Anyone explain How Salt Lake City gave us its progressive mayor.

[cyclezealot]

In the State of Utah. How can that happen. What has happened to Salt Lake City? Mayor ROcky Anderson might very well represent liberal New York. THe outstaters in Utah, must now have someplace to hate , other than Los Angeles. How can this be. Someone familiar with Utah politics, please explain. Utah has not congressional or state wide elected Democrats, right?

[proud patriot]

1. Good Question

and a big Thank You to Salt Lake City for electing him :thumbsup:

[Greeby]

2. Actually...

While I'm not a Utahn, CD2 is held by a Democrat, Jim Matheson.

Here are the stats on the Utah Congressional Delegation over the years:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_Congressional_Delegations_from_Utah

[ProSense]

3. Here is some information

Second article:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=2440453&mesg_id=2440453

[ProSense]

8. This of course doesn't explain

Orrin Hatch. He won with 63% of the vote in 2006.

[NOLADEM]

4. Easy

Salt Lake City is to Utah what New Orleans is to Louisiana.

That is an island of reason in a sea of ideology and idiocy.

See also Atlanta, Austin, Seattle, Portland, Chapel Hill, etc.
The more severe the desert conditions, the more vibrant the oasis, so to speak.

This is in addition to the fact that many Mormons are actually the good kind of Christian, a caring, love thy enemy, open minded kind.

So, everyone in the state flocks to the only city in Utah where they won't be married off at 13. (sarcasm)

If you have never been to Salt Lake City, it is very surprising. Very liberal in ways. LOTS of freaks, tattoos, even a little gay scene and a recovery groups for those seeking to detox from Mormonism.

Neat place.

[PresidentWar]

5. You clearly don't know the real Utah

My state in fact has a rich history in liberal/progressive causes, regardless of it's well known rep as the reddest of the red states. The IWW (Industrial Workers of the World) was practically made here, remember their greatest leader and working man's troubador Joe Hill was a Utahn. Most of what he did for the early labor movement was in Utah, before the state framed him on murder charges and had him executed (the spot is not two miles from my house).

Another leader of the IWW, Big Bill Haywood, was not only a Utahn but was among the very few Americans to be buried with honors at the Kremlin.

The sufragette movement had great strength here and oddly enough, many prominent Mormon women were leading the fight.

Activist and famed folk singer Utah Phillips is....well...Utahn.

Don't be fooled. Peel away a thin but expansive veneer of conservatism in Utah and you'll find a society teeming with leftists, liberals and Progressives of all stripes.

[cyclezealot]

7. I was aware of Joe Hill.

Like Oklahoma, lots of leftists originated in these so called red regions. I believe, Oklahoma once had the greatest percentage of Socialists elected to their legislature before the Depression. Rural progressivism was once a force in these Great Plain states, after the robber barrons stole the farmers blind.
But, Still do they get elected? How far back has Salt Lake City had a history of progressive mayors? Is there a major public univeristy in Salt Lake of what? Salt Lake has very few minorities?
I tried googling this kind of information, I came up with nothing.
Think it possible Utah could ever elect a progressive governor the way Montana has? Interesting stuff. Thanks.

[pretzel4gore]

6. here's a theory...

the mormons are, to put it plainly, nice people, hard working and honest as they can be. however, they are also quite skeptical of 'official truths' in part because, well, their religion has some pretty big holes in it, which no amount of 'official story' can fill. for example, much of the early leadership of the church were polygamists, which caused the church trouble before it went to utah. all this is debateable: what isn't is that mormons might act rightwing in public, as they're expected, but they are often liberal, if only because they know how full of crap officialdom usually is! certainly when it comes to municipal affairs, an ordinary people first pol would win over a servant of the big money (which as many mormons know, often corrupts)...

[cyclezealot]

9. The prejudice against Mormons is.

THey are very generous to all humankind.As long, as they are Mormon?

[catzies]

10. SLC is an island of blue in a sea of red. Been there many times from CA

and this nonreligous liberal treehugging tofu-eating feminazi always receives a warm welcome.

[Eric J in MN]

11. Now if only New York could get a liberal mayor,

...instead of a Republican mayor (Mayor Bloomberg) who wants to stop protestors from using the Great Lawn of Central Park on the theory that they would damage the grass.