To have a healthy political system, we need people who have conflicting ideas who can then come together to reach a compromise for all the people to be helped. In Utah, we do not have a healthy political system.
We have a Republican supermajority that does not represent Utah’s political demographics. We need elected officials who truly represent all of Utah. For this to happen, we need a stronger Utah Democratic Party, which means stronger party leadership.
We need leaders who can inspire passion, hope and a belief that more Democrats can be elected outside of the blue bubbles, such as Salt Lake and Park City. The party needs to support Democratic candidates and provide better infrastructure for candidates so they feel supported.
In fact, I have had more constructive conversations with Republican Rep. Chris Stewart, with whom I am currently trying to run a piece of legislation. This is a stark contrast to how I was and have been treated by the current UDP leadership and that disappoints me greatly.
There are two core problems with the current UDP leadership: There is no trust in the party leaders and they don’t know how to fight for an underdog.
In high school, I played two sports; one where we never lost a game, and the other where we lost every single game. I gave everything I had to both teams. Whether you win or lose, you support your team by giving your best effort and strategizing to win. Even in the face of overwhelming odds, you come up with an unconventional plan to win, that is leadership.
No one knows if the unprecedented events that happened to Kael Weston will ever happen again. In my eyes it was an experiment. Whether ethical or not, it failed and should not be repeated. We can’t change the past but we can change our future. It’s time to move on. We need leadership who understands what being the underdog means and how much harder you must fight for a seat at the table and to earn respect. As an underdog, you don’t ask for your seat, you have to demand it.
There is rot in this party, and it needs to be excised. This isn’t high school; we need to stop with these factions and cliques and realize that we share the same goal: to elect Democrats in Utah. We need a unifying voice of reason who has a vision of what a powerhouse, Big Tent, the Democratic Party will be in Utah. But that requires active participation by all. Anyone can help: talk to friends, help them register to vote and volunteer in whatever capacity you can. If you can donate, donate even a dollar.
Much of the money people donate is to out-of-state candidates. If we could keep 50% of that money here, we could do so much more as a party Utah is not a lost cause. It is an investment for the future and we need it desperately if we want to compete in this state.
We need to build a stronger Democratic Party so Democrats don’t think that they must register as a Republican to vote in the Republican convention and primaries so they feel that their voices have been heard. With a stronger Democratic Party, people can register as a Democrat and know that their vote and their voice matters. This also means people need to vote and be involved.
We are the fastest-growing state in the nation, and our demographics are shifting drastically. We must act upon these changing demographics and we have to elect leaders who are passionate and have visions for the future of this party and what it can be. Leaders need to motivate and energize voters to action and expand the electorate, which is not currently happening. We need leadership we can trust.
(Nick for Congress) Nick Mitchell, Democratic candidate for the 2nd Congressional District.
Nick Mitchell is a scientist, entrepreneur and was the 2022 Democratic candidate for Utah’s 2nd Congressional District. During the campaign, he traveled the state to talk with voters from Washington to Wendover to West Valley City.
