would a Mormon Democrat carry Utah against a non-Mormon Republican?

[© tweed]

Mormon voting loyalty is pretty silly, though we haven't been able to get great data on Harry Reid's performance, for example... the answer to this becomes less and less likely to be "yes" as each minute passes as demographers project the Mormon population of UT will sink into plurality within a few decades

[Psychic Octopus]

that is a tough one, Maybe, but it really depends on the candidate...

[hcallega]

I don't think Reid would win Utah, primarily because he is viewed as very liberal (even though he is pro-life & pro-gun). I do think somebody like Rep. Matheson of Utah (who is pretty conservative) could win Utah. The issue is that it needs to be somebody who is socially conservative (or viewed as such) against somebody socially liberal.

[tmthforu94]

Doubtful.
Mormons vote Republican because of Republican's views. The Democrat would have to be very, very conservative to win Utah. It would be about as hard as a black Republican winning the black vote.

[Person Man]

Then again, the Mormons aren't too conservative....yes, Mormons are exclusively pro-life, but their view is also exclusively much more nuanced than pro-life or pro-choice... a D could probably win if they take conservative, but more liberal and nuanced positions than the R....maybe a national D couldn't win Utah...but an Independent Mormon could have a chance...

A good Independent Mormon Platform would be-

Social Issues
- Pro-stem cell, bring abortion decisions to an administrative body, with a slight pursumption in favor of the fetus's right not to be aborted.
- Pro-guns, but allow stronger civil and criminal penalties for gun violence.
- Allow illegal immigrants to stay/find a path to citizenship if they can find jobs and not get convicted of a crime, otherwise deport them immediately