Hello John,

Travis here, Elections Manager with Stewardship Utah, bringing you our first round of election updates. Although many ballots are still being counted, we wanted to share a quick update on what we know so far. We know elections can bring both elation and depression. This one has its share of really bad and good. Let me hit on Utah elections first and then offer a quick note on national races. Most Utahns vote by mail, so there are many outstanding ballots to be counted, but here’s what we know so far.

Wins

Locally in Utah, we have a lot of wins to be excited about that will help us continue building our multi-year plans on air quality, climate action, and saving the Great Salt Lake. 

In the State Legislature, one of our biggest air quality champions, Andrew Stoddard, was reelected in a competitive race. We are happy to welcome back the up-and-coming air advocates Anthony Loubet and Tyler Clancy. We also want to congratulate many great legislative supporters and allies for their victories: Luz Escamilla, Karen Kwan, Tracy Miller, Ashlee Matthews, Sahara Hayes, Karen Kwan, Paul Cutler, Ray Ward, Sandra Hollins, Jennifer Daily-Provost, Hoang Nguyen, Grant Miller, Angela Romero, Verona Mauga, Doug Owens, Carol Spackman Moss, Jim Dunnigan, Rosalba Dominguez, Kathleen Riebe, and Gay Lynn Bennion. 

The Salt Lake County mayor and council are critical for good public lands management and improving air quality. We added two new endorsed candidates to the council and returned a great mayor. Natalie Pinkney joins the Salt Lake County Council, bringing her wealth of experience from the city level and her passion for protecting the air and water, as well as former State Senator Ross Romero. Mayor Jenny Wilson, who was reelected in a landslide, has been one of the Wasatch Mountains staunchest defenders. In San Juan County, the heart of southeastern Utah’s public lands and home of the Utah portion of the Navajo Nation, Lucille Cody was elected to the County School Board - this means San Juan County, Utah’s only Indigenous-majority county, will finally have its first-ever Indigenous majority on the school board, which could lead to huge positive changes for Native students.

Losses

While not every race turned out as we had hoped, we are immensely proud of the efforts of Stacy Bernal, Alisa Van Langeveld, Angela Choberka, Travis Smith, and Davina Smith, who ran dedicated and inspiring campaigns for the state legislature.

Though they will not be serving in office this cycle, each of them has left a lasting mark on their communities and advanced our collective work to protect Utah’s land, air, and water. Their advocacy has shaped important conversations, and we look forward to the difference they’ll make–both in their communities and through future opportunities to lead.

Too close to call

The closest races we’re following in Utah are all in Grand County: Ashley Korenblat, running for County Commission At-Large, is down by fewer than 200 votes, and Commissioners Jacques Hadler and Trisha Hedin are up by 50 votes and 15(!) votes respectively. Jason Ramsdell is further behind in a tough district, but still in a close contest. There will be enough outstanding votes in Grand County that these totals could all easily change - but to hold a majority on the Grand County Commission, with enormous implications for the spectacular public lands in that area, we need to win three of these races.

The legislative races we invested the most in this year featured two incredible unaffiliated candidates, Jessica Wignall and Patrick Belmont. They sought to upset the status quo in tough seats that Democratic candidates haven’t been able to flip. Though they both currently trail, there are still enough outstanding votes to keep our hopes high.

Rosemary Lesser, the only Democrat in the State Legislature from outside Salt Lake County and a friend of the environment, is also in an incredibly close race but up by over 2.5%. Legislative newcomer Jake Fitisemanu, a West Valley City councilman and strong environmental supporter, looks poised to flip his district and join the State House of Representatives. 

Zach Robinson and Katie Olson, are both in close races for the Salt Lake County Council. If either Zach or Katie win, the county council will have its first Democratic/pro-environment majority since 2010.

National Races

When it comes to protecting Utah’s environment, national races make a huge difference. Our biggest steps towards clean air and climate action are usually driven by federal regulations and policy. And it goes without saying the President and Congress have a massive say over our public lands.

This is why Stewardship Utah invested heavily in expanding the electorate in Arizona. With our partners at Wingbeat 88 and Natives Outdoors, we worked to register 12,000 new voters and get them to the polls.

Unfortunately, Donald Trump taking the White House and the Senate flipping to an anti-environment majority is not good news. There is no sugar coating this setback. And it will likely mean delayed air quality improvements, slowed climate action, and harm to our public lands. We aren’t giving up but we need to be honest about what this means.

Regardless of the final outcome, we are proud of all of our candidates, the hard work they put into their races, and their dedication to their constituents and our environment.

Stay tuned for another update once more votes are tallied and results are finalized. Our team is taking today off to regroup, but we will be back in action for the next election cycle soon. Thank you for standing with us.

Travis Suite,

Elections Manager

[email protected]

www.stewardshiputah.org