It was Daisy Thomas’ last line to the convention that likely sealed her victory in Ogden on Saturday.
“If I win, I’ll get to work right away. If I lose, I’ll be here on Monday still working to get Democrats elected in Utah.”
Boom! Mic drop!
Thomas won the election as new Democratic party chair after two rounds of voting, prevailing over Nadia Bowman.
“We have work to do to get Democrats elected in this state,” said Thomas after her victory. “We have to reach out to independent and Republican voters. There aren’t enough registered Democrats to win on our own.”
Thomas won after a nasty and contentious campaign that featured sexual misconduct allegations against a candidate (who later dropped out) and other dirty tricks that dragged the affair into the gutter.
“I think my staying above the fray helped me win,” said Thomas. “We can’t build the party up if we spend time tearing each other down.”
The 37-year-old Thomas becomes the first woman chair of the Utah Democratic Party since Meg Holbrook lost her re-election bid to Donald Dunn in 2003. Certainly, she’s one of the youngest party chairs in the nation.
The party also said goodbye to current chair Peter Corroon, who had some harsh words for President Donald Trump during his benedictory address.
“The Republican Party under the leadership of Trump has become an immoral, un-American party,” he said. “Republicans are following a false prophet. They’ve been sold down the river by a snake oil salesman.”
“It’s a sad day when our own president has become the greatest threat to our own democracy,” he added. “The only thing Trump is making great again is ignorance.”
Thomas has a Sisyphean task ahead of her, making the Democratic party relevant in a state that is solidly red and trending even redder. They haven’t won a statewide election since 1996, and are at near historic lows in the Utah State Legislature.
“There are a lot of House races we can win,” said Thomas.
She also has to find a way to bring warring factions of the Utah Democratic Party back together. There are a lot of hurt feelings left over from last year between Bernie Sanders supporters and Hillary Clinton backers.
