The rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people in the U.S. state of Utah have significantly evolved in the 21st century. Protective laws have become increasingly enacted since 2014, despite the state's reputation as socially conservative and highly religious. Same-sex marriage has been legal since the state's ban was ruled unconstitutional by federal courts in 2014. In addition, statewide anti-discrimination laws now cover sexual orientation and gender identity in employment and housing, and the use of conversion therapy on minors is prohibited. In spite of this, there are still a few differences between the treatment of LGBT people and the rest of the population, and the rights of transgender youth are restricted.
The Utah Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Utah. Its platform focuses on economic security, equal opportunity, the common good, and American leadership. The party also describes itself as a big tent party.
Patricia W. "Pat" Jones is an American politician from Utah. A Democrat, she was a member of the Utah State Senate from 2006 to 2014, and currently runs the Women’s Leadership Institute in Utah. She is also senior adviser at Cicero Group, a research and strategy firm in Salt Lake City.
Lyle W. Hillyard is a Utah politician and an attorney. A Republican, he was a member of the Utah State Senate, representing the state's 25th senate district in Cache and Rich Counties including the city of Logan. He served in the legislature from 1981 to 2020, first as a representative from 1981 to 1984, then as a senator from 1985 to 2020.
Karen Mayne is an American politician who served as a member of the Utah Senate from the 5th District. She assumed office on January 2, 2008, succeeding her husband, Ed Mayne. She won re-election for the 12th senate district after redistricting. On January 4, 2023 Karen Mayne announced her plan to resign office due to unexpected changes in her health. The Utah Democratic Party held a special election on January 15, 2023, in which at the time Representative Karen Kwan was elected to fill her seat.
Luz Robles Escamilla is the Senator for the Utah State Senate's 10th District. Prior to redistricting she represented the 1st District, defeating Republican Carlton Christensen for the seat November 4, 2008 after having beaten incumbent Sen. Fred Fife for the party nomination earlier that year.
Stephen Hale Anderson is an inactive Senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit.
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 last Democrat to represent Utah in Congress.
Jim Dabakis is an American politician from Salt Lake City, Utah. While now a Republican for primary voting purposes, he served as a member of the Utah State Senate as a Democrat, where he represented the state's 2nd senate district.
J. Stuart Adams is the Senator for the Utah State Senate's 7th District. Prior to redistricting he represented the 22nd District. Adams was appointed to the Utah House of Representatives in 2002, and then to the Senate in 2009. In 2012, he was chosen to be Senate Majority Whip. In 2018, he was chosen as the Senate President.
Angela Romero is an American politician and the Democratic leader of the Utah House of Representatives representing the 25th District since January 1, 2023. Prior to redistricting, she represented the 26th District since January 1, 2013.
Stuart C. Reid is a former American politician and a Republican member of the Utah State Senate representing District 18 from 2011 to 2015.
The 2016 United States Senate election in Utah took place on November 8, 2016, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Utah, concurrently with the 2016 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections.
Jani Iwamoto is a former Democratic member of the Utah Senate, representing the 4th District. Previously she served as a council member of the Salt Lake County Council.
Derek Kitchen is an American politician from Salt Lake City, Utah. He is a member of the Utah State Senate representing Utah's 2nd senate district, and formerly a Councilmember on the Salt Lake City Council representing Council District 4. In 2023, Kitchen was appointed by President Joe Biden to serve as Senior Vice President of Congressional and Intergovernmental Affairs at the U.S. Export-Import Bank.
Kathleen Riebe is an American politician from Salt Lake City, Utah. She was a member of the Utah State Board of Education through 2018, and now represents Utah's 15th senate district in the Utah State Senate. Prior to redistricting she represented the 8th district. On May 31, 2023, she announced to KSL News Radio that she was running in the 2023 Utah's 2nd congressional district special election. She was nominated by the Utah Democratic Party to be their candidate in the general election.
Carl Albrecht is an American politician who has served in the Utah House of Representatives from the 70th district since 2017.
The state of Utah has an increasingly diverse population, home to hundreds of thousands of Hispanic/Latino people who share ancestry from Latin American countries. It is estimated that there are roughly 383,400 residents of Hispanic/Latino descent currently living in Utah.
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.
Michael N Martinez was the first Hispanic American lawyer in Utah. He went on to a long career in the law working in both government and private practice. He was a "vocal minority rights advocate" during his career, serving on many boards and commissions dedicated to furthering the rights of Hispanics and other people of color.
