Saintless

Before I get into this endorsement, I would like to say that I have the utmost respect for current Utah State Democratic Party Chair Wayne Holland. I loved working with him over the past couple of years, and I believe he is a great person, and has done some good things for the Utah State Democratic Party.

However, I feel compelled to endorse JM (Jeff) Bell for Utah State Democratic Party Chair. One of the biggest reasons is that I believe Bell has a fundamental understanding of technology and how to harness it. The current party leadership has missed the mark on this issue, and we absolutely cannot let that continue.

I’ve seen recent improvements in the area of technology with the UT Democrats, however, I think it’s too little, too late.

Vote for Jeff Bell for Utah State Democratic Party Chair

I also believe the the current party leadership has a fundamental belief that most races in this state can only be won by either a conservative, or someone who compromises on basic Democratic Party ideals to become more like a conservative. I understand that there’s no “perfect Democrat”, nor should anyone running under the Democratic banner be forced, or even try, to be a complete liberal on every issue. However, we need better candidates who don’t compromise with the conservatives to try to win against them. It’s just silly to think that people in this state will vote for that type of candidate.

We need energized Democratic candidates who stick to their own values, and who have support from the State Democratic Party.

During the last election, I also felt that the State Party was more interested in supporting a “higher visibility” candidate for Governor, who was obviously going to lose, than they were in supporting other candidates who had a true shot at winning, but for a lower office. Or maybe it was because they weren’t able to harness the huge amounts of grassroots volunteer energy, because they hadn’t seen such a thing in recent history.

I think I could even sum it up this way: Buttars won the last election. I don’t think that would have happened if Jeff was Chair. Not that I blame the current Chair for this in any sort of direct way. However, I think Jeff Bell will take the Utah State Democratic Party in the direction we need, not just to elect more Democrats, but to elect the right Democrats, and send the right message about our party to the people of Utah. I also believe that Bell will be far more in touch with the average Utahn, and get them involved.

As Bell himself says:

It is time for the Party to educate Utah voters about who we are, what we stand for, and deliver the message that Democrats are more than a watered down alternative to the empty, harmful policies of the Utah GOP – We are the best choice for Utah voters.

As your Party Chair I will work to bring that message to the people of Utah, and in doing so will help us return to a position of strength where, defining ourselves once more as Democrats, we can bring real, progressive leadership to the great state of Utah

Read the rest of his Letter to Utah Democrats, and see if you don’t agree with me.

And on a personal note, Jeff Bell was already a well known Utah blogger and all around political guru when I came on the scene a few years ago. I think we’ve probably disagreed on a few things, but overall, Jeff and his blog have been a huge inspiration for my own blog. In addition, while I was Chair of the Utah for Obama group, Jeff was an amazing mentor, even though I was a political nobody. I had jumped into the middle of this political arena that I knew little about, but felt determined to get Utah to vote for Obama, and become aware of him. I didn’t know any of the elected officials, party officials, or really anyone else when I started. Jeff has always answered my silly questions without making (too much) fun of me for them. He’s good natured, well informed, and believes that we all need to be involved. The Utah State Democratic Party isn’t about one or two people making decisions for the rest of us. Jeff understands that, and I think with him as Chair of the Party that the entire process will be far more open, far more effective, and far more Democratic.

So, please vote for Jeff Bell this June 20 at the Utah State Democratic Convention. Stop by and talk with him at his booth if you’re attending the Salt Lake County Democratic Convention this Saturday, April 18.

If you haven’t read Rob’s post about becoming a national delegate, and you’re interested in becoming one, check it out here.

There’s a lot of really good information on that post, and to make it even better, tonight is the class at the U of U. I’ll be there!