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 bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its west by Nevada. Utah also touches a corner of New Mexico in the southeast. Of the fifty U.S. states, Utah is the 13th-largest by area; with a population over three million, it is the 30th-most-populous and 11th-least-densely populated. Urban development is mostly concentrated in two areas: the Wasatch Front in the north-central part of the state, which is home to roughly two-thirds of the population and includes the capital city, Salt Lake City; and Washington County in the southwest, with 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 is part of the Salt Lake City Metropolitan Statistical 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 23,617 at the 2010 census.
Ross Carl "Rocky" Anderson is an American attorney, writer, activist, and civil and human rights advocate. He served two terms as the 33rd Mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah from 2000 to 2008. He is currently seeking a third term in the 2023 Salt Lake City mayoral election.
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.
Bennion Lloyd Spencer is a journalist and professor, and was the 2008 Democratic candidate for Utah's 3rd congressional district running against Republican Jason Chaffetz.
Ludmya "Mia" Love is an American political commentator and former politician who served as the U.S. representative for Utah's 4th congressional district from 2015 to 2019. A Haitian American, she was the first black person elected to Congress from Utah, the first Haitian-American elected to Congress, and the first black woman elected to Congress as a Republican.
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.
John Ream Curtis is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative for Utah's 3rd congressional district since 2017. Before his election to Congress, Curtis, a Republican, served as mayor of Provo, Utah, from 2010 to 2017. On November 7, 2017, he won a special election to replace Jason Chaffetz in Congress after Chaffetz resigned. He was reelected in 2018, 2020, and 2022.
Elections were held on November 2, 2010 to determine Utah's three members of the United States House of Representatives. Representatives were elected for two-year terms to serve in the 112th United States Congress from January 3, 2011 until January 3, 2013. Primary elections were held on June 22, 2010.
Eborn Books is a bookstore and book publisher located on the Wasatch Front with its main store in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States.
Aimee Winder Newton is an American politician and member of the Salt Lake County Council representing the 3rd district. On October 23, 2019, Winder Newton announced her candidacy for Governor of Utah in 2020. Winder Newton would be the first female candidate for Governor to appear on the ballot for either party.
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.
The 2020 Utah gubernatorial election was held on November 3, 2020, to elect the governor of Utah, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Although incumbent Republican Governor Gary Herbert was eligible to run for re-election to a third full term, he initially announced shortly after being re-elected in 2016 that he would not run again, but indicated in January 2019 that he was open to the possibility of running again before ultimately deciding to retire and endorse his lieutenant governor, Spencer Cox. Utah has not had a Democratic governor since Scott M. Matheson left office in January 1985. This is the second longest active streak of one-party leadership, trailing only South Dakota, which has not had a Democratic governor since Harvey L. Wollman left office in 1979.
The 2024 United States Senate election in Utah will be held on November 5, 2024, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the state of Utah. Incumbent Senator Mitt Romney (R) was elected with 62.6% of the vote in 2018 and has declined to seek a second term. Utah is considered a safe red state by election analysts; no Democrat has served in the Senate from the state since Frank Moss left office in 1977. Primary elections will take place on June 25, 2024.
The 2022 United States Senate election in Utah was held on November 8, 2022, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Utah. Incumbent Senator Mike Lee, who was first elected in 2010, won re-election to a third term, defeating Evan McMullin, an independent candidate who was endorsed by the Utah Democratic Party.
Blake David Moore is an American politician and former diplomat from the state of Utah. He is the U.S. representative for Utah's 1st congressional district, serving since January 2021.
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.
The 2023 Utah's 2nd congressional district special election is an upcoming special election to choose a new member of the U.S. House of Representatives. The seat became vacant following Republican representative Chris Stewart's resignation on September 15, 2023, due to his wife's ongoing health issues.
