Hoping to capitalize on “discontent with what the GOP is offering right now,” the United Utah and Utah Forward parties have merged. The latter is affiliated with the national Forward Party, founded by 2020 presidential candidate Andrew Yang and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman.
Both parties independently voted in favor of the merger Saturday before combining for a joint session.
Each of the parties view themselves as a remedy to dysfunctional politics and extremism. Many prominent members, including attorney Michelle Quist, came over from the Republican Party. As the new party chair, she said the merger joins the forces of like-minded Utahns. There’s also the added benefit of United Utah now being connected to a national party.
And she believes there’s an appetite in the state for what they have to offer.
“In 2024, there was a survey of the political climate here in Utah, and one of the largest concerns was housing,” she said. “And the next largest concern from Utahns was that legislators are not listening to Utahns. And that's the hole that we want to fill.”
As of April 21, United Utah has 2,221 active, registered members, and Utah Forward, 226. Those numbers don’t tell the whole story, Quist said, because “more people are members in spirit.” As with other parties in the state, many voters remain registered as Republicans so they can vote in the primary.
Quist said you can tell by looking at election returns. She ran for Attorney General last year as the United Utah party candidate and got about 7% of the vote.
There could be an appeal for Utah Democrats as well. Quist said the two-party system breeds power struggles, but a third party offers collaboration.
“We want to bring together different individuals who think differently, different organizations to think differently — bring them in a room and have them sit around a table and bring together the ideas to solve the problems that Utah has.”
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
Ciara Hulet: How do you win over voters who see small third parties as “throwing away your vote?”
Michelle Quist: So when I was running for Attorney General, everybody loved the message of not having politics involved in the Attorney General's office. But they worried about this idea that I was a third-party candidate and that they would be throwing their vote away. So they said to me, “Show me you can win, and then I'll vote for you.” It drove me crazy. It has to be the other way around. If you vote for me, then I will win.
So the public really loves this idea of getting extremism out of politics. The public loves the idea of collaborating on political solutions. They can see the nastiness in politics, and they don't like it. So, for those people that want this system to change and for us to have a seat at the table, they need to come and caucus with us and help us get the seat at the table. So, for those that are saying they don't want to throw their vote away, don't throw it away. Vote for us. Tell your neighbors to vote for us. Help us recruit candidates. Help us raise money, donate. Come volunteer with us. We can build this movement with the support of Utahns.
CH: State Sen. Daniel Thatcher left the GOP in March to join Utah Forward. How will he affect your party's chances of success?
MQ: I think it helps lend credibility to the fact that we are a legitimate party. And he has been just a stalwart legislator, bringing different parties together and different individuals together to pass great legislation that Utahns asked for. And in order to pass that legislation, he has to negotiate between parties that want different things. And that is what we have lost in the political environment because, right now, we have extreme parties that either have to win and have the other party lose. And the people don't like it, and they're either checking out or they're looking for other solutions, and Senator Thatcher has provided those solutions.
CH: Do you think Thatcher’s change could affect his chances of reelection?
MQ: Of course. The most frequent question I got in my run was, “But what does the party stand for?” People know what Republicans stand for, and people know what Democrats stand for. But do you really? The Republicans say they stand for the rule of law, but look what we've seen in the past three months. Do they cherish due process by sending individuals in America to foreign Gulags without due process? That's not the rule of law. But when they don't stand up to those ideals, what do you do about it?
So, for the Utah Forward party and the United Utah party, we do have platforms. They're on our websites. The United Utah party has five E's that we believe in: education, economy, equality, ethical government — which was a big one for me in my run for attorney general — [and] the environment.
And the Utah Forward party is even more specific, because they believe in developing strategies from the bottom up. So each state gets to vote on strategies that they believe in, that they'll focus on each year. So last year, it was the Great Salt Lake and housing. Isn't that a better platform for Utahns than what a national party might offer?
