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Brad Wilson (politician)

Brad Wilson
Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives
In office
January 28, 2019 – November 15, 2023
Preceded byGreg Hughes
Succeeded byMike Schultz
Majority Leader of the Utah House of Representatives
In office
January 23, 2017 – January 28, 2019
Preceded byJames Dunnigan
Succeeded byFrancis Gibson
Member of the Utah House of Representatives
from the 15th district
In office
January 1, 2011 – November 15, 2023
Preceded byDouglas C. Aagard
Succeeded byAriel Defay
Personal details
Born (1969-01-29) January 29, 1969 (age 55)
Political partyRepublican
EducationWeber State University (BA)
WebsiteCampaign website

Bradley R. Wilson[1] is an American real estate developer and Republican politician. Wilson is a former member of the Utah House of Representatives, representing District 15. He served as the House Speaker from 2019 to 2023.[2] On April 13, 2023, he formed an exploratory committee to run for the U.S. Senate in 2024.[3]

Personal life and education

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Wilson was born on January 29, 1969, in Layton, Utah. As one of ten children, Wilson was expected to work from a young age. He held several jobs before graduating high school. Wilson earned his BA in business administration from Weber State University in 1992.[4]

Wilson is the CEO of Newtown Development, a multi-family residential community developer in Utah. Prior to working for Newtown Development, Wilson was president and CEO of Destination Homes, a residential homebuilder. Prior to working for Destination Homes, Wilson was vice president with American Express Financial Advisors with responsibility for Utah operations.[5]

He lives in Kaysville, Utah, with his wife and their three children.[4]

Utah House of Representatives

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Wilson first ran for office in 2010 when District 15 incumbent Republican Representative Douglas C. Aagard resigned from the State Legislature and left the seat open. Wilson was one of two candidates from among four chosen by the Republican convention for the June 22, 2010 Republican primary, winning with 1,727 votes (45.2%)[6] and won the November 2, 2010 general election with 7,794 votes (81.2%) against Democratic candidate Sherri Tatton.[7] During the 2022 legislative session, he served on the Executive Appropriations Committee, House Legislative Expense Oversight Committee, Legislative Audit Subcommittee, Legislative Management Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight.[8]

In the 2022 General Session, Speaker Wilson sponsored the Great Salt Lake Watershed Enhancement. This legislation is to enact the preservation and rescue of the Great Salt Lake. In addition to sponsoring this bill, Speaker Wilson also cosponsored 8 bills during the session.

Wilson was the first state representative to be unanimously elected House Speaker twice.

In September 2023 Wilson announced that he would resign from the Utah House of Representatives. He officially resigned on November 15, 2023.

2024 U.S. Senate election in Utah

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Wilson became the first candidate to announce his intentions to challenge incumbent Senator Mitt Romney when he announced his Senate exploratory committee in April 2023. [9][10] In July 2023, Wilson told Fox News Digital he has raised more than $2.2 million, $1.2 million of which was personal contribution and $1,018,586 from various donors in the last three months — with 94% of those donations coming from Utah residents.[11] He officially announced his candidacy at his first campaign rally in Draper on September 27, 2023.[12]

He is endorsed by Utah Governor Spencer Cox,[13] over 60 State Legislators, [13] 21 County Commissioners, 61 City Mayors, and 22 Utah Sheriffs (over 3/4ths of the state’s sheriffs).[13][14]

At the Utah state Republican convention on April 27, Wilson was eliminated with 4.68% of the vote in the third of four rounds of voting, with Trent Staggs becoming the Party's official sole nominee from convention. He continued with other signature gathering candidates to a four-way primary in June.[15][16]

Political positions

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Wilson supports term limits for members of Congress. He signed the "US Term Limits Pledge" while explaining that "American's Founding Fathers envisioned citizen legislators - they never intended to have a career class of professional politicians running America."[17]

Wilson presented a motion in December 2020 to not give Salt Lake City school teachers the Covid-19 bonus of $1500 until their school districts agreed to resume in-person classes.[18]

References

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  1. ^ "Brad Wilson's Biography". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  2. ^ "Brad R. Wilson (R)". Salt Lake City, Utah: Utah State Legislature. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  3. ^ Bates, Suzanne (13 April 2023). "Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson forms committee to explore run for Romney's Senate seat". Deseret News. Deseret News Publishing Company. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  4. ^ a b "Brad Wilson Legislative Profile". Salt Lake City, UT: Utah House of Representatives. Retrieved March 31, 2016.
  5. ^ "Brad Wilson, Meet Brad". Salt Lake City, UT: Brad Wilson. Retrieved April 10, 2014.
  6. ^ "2010 Primary Election Results". Salt Lake City, Utah: Lieutenant Governor of Utah. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  7. ^ "2010 General Election Results". Salt Lake City, Utah: Lieutenant Governor of Utah. Archived from the original on March 4, 2014. Retrieved February 3, 2014.
  8. ^ "Committees". le.utah.gov. Retrieved 2016-03-31.
  9. ^ Bojórquez, Kim (September 28, 2023). "Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson announces U.S. Senate run to replace Romney". Axios. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  10. ^ Balz, Dan (September 13, 2023). "Mitt Romney says he will not seek a second term in the Senate". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Archived from the original on September 13, 2023. Retrieved September 13, 2023.
  11. ^ Morris, Kyle (July 11, 2023). "Utah Republican raises more than $2 million as he explores 'likely bid to take Romney's Senate seat". Fox News. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  12. ^ Tomco, Brigham (April 15, 2024). "Mitt Romney says he will not seek a second term in the Senate". Desert News. Retrieved April 25, 2024.
  13. ^ a b c "Brad Wilson, Trent Staggs get endorsements in potential run against Sen. Mitt Romney in Utah GOP primary". Deseret News. 2024-02-01. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  14. ^ Scadden, Will (2024-02-28). "US Senate candidate Brad Wilson receives endorsement from 22 Utah sheriffs, 10 mayors". TownLift, Park City News. Retrieved 2024-04-26.
  15. ^ "US.Senate.Round3.xls". Utah Republican Party. April 29, 2024. Archived from the original on June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  16. ^ "Lt Gov Candidate Certification Letter 042924" (PDF). Utah Republican Party. April 29, 2024. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 12, 2024. Retrieved June 12, 2024.
  17. ^ Wilson, Brad (October 26, 2023). "Brad Wilson Signs Pledge to add term limits to US Constitution". Brad Wilson for U.S. Senate. Retrieved April 24, 2024.
  18. ^ "House Speaker defends cutting SLC teachers out of COVID-19 bonuses". FOX 13 News Utah (KSTU). 2020-12-17. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
[edit]
Utah House of Representatives
Preceded by Majority Leader of the Utah House of Representatives
2017–2019 		Succeeded by
Political offices
Preceded by Speaker of the Utah House of Representatives
2019–2023 		Succeeded by