PREAMBLE

The core values of the Democratic Party include equal rights for all Americans, equal protection for all Americans, equal opportunity for all Americans and respect for and fidelity to the United States and Utah Constitutions. The Utah Democratic Lawyers Council is created to promote increased participation of lawyers in the political process to advance these core values.

For government to serve its citizens well, it is critical that elected officials listen to the concerns of its people and remain open to new and progressive solutions to problems affecting the public interest. It is essential to have balance of power between the two parties to achieve those ends.

In recent years, this balance of power has not existed. The Utah Republican Party has abused its power by creating unfairly "gerrymandered" legislative districts which, even conservative media have acknowledged, are the most unfair of any state in America. Utah's Republican Party is dominated by far right wing interests which neither listen to, nor represent the views and concerns of most Utah citizens. The Utah Republican Party and its elected officials frequently refuse to work in good faith with Utah Democratic legislators. Today, the Utah Republican Party even ignores, pressures and/or ostracizes moderate republican legislators. We, the founders of the Utah Democratic Lawyers Council, believe that this must stop. A two party system must be restored in Utah. The progressive and egalitarian values of the Democratic Party should inform and influence the governance of our state.

The legal profession, and lawyers individually have historically played an important role in politics and government. The founders of the Utah Democratic Lawyers Council believe that increased participation of Utah lawyers in politics and government will help restore balance to the political process and will lead to a more informed, more responsive and more innovative government which is better able to face the challenges and meet the needs of all Utahns.

We, Utah's Democratic and progressive independent lawyers, acknowledge that by organizing and committing to participate in the activities of the Utah Democratic Lawyers Council, we will individually and collectively become leaders in changing the political culture in Utah.

November 5, 2008

Dear UDLC member and prospective members:

What happened in the nation last night is deeply inspiring to all Democrats. What happened in Utah suggests the reasons why the UDLC, going forward, needs to grow and become a strong organization.

In 2008, Utah saw six Democratic attorney candidates run for office which were financially supported by UDLC. Four won their races.

Brian King in House District 28 won handily in a district that is evenly split between Democrats and Republicans. Brian won because he was a great candidate and had tremendous support, much of it from fellow lawyers.

Peter Corroon won by a huge margin. He is a great example of a lawyer who has put ego aside, works hard for better government and is really responsive to his constituents.

Jani Iwamoto won a very important race for a seat on the Salt Lake County Council. Her win gives Democrats a majority on SLCO Council and with a Democratic mayor, we will see more progressive policymaking in Salt Lake County government.

Claudia McMullin won her race for the Summit County council and will be a great addition to a county facing major growth and development challenges.

Kathy Lofft ran a really good race against Mel Brown in District 53. She polled 45%, which was about 6 % higher than the votes Democrats received in this district in 2006. Kathy lost only because rural (and overwhelmingly Republican) Morgan County was gerrymandered into this electoral map. Brown's entire margin of victory came from this one area. In the rest of her district (mostly Summit County), Kathy won by a significant margin.

Jean Welch Hill was defeated in her race for Attorney General, but Jean ran an important campaign that highlighted some serious issues, including the need for reform of usurious interest rates charged by payday lenders and important ethics concerns (Our AG has issued "no bid" state legal contracts in situations where he had personal conflicts of interest which he did not disclose).

These races illustrate why UDLC will make a difference in future elections. Brian King's race was well funded and widely supported by lawyers. Jean Hill's race was under-funded and therefore she faced a huge organizational disadvantage.

Despite lawyer successes, we have a long way to go to attain balanced government in Utah. We picked up a few seats, including ouster of House Speaker Greg Curtis. But Greg Hughes and Chris Buttars narrowly won reelection.

When we formed this organization, I suggested that our mission of rebuilding Democratic political leadership in state government would take several election cycles to achieve. We made progress in 2008 and with two more years to build the strength of UDLC, working together, we will make it happen!


Jeffrey Eisenberg,
Utah Democratic Lawyers Council


 

From the first forum: "Fallout from one-party rule in State Government." at the Hinckley Institute of Politics, October 28.

 

On October 28 before a full caucus room at the Hinckley Institute of Politics, The Utah Democratic Lawyers Council held the first of many forums for its members. The topic was "Fallout from one-party rule in State Government." The panelists were Utah's elected Democratic lawyers, including Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon, Democratic National Committeewoman and formar state legislator Patrice Arent, State Senator Scott McCoy, and State Senator Ross Romero. The UDLC now has over 200 members and continues to grow.


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Mayor Peter Corroon discussed the fact that at the county level a gift ban to elected officials has been put in place, a measure that has been routinely defeated at the Republican controlled State Legislature.

Citing the late Afton Bradshaw, Patrice Arent said, "Until more Democrats are elected, moderate Republicans will not be heard at the Legislature."

Senator Ross Romero citing the current situation with a Republican super-majority in the Legislature, stated that for many issues on the table, "There will be no public discussion."

Senator McCoy in discussing the next redistricting effort in 2011 stated that, "Voters should choose their elected officials, elected officials shouldn't choose who votes for them."


Utah Democratic Lawyers Council - 215 S. State St. 9th Floor - Salt Lake City, Utah 84111 - Office (801) 366-9100 - Fax (801) 350-0065