Extensive re-districting in 2001 led to several Democratic losses and a tough field for competition going forward. Also, with the reflexive authoritarianism that upheld Bush's popularity here well into 2006, challenges have been tough. Republicans currently outnumber Democrats 21 to 8 in the State Senate.

Fortunately, 2008 should be different. Concern over the economy and the housing crisis has finally hit Utah. Also, the public responded to the legislature's effort to force a school voucher bill upon us with a 70% defeat via public referendum. The bill was vigorously supported by the vast majority of Republicans, many of whom are now vulnerable. There are also, of course, a number of ethics cases.

Democratic candidates are involved in 14 Senate races this year (the popular Republican Senate President is running un-challenged in his deep red district, the 15th office up for re-elcetion). 9 of the 14 contests involve Republican incumbents, 3 are open Republican seats and the last 3 are open Democratic seats. All in all, Democrats have 12 to gain vs. 3 to lose on the table.

In Salt Lake County, the most populous & diverse in the state, Democrats hold 7 of 12 Senate seats; 7 of the 8 seats they hold overall in the state.

5 of those 12 Salt Lake County seats are up for grabs: 2 open Democrat seats and 3 Repub incumbent seats. All five of these seats are hotly contested & well within the reach of the Democratic candidates, if they raise enough money.

It costs $50,000 to $250,000 to mount a highly competitive State Senate campaign in Utah, depending on the district. That's cheap in most places, but a lot of money in most districts here.

There are several interesting races outside Salt Lake County, including one in the middle of the state (near the infamous Crandall Mine), one up north in the Weber State University area, and another south of Provo.

That makes 8 key races. Five inside Salt Lake County, 3 outside. If we win half of these races, the Democrats will be within 3 seats of a majority in the Senate (15).

Striving for this goal is not only important for its impact on public policy decisions, but also because re-districting will be coming around again after the 2010 census, in 2011.

If we can get to 12 seats this year, then pick up a few more in 2010, we should be able to avert the threat of updated gerrymandering.

The following ActBlue page describes the candidates in these 8 races further. Like Obama, these candidates are going to need plenty of donations of $100 or more, but even $10 or $20 helps. Also, each donation, no matter what size (even $5), pops the page up onto ActBlue's main list of fundraising pages, which includes a list of pages receiving "Most Recent Contributions," giving it more exposure.

Utah thanks you for any help you can provide.

http://www.actblue.com/...