Elizabeth Weight
Elizabeth Weight | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of the Utah House of Representatives from the 31st district | |
| In office January 1, 2017 – December 31, 2022 | |
| Preceded by | Sophia M. DiCaro |
| Succeeded by | Quinn Kotter (Redistricting) |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence(s) | Salt Lake City, Utah |
Elizabeth Weight is a Democratic politician, who was a member of the Utah State House, representing the state's 31st house district, from 2017 through 2022.[1][2]
Early life and career
[edit]Weight has a bachelor's degree in Secondary Education from Utah State University, and a Master's degree in Linguistics and Bilingual Education from the University of Utah. A trombone player, Weight was at one time an instructor and owner of the Alan Weight Music Studios.[3] Since 2015, Weight has been a teacher in the Granite School District. For a time, Weight was president of the American Federation of Teachers in the district.[4]
Political career
[edit]Weight was first elected in 2016, defeating incumbent Republican Sophia DiCaro.[5] Unlike the majority of the Utah legislature, who are members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Weight is a Unitarian.[6]
During the 2018 legislative session, Weight served on the Business, Economic Development and Labor Appropriations Subcommittee, the Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice committee, and the Political Subdivisions Committee.[7]
Weight was reelected in November 2018 with 60.52 percent of the vote, defeating Republican Fred Johnson and United Utah Party candidate Brian L. Fabbi.[8][9] In 2018, Weight was planning legislation to require safe storage of firearms.[10] In November 2022, Republican Quinn Kotter defeated Weight by 127 votes in the newly-drawn District 26.[11]
Political Positions and Significant Legislation
[edit]LGBT Issues
[edit]In 2017, Rep. Weight sponsored legislation that would prevent parents from expelling children from their home because of the child's sexual orientation. The bill was held in committee.[12]
Native American Issues
[edit]In 2021, Rep. Weight authored a resolution that would encourage schools to change mascots that she considers racist toward Native Americans. The bill failed to pass in committee.[13] She signaled her intention to write a new bill "allow more education on the topic of retiring or removing Native imagery or symbols as mascots."[14]
References
[edit]- ^ Elizabeth Weight's biography on VoteSmart
- ^ "Utah House GOP will add to its supermajority in January". KUER. 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ "About Elizabeth". Representative Elizabeth Weight. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ Yi, Sandra. "Former teacher says she was fired for standing up to Granite District". www.ksl.com. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
- ^ "Utah legislature race decided by only three votes," Fox13now.com
- ^ "With Utah Legislature's Mormon supermajority, is it representative of the people?" Salt Lake Tribune, 12/12/16
- ^ Official Utah House page for Rep. Elizabeth Weight Archived 2017-06-19 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Election results as of late Tuesday for Utah races, issues," Deseret News, Nov. 7, 2018 Archived 2018-12-13 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Utah’s 2018 Midterm Elections Rundown," Daily Utah Chronicle, Nov 9, 2018
- ^ "Proposed Utah bill calls for safe firearm storage," The Daily Universe, August 3, 2018
- ^ "Utah House GOP will add to its supermajority in January," KUER, November 30, 2022
- ^ "Bill to protect LGBT from getting kicked out of homes stalls". Deseret News. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ Tanner, Courtney. "Resolution urging Utah schools to retire Native American mascots fails on House floor in surprising vote". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
- ^ Bitsóí, Alastair Lee. "Lawmakers considering bill that would let Indigenous students wear Native regalia to graduation". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 6 April 2022.