{"id":194531,"date":"2026-03-04T15:00:00","date_gmt":"2026-03-04T22:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/?p=194531"},"modified":"2026-03-06T14:02:27","modified_gmt":"2026-03-06T21:02:27","slug":"michael-farrell-for-utah-an-office-open-to-all","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/community\/michael-farrell-for-utah-an-office-open-to-all\/","title":{"rendered":"Michael Farrell for Utah: An Office Open to All"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"Michael
Farrell believes that once voters get to know him, they\u2019ll be drawn to his style of politics and authenticity. Photo: Gabriel Kogami<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Michael Farrell is a young, energetic, first-time candidate running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Utah\u2019s First Congressional District who wants to be a new, progressive voice for Utah. Farrell realizes that he\u2019s a relatively new kid on the block, but don\u2019t let that fool you. He\u2019s been working hard to build his voice in the community.<\/p>\n

In preparation for his campaign, Farrell has held many listening sessions with constituents because one of his top priorities is for his promises on the campaign trail to reflect what he will actually do in office. Farrell knows that building a grassroots movement takes grit, but he\u2019s putting in the work. Farrell believes that once voters get to know him, they\u2019ll be drawn to his style of politics and authenticity. He says, \u201cI\u2019m not beholden to special interests like so many candidates, so I can be unapologetically myself.\u201d<\/p>\n

Farrell\u2019s goals revolve around implementing progressive policy priorities, including universal healthcare; parental leave and childcare; abolishing ICE; legalizing marijuana; expanding federal LGBTQ+, reproductive and voter rights; increasing the federal minimum wage; creating affordable housing; and taxing the rich. When asked how he plans to sell a red state like Utah on these blue values, he says it doesn\u2019t have to be a question of conservative or liberal. Rather, he wants to appeal to common sense. \u201cI can\u2019t convince anyone who supports ICE to abolish it by saying it is bad,\u201d Farrell explains. \u201cBut I can point out to conservative and MAGA voters that ICE isn\u2019t protecting anyone\u2019s liberties, including our First or Second Amendment rights.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are the richest country in the world. We can invest more in our people.\u201d<\/strong><\/h4>\n
\"\"
Farrell\u2019s office will be open to all. He will be a responsive representative. Photo: Gabriel Kogami<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

When advocating for universal healthcare, Farrell knows that making the argument that healthcare is a human right is only part of the message. He understands the hidden costs of our existing healthcare system and describes how the vast majority of Utahns will save money through universal healthcare by raising taxes on the rich. \u201cThe only folks who won\u2019t save money are millionaires and billionaires, and so be it \u2014 they should be paying their fair share, anyway,\u201d he says. As a tax attorney of 12 years, Farrell is intimately familiar with the way our financial system works. \u201cWe have the money,\u201d he says. \u201cWe are the richest country in the world. We can invest more in our people.\u201d During his time in private practice, he has only seen life get worse for working-class families, and he is tired of waiting for things to get better. He believes his vision for Congress is the right approach needed for Utahns and is framed by his core belief that \u201cbehind every number is a person.\u201d\"Michael<\/p>\n

Farrell\u2019s office will be open to all. \u201cIf I am fortunate and honored enough to earn the votes of Utahns, I don\u2019t want to be in office only focusing on raising money to run for re-election like so many politicians do,\u201d he says. \u201cI will spend the time I have in office doing something for people and not just campaigning for re-election.\u201d He won\u2019t be a representative whose constituents call with concerns just for those calls to \u201cgo straight into a black hole.\u201d He will be a responsive representative. \u201cI want to constantly be attentive to what my constituents need and expect from me,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n

To support Michael Farrell\u2019s campaign, visit michaelforutah.com<\/a>. <\/em>You can also sign up to be a volunteer, donate, or help spread the word about his campaign. Farrell\u2019s motto in life carries over to his campaign: \u201cEveryone pitching in makes everyone better off.\u201d<\/p>\n

Read some features from last year’s Local Leaders issue:<\/strong>
\nThe Silent Realm: How Hope on Ttap Speaks Through Stigma<\/a><\/strong><\/em>
\nBridging Feminist Theory, Media Ethics and Queer Justice in Higher Education<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Michael Farrell is a young, energetic, first-time candidate running for the U.S. House of Representatives who wants to be a new, progressive voice for Utah. … read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":19,"featured_media":194597,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"episode_type":"","audio_file":"","cover_image":"","cover_image_id":"","duration":"","filesize":"","date_recorded":"","explicit":"","block":"","filesize_raw":"","_expiration-date-status":"","_expiration-date":0,"_expiration-date-type":"","_expiration-date-categories":[],"_expiration-date-options":[],"_wpscppro_dont_share_socialmedia":false,"_wpscppro_custom_social_share_image":0,"_facebook_share_type":"","_twitter_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type":"","_pinterest_share_type":"","_linkedin_share_type_page":"","_instagram_share_type":"","_medium_share_type":"","_threads_share_type":"","_google_business_share_type":"","_selected_social_profile":[],"_wpsp_enable_custom_social_template":false,"_wpsp_social_scheduling":{"enabled":false,"datetime":null,"platforms":[],"status":"template_only","dateOption":"today","timeOption":"now","customDays":"","customHours":"","customDate":"","customTime":"","schedulingType":"absolute"},"_wpsp_active_default_template":true},"categories":[340],"tags":[31777,31778,31670,31672,31776,31669,31671],"acf":[],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194531"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/19"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=194531"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/194531\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/194597"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=194531"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=194531"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.slugmag.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=194531"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}