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SALT LAKE CITY — As Election Day nears and the most intense phase of the campaign season looms, Utah's Democrats say they're braced and ready to wage electoral battle.
Some are even talking about one day converting Republican Utah into a battleground state.
"Everybody is just fired up and ready to get to work," Ben Peck, part of the Utah delegation at the Democratic National Convention, said Thursday from the convention site in Chicago.
President Joe Biden's poor debate showing against GOP presidential hopeful Donald Trump on June 27 prompted consternation among many Democrats, but Darlene McDonald, another of Utah's 34 delegates, said the attitude has shifted dramatically. Biden ended his reelection bid and Vice President Kamala Harris replaced Biden as the Democratic hopeful and is to formally accept the party's presidential nomination Thursday night, culminating the convention's activities.
"We feel hope has come back and you can feel that throughout all the halls we are in," McDonald said from Chicago.
Along with that enthusiasm, Utah Democrats are readying to start knocking on doors and calling would-be supporters to promote the party's other hopefuls in races across the state. McDonald said some Utahns may travel to Arizona and Nevada to aid Democrats in those presidential battleground states in campaigning for Harris. Among the Utah races getting their focus, the delegates variously pointed to the gubernatorial race, four Salt Lake County Council contests and two Utah House races in Weber County, among others.
"If we work hard, we are going to flip the Salt Lake County Council," said Mason Hughes, communications director for the Utah Democratic Party. As is, Republicans hold a 5-4 edge over Democrats on the body, but with four seats up for election this cycle, he's hopeful Democrats can win three spots, gaining the majority.
Hughes also said the races for the District 9 and 10 seats in Weber County will be a focus. Democrat Rosemary Lesser holds the District 10 spot, the only legislative seat held by a Democrat outside Salt Lake County, and faces a challenge from Republican Jill Koford. District 9 Rep. Calvin Musselman, a Republican, is running for a Utah Senate post, resulting in a battle for that House seat between Democrat Angela Choberka, Republican Jake Sawyer and Libertarian Jacob Johnson.
Republican Phil Lyman's write-in gubernatorial bid could siphon votes from Gov. Spencer Cox, also a GOPer, in his reelection effort, Hughes thinks, bolstering the chances of Democrat Brian King, a member of the Utah House.
Indeed, Tim Chambless, another Utah delegate, described the array of Democrats in Chicago, coming from around the country, as unified and brimming with optimism.
"It's enthusiasm, not dread. Very upbeat. What can I say? It's joyful. It's a joyfest," he said.
At the presidential level, the Utah Democrats said the replacement of Biden by Harris as the party candidate has injected them with new energy, figuring in the positive outlook.
As it was, some Democrats were of the mindset that they would vote for Biden out of a sense of duty despite any reservations prompted by his debate performance, McDonald said. "Two months ago at this point, things were looking a bit bleak," Peck said.
Though there's plenty of love and respect for the president, Harris has helped turn that attitude of despair regarding Biden's electoral chances around, and now people are enthused about voting. "It is a shot of adrenaline when people vote because they want to vote," McDonald said.
McDonald, a former Democratic U.S. House hopeful, even talks about turning Utah blue over the long haul, within a decade. That echoes comments at the convention by Diane Lewis, the party chairwoman, who called Utah "the next battleground state," alluding to the state's young and growing population.
"We have to live our values. Just because we live in Utah doesn't mean we don't have to live our values," McDonald said.
