LDS members account for nearly 90 percent of Utah State Legislature

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints will account for nearly 90 percent of the state Legislature this session, giving members of the faith outsized influenced in a state that is becoming slightly more religiously diverse.

When the new session begins Monday, LDS legislators will account for 91 of the 104 members, according to a Salt Lake Tribune story based on research of past surveys, campaign websites, members’ social media pages and direct calls and emails to some lawmakers.

That’s a much larger portion of the legislative body than Mormons have among the state’s 3.1 million residents. Members of the LDS church account for about 62 percent of the state’s population.

The LDS supermajority shines a new spotlight on concerns about the LDS influence on policymaking.

Former Democratic Sen. Jim Dabakis, a non-LDS member, said decisions about Utah’s new DUI law that is the strictest in the country were made by people who don’t drink alcohol.

Read more: https://www.standard.net/news/government/lds-members-account-for-nearly-percent-of-utah-state-legislature/article_9011463b-512e-5220-a5a3-24d68a2a7acb.html