Business career
Winder was Business Development Manager for West Valley City from 2000 to 2004,during which time he also chaired the Chamber West Economic Development Committee. [6]
From 2004 to 2009 he was vice president of marketing for Winder Farms. [7] He was director of public affairs for The Summit Group Communications from 2009 to 2011. [8]
Winder founded Neptune Strategies in 2012,a marketing and development firm. [9] His principal client has been Friends of Traditional Banking,a Super PAC,where he has served as executive director. [10] [11]
Winder later was employed as a vice president of community development and director of entrepreneurship programs for Zions Bank from 2014 to 2017. [12] He was hired as economic development manager in 2017 and later promoted to be assistant city manager for the city of Millcreek,Utah following their incorporation. [13] In March 2022,Winder became Millcreek's city manager. [14]
Political career
Winder has served as a member of the state and Salt Lake County Republican Party Executive Committees,deputy campaign manager for Congressman James V. Hansen,and chair of the Research and Policy Committee for the Jon Huntsman,Jr. for Governor campaign. He is the founder of the GenX GOP Network. [15]
He was elected to an at-large seat on the West Valley City Council in November 2005 with 71% of the vote over 12-year incumbent Barbara Thomas. [16]
He was elected on November 3,2009 as the seventh mayor of West Valley City,Utah,with 76% of the vote;his opponent was Kevin Fayles. [17]
At 29,he was the youngest council person in city history,and when sworn in on January 4,2010,at age 33,he became the youngest mayor in city history. [18]
In 2012,Winder and former county council member Mark Crockett emerged from the Salt Lake County Republican Convention field of six to face off for the GOP nomination for county mayor. [19] Crockett narrowly defeated Winder in the GOP primary election,50.7% to 49.3%. [20]
In 2016,Winder ran for the Utah State House of Representatives,defeating incumbent Fred Cox in the Salt Lake County Republican Convention by a delegate vote of 62% to 38%. [21] He went on to defeat his Democratic opponent Frank Bedolla 59% to 41%. [22] He was sworn in as a member of the Utah State House of Representatives on January 1,2017.
Winder was re-elected in 2018,following a victory over former-Representative Fred Cox in a Republican county convention rematch 67% to 33% [23] and a general election win over Democrat Robert Burch,Jr. 57% to 43%. Winder was elected to a third term in 2020 in a rematch with Burch,58% to 42%. [24] In 2022,Rep. Winder announced he will be retiring from the legislature,as he was appointed unanimously to be the new city manager for Millcreek. He took office on March 7. [25]
During the 2022 legislative session,Rep. Winder served on the Business,Economic Development,and Labor Appropriations Subcommittee,the House Economic Development and Workforce Services Committee,and the House Transportation Committee, [26] where he served as its vice-chair. [27]
Political Positions and Significant Legislation
In 2022,Rep. Winder sponsored HB178,"Rank Choice Voting Amendments",which would require "ranked-choice voting to be used to multi-candidate primaries and general elections." [28] The bill was going to be considered in committee but was taken off the agenda in the last minute after a big push from groups on the political right to oppose the bill. [29]
In 2022,Rep. Winder voted to cut the income tax rate from 4.95% to 4.85%. [30] He also supported creating a state earned income tax credit. In an op-ed Winder write on Deseret News,he said that "there is no public policy with a better record of drawing potential workers into the workforce than [the Earned Income Tax Credit]," and that "we cannot have an income tax cut without doing something additional that would be significant for Utah's low-and moderate-income working families." [31]
In 2022,Rep. Winder voted against banning transgender athletes from participating in female school sports. When Governor Spencer Cox vetoed the bill,Winder was one of only two republicans who opposed the override. In defending his position,Rep. Winder said,"As a fiscal conservative I cannot vote for a bill to throw away tax dollars in a losing lawsuit or to cost the state in economic opportunities all while only serving as a message of hate while being mired in court...Utah can do better!" [32]
Controversies
In 2011,Winder wrote articles promoting West Valley City for the Deseret News and KSL.com under the assumed name "Richard Burwash". The name was a pseudonym inspired by a 16th-century ancestor of Winder's. In the articles,Winder quoted himself as mayor. [39] [40]
Winder confessed to the use of a pseudonym and said he wrote the articles because he was "frustrated that the newspaper had drastically reduced its city government coverage after layoffs last year but not its crime coverage and wanted to try to restore balance." [41] Winder accepted a reprimand by the West Valley City Council,resigned from his job with a public relations firm,and issued a public apology to his constituents. [42] [43] [44]
In 2017,he sent robocalls to display a false source phone number in telephone caller ID systems,causing it to appear that the calls were coming from the cell phone of the leader of Americans for Prosperity (AFP). AFP had sent out attack mail that falsely criticized Winder's stance on an issue that never came before a vote on the House floor. [45] [46] This practice,known as "spoofing",is illegal. [46] AFP filed a complaint with the Utah Attorney General's office,but later withdrew the complaint after receiving a public apology from Winder. [46] Winder said "I was taken aback by the mail piece,and in a knee-jerk reaction sent some calls I shouldn't have. I appreciate Evelyn and her team and look forward to a better working relationship going forward." [46]
In 2017,Winder was also accused of using multiple user accounts to edit the Wikipedia article about him,to promote his accomplishments and remove unflattering information. He refused to confirm or deny the allegation. [45]
Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to its northeast, Idaho to its north, and Nevada to its west. In comparison to all the U.S. states and territories, Utah, with a population of just over three million, is the 13th largest by area, the 30th most populous, and the 11th least densely populated. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two regions: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which includes the state capital, Salt Lake City, and is home to roughly two-thirds of the population; and Washington County in the southwest, which has somewhat more than 180,000 residents. Most of the western half of Utah lies in the Great Basin.
Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The county was created in 1850. Salt Lake County is the 37th most populated county in the United States and is one of four counties in the Rocky Mountains to make it into the top 100. Salt Lake County has been the only county of the first class in Utah – under the Utah Code is a county with a population of 700,000 or greater. Although, Utah County directly to the south has recently reached this threshold.
Millcreek is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States, and part of the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. The population as of the 2020 census was 63,380. Prior to its incorporation on December 28, 2016, Millcreek was a census-designated place (CDP) and township.
South Salt Lake is a city in Salt Lake County, Utah, United States and is part of the Salt Lake City Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 26,777 at the 2020 census.
Thomas Spencer Monson was an American religious leader, author, and the 16th president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. As president, he was considered by adherents of the religion to be a prophet, seer, and revelator. Monson's early career was as a manager at the Deseret News, a Utah newspaper owned by the LDS Church. He spent most of his life engaged in various church leadership positions and public service.
James Esdras Faust was an American religious leader, lawyer, and politician. Faust was Second Counselor in the First Presidency of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1995 until his death, an LDS Church apostle for 29 years, and a general authority of the church for 35 years.
The Deseret News is a multi-platform newspaper based in Salt Lake City, published by Deseret News Publishing Company, a subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation, which is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Founded in 1850, it was the first newspaper to be published in Utah. The publication's name is from the geographic area of Deseret identified by Utah's pioneer settlers, and much of the publication's reporting is rooted in that region.
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The economy of Salt Lake City, Utah is primarily service-oriented. While nearby Bingham Canyon Mine provided a strong source of income during the 19th century, the city has evolved to an economy built on transit hubs, call centers, and seasonal tourism. The 2002 Olympic Winter Games gave a great boost to the area's economy. Many hotels and restaurants were built for the 2002 Olympics, and although many survive, they have suffered post-Olympic market saturation.
Joseph Lafayette Rawlins was a delegate to the U.S. Congress from Utah Territory and a Senator from Utah after statehood was achieved.
Ensign College is a private college in Salt Lake City, Utah. The college is owned by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and operates under its Church Educational System. It also includes an Institute of Religion and is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities.
Jenny Wilson is an American politician currently serving as the mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah. In September 2007, she was a primary candidate for mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2016, she was Utah's national committeewoman for the Democratic Party. She is the daughter of Ted Wilson, a former mayor of Salt Lake City. Wilson was the Democratic nominee in the 2018 Utah Senate race, running against Republican nominee Mitt Romney. After her election defeat, she was appointed to replace Ben McAdams as Salt Lake County Mayor, taking the oath of office in January 2019. She was elected to that position for a full four-year term in the 2020 general election.
Benjamin Michael McAdams is an American politician and attorney who served as the U.S. representative from Utah's 4th congressional district from 2019 to 2021. He was the only Democratic member of Utah's congressional delegation, and a member of the Blue Dog Coalition. From 2013 to 2019, he served as mayor of Salt Lake County, and from 2009 to 2012, he was the Utah state senator from the 2nd district, which includes Salt Lake City, South Salt Lake, and a portion of West Valley. McAdams was elected to Congress in 2018, narrowly defeating two-term Republican incumbent Mia Love. In 2020, McAdams ran for reelection, but he lost to Republican challenger Burgess Owens. He is the most recent Democrat to represent Utah in Congress.
Utah is the 30th most populous state in the United States with a population of about 3.3 million, according to projections from the US Census Bureau's 2017 estimates. The state has also been characterized by a tremendous amount of growth in the last decade, with the highest percent increase in population of any state since 2010. Utah has a surface area of 84,899 square miles, though around 80% of its population is concentrated around a metropolitan area in the north-central part of the state known as the Wasatch Front.
Eborn Books is a bookstore and book publisher located on the Wasatch Front with its main store in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States.
Doug Owens is an American politician from Utah that represents District 33 in the Utah House of Representatives. He ran for Congress twice for Utah's 4th District. He was the Democratic nominee for Congress in this district in 2014 and 2016, and he was defeated by Mia Love both times.
Joseph Layton Bishop Jr. is a retired administrator of colleges and other post-secondary educational institutions and a Latter-day Saint devotional and motivational author. His books include The Making of a Missionary and Peace be Unto Thy Soul.
Shireen Ghorbani is an American politician from Utah. She was an at-large member of the Salt Lake County Council, representing 1.1 million residents. She was selected to fill the vacancy created when Jenny Wilson became Salt Lake County Mayor. She was not re-elected during the 2020 election, losing the seat by 1,196 votes to Republican opponent Laurie Stringham. Stringham replaced Ghorbani on the council in January 2021. Ghorbani also ran unsuccessfully to represent Utah 2nd congressional district in 2018 against Chris Stewart.
The 2012 Salt Lake County mayoral election was held to elect the Mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah on November 6, 2012, alongside the presidential, House of Representatives, Senate, and gubernatorial elections. This marked the fourth election to the office since the post was created in 2000.
