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

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

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

LGBT Issues

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

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

1. Elizabeth Weight's biography on VoteSmart
2. "Utah House GOP will add to its supermajority in January". KUER. 2022-11-30. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
3. "About Elizabeth". Representative Elizabeth Weight. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
4. Yi, Sandra. "Former teacher says she was fired for standing up to Granite District". www.ksl.com. Retrieved 2024-03-11.
5. "Utah legislature race decided by only three votes," Fox13now.com
6. "With Utah Legislature's Mormon supermajority, is it representative of the people?" Salt Lake Tribune, 12/12/16
7. Official Utah House page for Rep. Elizabeth Weight Archived 2017-06-19 at the Wayback Machine
8. "Election results as of late Tuesday for Utah races, issues," Deseret News, Nov. 7, 2018 Archived 2018-12-13 at the Wayback Machine
9. "Utah’s 2018 Midterm Elections Rundown," Daily Utah Chronicle, Nov 9, 2018
10. "Proposed Utah bill calls for safe firearm storage," The Daily Universe, August 3, 2018
11. "Utah House GOP will add to its supermajority in January," KUER, November 30, 2022
12. "Bill to protect LGBT from getting kicked out of homes stalls". Deseret News. Retrieved 6 April 2022.
13. 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.
14. Bitsóí, Alastair Lee. "Lawmakers considering bill that would let Indigenous students wear Native regalia to graduation". Salt Lake Tribune. Retrieved 6 April 2022.