Trump weighs in on Utah GOP chair race by endorsing incumbent
May 9, 2025, 6:00 AM | Updated: 4:07 pm
FILE: President Donald Trump speaks before Steve Witkoff is sworn as special envoy during a ceremony in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, May 6, 2025. (Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press)
(Mark Schiefelbein/Associated Press)
SALT LAKE CITY — President Trump waded into the race for Utah Republican chair, throwing his support behind the incumbent just over a week before the state GOP convention.
Trump endorsed Rob Axson, who is running for a second term leading the state Republican party. He was first elected in 2023.
FILE: Rob Axson, Utah Republican Party chair, speaks in favor of SJR401, Proposal to Amend Utah Constitution — Voter Legislative Power, during a special Utah legislative session at the Senate Building in Salt Lake City on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2024. (Kristin Murphy, Deseret News)
“Robert Axson has dedicated his life to the Republican Party, and the Great State of Utah,” Trump wrote in a post Thursday afternoon on Truth Social. “He is Strongly Supported by many, including Highly Respected Senator Mike Lee, and Governor Spencer Cox.”
Utah GOP chair facing challenge
Axson, who previously worked as a staffer for Lee, is facing a challenge from former state lawmaker Phil Lyman. Lyman ran for governor last year and won the party’s nomination at the state convention, but he lost to Cox in the Republican primary.
FILE: Governor candidate Phil Lyman makes a statement after leaving the court room with Layne Bangerter at the 3rd District Court in West Jordan, on Friday, May 3, 2024. The judge ruled Bangerter would not be on the ballot as Lyman’s running mate. (Marielle Scott/ Deseret News)
Lyman was pardoned by Trump in 2020 after he was convicted of leading an illegal ATV ride six years earlier through Recapture Canyon in San Juan County.
Party delegates will elect a chair at the state GOP convention on May 17.
