bill, thinks its a high risk. Wasn’t there in 2018 for the passing of initiatives, but legislature “compromised” the bill after it was passed, same with medical marijuana
Q4: On Better Boundaries There is no parity for Utahns with redistricting where districts became “safe for Republicans”, that disenfranchised voters
Fillmore: who thinks that Prop4 Redistricting was going to be fair? Prop4 created the independent legislature, but no provision to adopt. Did the legislature following the intent of the voters? Fillmore scuttles the question
Fillmore: Medical Marijuana would have legalized recreational marijuana
Fillmore: REDIRECTS TOPIC – talks about Federal govt, Federal deficit, issue is 70% of land owned by Fed, no property tax, tries to tie this to education and property taxes. What about Amendment A? Audience comment: Federal Lands has nothing to do with Better Boundaries decision by Utah Supreme Court
Pulsipher: the legislature voted on it Audience comment: The *Supermajority
Fillmore: We answered the question
Pulsipher: something, something, “my reasons”
Teuscher: go to your legislator, worked on Salt Lake County, it’s a puzzle, didn’t like that his street could have been split but acknowledges others are impacted in exactly the same way.
Q5: Why is there such a disconnect between citizen initiatives and the legislature? Why would the Citizen’s Initiative pass, then have such little relation to what the legislature passes?
Pulsipher: In my years I have never had anyone approach to work with me beforehand (???) Why would she be approached if she won’t be friendly to the bill?
Fillmore: power allocation; “Voters elect, have initiative and referendum power” Doesn’t mention that the Utah Constitution says that legislative power is shared with the legislature AND the people. Doesn’t mention the Utah Courts disagree with Legislative overreach.
Fillmore: Federally, marijuana will likely reschedule in 2026 from schedule 1 to schedule 3 (note: marijuana has been available for several years as a prescription for epilepsy, it’s called Epidiolex)
Q6: Utah best qualities? Gov Cox says its the people of Utah
Fillmore: culture, families, volunteerism, charitable giving, good state policies. Likes to think it’s the church’s influence. Legislative staff is non-partisan, works for both houses.
Teuscher: Social capital. Good state processes, staff
Pulsipher: balanced budget is constitutional
Q7: On Amendment A Education account – wants it to be used for other purposes, why?
Fillmore: voted to place it on ballot. The “problem” is income tax is growing, faster than population. General fund doesn’t have enough. Cut Medicaid or building roads, or public funds? (this is a lie) Gas tax, sales tax is shrinking.
Pulsipher: 2008 downturn of economy, taxes down so education cut, income tax is volatile. If you lose your job you still have to buy food, pay property taxes, more stable. (another lie about instability driving the trust fund – the fund has grown from $18 million in 1983 to over $3.3 billion in 2024)
Speaker: you’re changing the constitution, trying to open money to other spending
Q8: Venezuelan gang related shootings, suppressed in news, 100 ESL students in Jordan District schools that required the hire of additional staff, Utah as a sanctuary state, what are we doing about immigration? Note: I’m sorry, but what?
Teuscher: Thinks it’s an issue. Emailing for details with Jordan School District but they are only providing aggregated data due to privacy concerns.
Audience comment: proud that we welcome immigrants who want to better their lives
Q9: Education: money going in vs audit of outcome?
Fillmore: Auditor monitors performance, this is measured
Audience comment: Graduation rate for Salt Lake County? (Jordan District was 88% – 2023) and more recent behavior problems in schools?
Note of interest: vouchers weren’t mentioned, but are not audited once funds are distributed.
Q10: On Traffic
Need infrastructure to accommodate growth, need East/West commute capacity
Fillmore: Bangerter to remove lights, MVC will take longer
Pulsipher: Bangerter is fast-tracked with extra money from COVID spending
Teuscher: looking for expansions on Redline Trax, bus services (improvements in public transit). There are 2 lines in South Jordan, but no bus service in Herriman or Bluffdale
