Several local officials endorse Elizabeth Warren day before Super Tuesday

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah — On the eve of Super Tuesday, several officials endorsed Democratic candidate Elizabeth Warren for president. Since announcing her campaign, Warren visited Salt Lake City in April 2019 when she held an organizing event.

Ahead of that visit, Warren released a plan citing her efforts to protect public lands — which includes a promise to restore protections to Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments. These two monuments were previously reduced in size in December 2018 by President Donald Trump.

Warren vows to protect public lands

Her plan includes restoring the lands, calling the reductions “the single biggest rollback of protected lands in U.S. history,” according to an essay written for medium.com.

“I’m proud of the accomplishments we made in environmental standards when I was Mayor of Salt Lake City, but I know that we still have so much more work to do,” said former Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski in a statement. “I’m supporting Elizabeth Warren for President because she has the courage to fight for our public lands, to save our oceans, and implement the Green New Deal. Elizabeth Warren’s policies will create millions of jobs and protect our environment. That’s why I’m proud to endorse her for President.”

Utah leaders endorse Warren

The Warren for President campaign announced endorsements from Utah leaders, including the following local Democrats:

• House Minority Leader Brian King
• State Senator Luz Escamilla
• State Rep. Karen Kwan
• Former Salt Lake City Mayor Jackie Biskupski
• Murray City Council Member Kat Martinez
• Environmental activist Carl Fisher

The endorsements come weeks after Warren established a campaign staff in the state, appointing Marcus Stevenson as the organizing director.

Sen. Escamilla also points to Warren’s policies supporting entrepreneurship among women of color and efforts for affordable housing.

“Elizabeth Warren’s policies and actions prove that she will protect all communities and get things done,” she said. “This is why I’m proud to join a broad coalition of leaders and Americans and support Elizabeth Warren for President.”

Other candidates in Utah

The endorsements come on the same day other Democratic presidential candidates Sen. Amy Klobuchar Minnesota and Sen. Sanders of Vermont visited the state for their own rallies. Sen. Klobuchar rallied at the Depot in downtown Salt Lake City Monday morning with Sen. Sanders gathering at the Utah State Fairpark.

Less than three hours after visiting, Klobuchar announced she is ending her run for president.

While Warren hasn’t visited the state since April 2019, other Democratic candidates have been vying for Utah votes leading up to Super Tuesday.

Former Mayor of South Bend, Indiana Pete Buttigieg visited the state for a town hall meeting Feb. 17 — attracting more than 4,500 to the Union Event Center. There, he encouraged the crowd to — regardless of party — unite to “get the job done.”

Despite his emergence in the Iowa caucuses and New Hampshire polls, Buttigieg announced the suspension of his campaign Sunday.

Mayor Mike Bloomberg has visited the state twice since announcing his campaign, the last visit Feb. Feb. 20 — the day after his first qualifying debate. Bloomberg got a late start, announcing his campaign in November 2019.

Since then, he has spent more than $452 million on his campaign, according to Advertising Analytics. Bloomberg is self-funding his campaign, not taking donations — which is why he hadn’t qualified for a debate until late February.

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard also made her way to the state Feb. 21 to talk to Utah Valley University, attracting more than 150 people for the Q&A style meeting. The Hawaii congresswoman, who is polling nationally at 1% to 2%, said she wants to focus her campaign on uniting the country.