Utah State Senator Daniel Thatcher left the Republican Party this week to join the Forward Party, becoming the first sitting member of the Utah State Senate affiliated with the organization and its ballot line.
In a statement released Friday, the Forward Party said that Thatcher changed his registration on the last day of the legislative session. Reasons provided from a speech Thatcher gave that afternoon include his disappointment with the Utah Republican Party’s leadership on voting rights and legislative priorities. Specifically, Thatcher voiced concerns over the passage of HB 300, which he believes undermines the vote-by-mail process, as well as broader efforts by the legislature to exert control over citizen-led ballot initiatives.
“The Forward Party is incredibly proud to accept Sen. Thatcher into our ranks. He has served his district honorably since 2011 as a champion to the downtrodden and forgotten. Among his many accomplishments during this time include spearheading the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline,” the party wrote in its statement. Founding co-chair Andrew Yang and Executive Chair Kerry Healey also praised Thatcher for demonstrating leadership in making the switch.
Thatcher was first elected to the Utah State Senate in 2010 in District 12, though redistricting has since placed him in District 11. He is currently serving his fourth term, which will end next year. This is not the first time Thatcher has distanced himself from the Republican Party—he openly endorsed independent candidate Evan McMullin over Republican nominee Donald Trump in the 2016 presidential election, though he remained in the party then.
The full statement from the party is below:
The Forward Party today is proud to accept Senator Daniel Thatcher (SD 11: Salt Lake, Tooele, Utah Counties) as its first elected member of the Utah State Senate. On the last day of the legislative session, the Senator left the GOP to join the Forward Party, citing the Party’s principles of transparent, effective governance, and their value of treating everyone with dignity and respect.
Andrew Yang, former Presidential candidate and Forward’s Founding Co-Chair, said, “Today more than ever, our elected officials are followers. It takes courage to step forward and truly lead. Senator Thatcher continues to demonstrate his morals through the leadership he’s showing today, and we couldn’t be more proud that he’s joining Forward.”
In front of a crowd of press and supporters, Sen. Thatcher delivered a speech expressing his disappointment with Utah’s GOP leadership, particularly in regards to their continued efforts to stymy Utahns’ right to democratic participation, citing examples such as the recent passage of HB 300 making the vote-by-mail process more onerous, and last year’s battle over Amendment D and the legislature’s efforts to control the results of citizen-led ballot initiatives.
In particular, the Forward Party’s values of respect for the rule of law and the Constitution; restoring power to the voters; driving on effective solutions; and individual liberty, personal responsibility, and civic engagement resonated with the Senator as he made his decision to switch his affiliation.
The Forward Party is incredibly proud to accept Sen. Thatcher into our ranks. He has served his district honorably since 2011 as a champion to the downtrodden and forgotten. Among his many accomplishments during this time include spearheading the national 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline.
In a fraught time when so many Americans feel the legacy parties no longer represent them, the Forward Party welcomes all to join our movement. The Forward Party is a 50-state movement that seeks pragmatic, data driven, and collaborative solutions without regard to ideology, while affirming a commitment to democracy, the Constitution, and rule of law.
Lt. Gov Kerry Healey, Forward’s Executive Chair who served as Mitt Romney’s Lieutenant Governor in Massachusetts, said, “I was in Utah several years ago as our state leadership team delivered their petitions to the state house to become a recognized party, and I’m here in spirit today as Senator Thatcher joins the Party. We are excited for such a principled leader to join our ranks. Senator Thatcher’s focus on serving his constituents in a transparent and accountable manner embodies Forward’s approach to governance. We expect our elected officials to stand up for what is right, what they believe, and what their constituents want, and we will support Senator Thatcher as he continues to do so. And we welcome any other leaders to join Senator Thatcher who want to be a part of a Party that won’t require them to compromise their morals to toe the party line.”
Yes, but they also do other things.
Whether third parties fight back against laws that block them from the ballot isn’t a question of “right versus left”. It is an indicator of whether they are effective organizations for protecting themselves. Minor parties in the U.S. are in constant danger from major party state legislators who want to eliminate them. The US Supreme Court has refused to intervene for the last 32 years. So the only defense is effective lobbying. If the Forward Party can do that, more power to them.
Yes
Isn’t the Forward Party actually far left?
It is the trend that I was observing. The Libertarian Party was once a champion of lobbying for better ballot access. But this year, except in Iowa, the Libertarian Party has not got any ballot access improvement bill introduced. Years ago there were typically a dozen states with good bills that state Libertarian Parties had initiated, in a single year.
More questions for Mr. Winger or anyone else –
How many registered voters does each party have? How many total elected officials? How many total candidates? How many active local and state chapter’s? Annual budget of each? How many people self identify as members / supporters of each when states where they are not voter registration options are included? In how many states is each one a voter registration option? What percentage of the public us aware each of these parties exists? What percentage can give a somewhat accurate general description of what each of them stands for?
How many states are they petitioning in? If they succeed in all of them, would it put them ahead of the libertarians when existing retention is factored in?
Gee thanks, Richard. Kick the LP when it’s down!
The Forward Party seems on its way to replace the Libertarian Party as the nation’s biggest third party. When a Maryland bill harming ballot access was heard in committee recently, the Forward Party testified against it, but the Libertarian Party didn’t. The Forward Party is doing far more petitions for ballot access this year than the Libertarian Party. And now, at a time when the Libertarian Party has no state legislators, the Forward Party does.