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Show Hingkley Journal of Politics 2005 The Utah Democrat: A Critical and Historical Analysis of the Rise and Fall of the Utah Democrats Angela Jones This essay attempts to answer two central questions by looking at the history of Utah's Democratic Party: "Why did Democrats lose power in the state of Utah?" and "How did Utah Democrats lose enough mem' hers to become the super-minority?" Specifically, issues unique to Utah and several pivotal historical events are identified. There is an emphasis on party platforms, the development of the Republican Party, and key national issues which have influenced state politics. An analysis of how the Utah Democratic Party defines itself today is also provided, emphasizing diversity within the party and how the party may grow. Lastly, theories as to how Utah Democrats may regain power, and a brief insight into what the future holds for the party, are proposed. Introduction The history of the Democratic Party in the state of Utah reads much like an amusement park ride: intense and exciting, with incredible highs and equally riveting lows. Currently, Utah Democrats are few in numbers, making it hard to believe that only two generations ago Democrats were the majority party in Utah (Dean 1983). As history has unfolded, the tides have turned and Republicans now over-whelmingly dominate Utah politics. Not only do they dominate, the Utah GOP has been unanimously dubbed the super-majority. This leads to two central questions: "Why did the Democrats lose power in the state of Utah?" and "How did the Utah Democrats lose so many members as to become the super-minority?" This essay will attempt to answer these questions by looking at the history of Utah's Democratic Party. Specifically, issues unique to Utah and several pivotal historical events will be identified. To gain better understanding there will be an emphasis on party platforms, the development of the Republican Party, and key national issues which have influenced state politics. There will also be an analysis of how the Utah Democratic Party defines itself today, with emphasis on diversity within the party. Lastly, theories as to how Utah Democrats may regain power and a brief insight into what the future holds for the party will be proposed. History of the Utah Democrats Historically, Utah has a long record of successful Democrats. When Utah was first settled by pioneers in the nineteenth century, these settlers did not claim membership to either major political party (Dean 1983). The early settlers of Utah were rebels that had come from places where they had been persecuted. For this reason, they were very idiosyncratic in their government and policy making. This included the creation of their own political party, "The People's Party," which was a church-operated entity to which all of the Mormon pioneers subscribed (Grow 1963). Utah functioned on this one-party system until applying for statehood. It was through the statehood application process that the Church originally sought to move towards conforming to national standards (Grow 1963). Most significantly, this meant participating in the national political processes. Hence, the church began assigning families to either the Republican or Democratic parties. This was done by Church leaders who would knock on household doors or visit during church ceremonies and randomly assign every other family, or split right and left sides of the congregation (Grow 1963). However, these were merely assigned political affiliations. Many of the early Utah settlers actually affiliated more with the Democratic Party (Dean 1983). Democrats have long been known as "The Party for the People" and have been largely representative of poor and working families. Early Utahns fit this demographic, thus making them sympathetic to the Democratic cause. The early 1900s were a time of growth for Utah 51 |
