SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Democratic Party is calling for "RINOs" to come home.
They're not talking about the rhinoceros, the majestic animal native to the African savannah. Instead, they're talking about people who are dubbed "Republican In Name Only."
"There are, as you know, many people who say 'I’m a Democrat, but I want to have an influence in party politics here in Utah,'" said Brian King, the Utah Democratic Party Chair, who put out the call on Thursday for Democrats who are registered to vote as Republicans to drop their party affiliation and return to the minority party.
RINOs are not that rare in Utah cultural and political circles, though it's unknown just how many there are. With the dominance of the Utah Republican Party, many ideologically-aligned Democrats register as Republicans and vote in the GOP's primaries in order to have a say on candidates. You have to be a registered Republican to vote in a Republican primary, whereas the Democratic primary is open even to voters who are not registered Democrats.
RINOs have been credited with advancing more moderate Republicans to the general election, to offset more conservative candidates that are chosen by GOP delegates in the state party convention. It's infuriated many hardline conservatives within the Utah GOP.
One woman, who admitted to FOX 13 News that she is a "RINO," said that under Utah's current system of politics? It's all she can do. FOX 13 News is not naming her because she feared repercussions in her conservative community.
"I register Republican because so many things that impact my every single day life, from municipal elections all the way up to statewide, are decided in a closed primary election in June, and then come November, it's people running unopposed, and you just get to vote for them or not vote at all," she said. "So if I want any sort of say in the things that impact my life, I have to be registered Republican."
With President Trump and MAGA leading the Republican party, King said it was time for RINOs to stop pretending.
"I think it’s becoming clear to people this strategy, and that’s what it is, is a tactic of registering as a Republican even though you’re a Democrat because you want to mitigate the extremities of the Republicans, is a futile gesture," he told FOX 13 News on Thursday.
Instead, King said he wanted them to return and build a better Utah Democratic Party that can challenge the Republicans.
"It’s going to increase the likelihood we can win these races that are close in swing districts and legislative districts and in county races and local races," he said. "We need you to be loud and proud as Democrats."
Utah Republican Party Chair Robert Axson said he agreed with King.
"I commend the Democrats in doing this for a couple of reasons: Now, obviously, I love to see people that don't agree with the Republican Party, stop messing with our process and system internally," he said. "But more importantly, I think people should go and plant roots where they feel most comfortable."
Axson said the Utah GOP remains a "big tent" party and hoped that Republicans were there because they supported the party's ideals and were willing to debate and defend them. He understood the motives of these people (he added he doesn't like to use the term "RINO") to have a say in some elections.
"I get that on the surface," he said. "However, if you care about something? You should be building for success instead of doing your your piece behind the scenes to try to upend something."
But the woman FOX 13 News spoke with who self-identified as a RINO said she wanted the Democrats to do more before she changed her party affiliation.
"I would also challenge the Democratic Party to put candidates on all of the down-ballots. If there were people that we needed to vote for in primary elections, then there would be some sort of incentive," she said. "But if we don't vote in a Republican primary, we vote for unopposed candidates in most races."
King, who was recently elected as party chair, said it is something he is working to do.
"We’re working hard on that. I think we’ve seen a real influx in interest in running as democrats in this 2025 in this municipal election year, we’re seeing a lot of interest to have good candidates to run in 2026 in our state," he said.
