This is a chronological listing of significant events surrounding

Latter Day Saints The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

seeking or winning political office. It refers primarily to members of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church), but also some members of other

Latter Day Saint movement The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded by Jo ...

religions, such as

Community of Christ The Community of Christ, known from 1872 to 2001 as the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS), is an American-based international church, and is the second-largest denomination in the Latter Day Saint movement. The churc ...

, formerly the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints (RLDS). In addition to listing events chronologically, political firsts are noted. This list is very incomplete. *1838 :

John Corrill John Corrill (September 17, 1794 – September 26, 1842) was an early member and leader of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and an elected representative in the Missouri State Legislature. He was prominently involved in the Morm ...

elected to the

Missouri House of Representatives The Missouri House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Missouri General Assembly. It has 163 members, representing districts with an average size of 37,000 residents. House members are elected for two-year terms during general elections ...

. ::This was the first Latter Day Saint elected to a state office in any state. *1841 : William B. Smith elected to the

Illinois House of Representatives The Illinois House of Representatives is the lower house of the Illinois General Assembly. The body was created by the first Illinois Constitution adopted in 1818. The House under the current constitution as amended in 1980 consists of 118 re ...

. ::This was the first Latter Day Saint elected to a state office in Illinois. ::This was the first time a member of the Smith Family was elected to office. *1842 :

Joseph Smith Joseph Smith Jr. (December 23, 1805June 27, 1844) was an American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter Day Saint movement. When he was 24, Smith published the Book of Mormon. By the time of his death, 14 years later, he ...

elected Mayor of Nauvoo. *1844 :Joseph Smith declares himself a candidate for

President of the United States The president of the United States (POTUS) is the head of state and head of government of the United States of America. The president directs the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United Stat ...

. He is assassinated during his

campaign Campaign or The Campaign may refer to: Types of campaigns * Campaign, in agriculture, the period during which sugar beets are harvested and processed *Advertising campaign, a series of advertisement messages that share a single idea and theme * Bl ...

. ::This was the first Latter Day Saint to run for president. ::This was the first Latter Day Saint assassinated in office (as Mayor of Nauvoo). *1850 :

Brigham Young Brigham Young (; June 1, 1801August 29, 1877) was an American religious leader and politician. He was the second President of the Church (LDS Church), president of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church), from 1847 until his ...

is appointed Governor of Utah Territory. :This is the first Latter Day Saint to hold a U.S. governorship. *1853 :

Jefferson Hunt Jefferson Hunt (January 20, 1803 – May 11, 1879) was a U.S. western pioneer, soldier, and politician. He was a captain in the Mormon Battalion, brigadier general in the California State Militia, a California State Assemblyman, and a representa ...

is elected to the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. The A ...

. ::This is the first Latter Day Saint elected to state office in California. : James J. Strang is elected to the

Michigan Legislature The Michigan Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. state of Michigan. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article IV of the Michigan Constitution, ...

. ::This is the first Latter Day Saint elected to state office in Michigan. *1855 :James J. Strang is reelected to the Michigan Legislature. *1858 :Brigham Young removed from office as Governor of Utah. *1896 :Utah gains statehood. ::

Martha Hughes Cannon Martha Maria "Mattie" Hughes Cannon (July 1, 1857 – July 10, 1932) was a Utah State Senator, physician, Utah women's rights advocate, suffragist, polygamous wife, and a Welsh-born immigrant to the United States. Her family immigrated to the U ...

first woman elected to any state senate in U.S. history (Utah). :: Heber Manning Wells elected Utah Governor. :::This is the first Latter Day Saint to be Utah governor since Brigham Young. :::This is the first Latter Day Saint to be elected governor of any state. ::

Frank J. Cannon Frank Jenne Cannon (January 25, 1859July 25, 1933) was the first United States Senator from Utah, who served from 1896 to 1899. Early life Born in Salt Lake City, Cannon was the eldest child of Sarah Jenne Cannon and George Q. Cannon. His fathe ...

elected U.S. Senator from Utah :::First Latter-day Saint elected to the Senate. (Cannon later left the LDS Church and became a bitter anti-Mormon.) *1902 :

Reed Smoot Reed Smoot (January 10, 1862February 9, 1941) was an American politician, businessman, and apostle of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). First elected by the Utah State Legislature to the U.S. Senate in 1902, he served ...

elected to the U.S. Senate in Utah. ::First LDS Church General Authority elected to the Senate. *1911 :

Israel A. Smith Israel Alexander Smith (February 2, 1876 – June 14, 1958) was the fourth son of Joseph Smith III and a grandson of Joseph Smith Jr., the founder of the Latter Day Saint movement. Israel A. Smith succeeded his brother, Frederick M. Smith, as ...

elected to the Iowa State Legislature. ::First direct descendant of

founder

to be elected to political office. *1922 :

George Sutherland George Alexander Sutherland (March 25, 1862July 18, 1942) was an English-born American jurist and politician. He served as an associate justice of the U.S. Supreme Court between 1922 and 1938. As a member of the Republican Party, he also repre ...

appointed to the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

. *1928 :

J. Reuben Clark Joshua Reuben Clark Jr. (September 1, 1871 – October 6, 1961) was an American attorney, civil servant, and a prominent leader in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Born in Grantsville, Utah Territory, Clark was a ...

appointed U.S. Undersecretary of State. *1930 :J. Reuben Clark appointed U.S. Ambassador to Mexico. *1940 :

Berkeley Bunker Berkeley Lloyd Bunker (August 12, 1906 – January 21, 1999) was a United States senator and representative from Nevada. Early life Born in what was then St. Thomas, Clark County, Nevada (now a northern arm of Lake Mead), he attended public ...

appointed U.S. Senator from Nevada. ::First Latter Day Saint to hold national office from Nevada. ::First Latter Day Saint U.S. Senator from outside Utah. *1944 :Berkeley Bunker elected to U.S. House of Representatives from Nevada. *1953 :

Ezra Taft Benson Ezra Taft Benson (August 4, 1899 – May 30, 1994) was an American farmer, government official, and religious leader who served as the 15th United States Secretary of Agriculture during both presidential terms of Dwight D. Eisenhower and ...

appointed U.S. Secretary of Agriculture. :

Ivy Baker Priest ''Hedera'', commonly called ivy (plural ivies), is a genus of 12–15 species of evergreen climbing or ground-creeping woody plants in the family Araliaceae, native to western, central and southern Europe, Macaronesia, northwestern Africa and ...

appointed U.S. Treasurer. *1961 :

Stewart Udall Stewart Lee Udall (January 31, 1920 – March 20, 2010) was an American politician and later, a federal government official. After serving three terms as a congressman from Arizona, he served as Secretary of the Interior from 1961 to 1969, unde ...

appointed U.S. Secretary of the Interior. *1962 :

George W. Romney George Wilcken Romney (July 8, 1907 – July 26, 1995) was an American businessman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, he served as chairman and president of American Motors Corporation from 1954 to 1962, the 43rd gover ...

elected Governor of Michigan. *1968 :

declares candidacy for President of the United States (as Republican). ::First Latter Day Saint to run for a major party's presidential nomination. *1969 : David Matthew Kennedy appointed U.S. Secretary of Treasury. :

appointed U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development. *1976 :

Mo Udall Morris King "Mo" Udall (June 15, 1922 – December 12, 1998) was an American attorney and Democratic politician who served as a U.S. representative from Arizona from May 2, 1961, to May 4, 1991. He was a leading contender for the 1976 Democ ...

declares candidacy for President of the United States (as Democrat). *1980 : Paula Hawkins elected to U.S. Senate from Florida. *1981 :

Terrel Bell Terrel Howard Bell (November 11, 1921June 22, 1996) was the Secretary of Education in the Cabinet of President Ronald Reagan. He was the second Secretary of Education, following Shirley Hufstedler. Early life and career Bell was born in Lava H ...

appointed U.S. Secretary of Education. *1982 :

Bay Buchanan Angela Marie "Bay" Buchanan (born December 23, 1948) is a conservative political commentator who served as Treasurer of the United States under President Ronald Reagan.Harry Reid Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Sena ...

wins election as a representative from Nevada. *1985 :

Jake Garn Edwin Jacob "Jake" Garn (born October 12, 1932) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party who served as a United States senator representing Utah from 1974 to 1993. Garn became the first sitting member of Congress to fly in s ...

becomes first sitting U.S. Senator to fly in space. *1986 :

Harry Reid Harry Mason Reid Jr. (; December 2, 1939 – December 28, 2021) was an American lawyer and politician who served as a United States senator from Nevada from 1987 to 2017. He led the Senate Democratic Caucus from 2005 to 2017 and was the Sena ...

wins election as a Senator from Nevada. *1988 :

Evan Mecham Evan Mecham ( ; May 12, 1924 – February 21, 2008) was an American businessman and the 17th governor of Arizona, serving from January 5, 1987, until his impeachment conviction on April 4, 1988. A decorated veteran of World War II, Mecham was a ...

impeached and removed from office as Governor of Arizona *1999 :Three members of the

Udall family The Udall family is a U.S. political family rooted in the American West. Its role in politics spans over 100 years and four generations. Udall politicians have been elected from four different states: Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Oregon. ...

serve in Congress simultaneously. Two are Latter-day Saint. *2000 :

Orrin Hatch Orrin Grant Hatch (March 22, 1934 – April 23, 2022) was an American attorney and politician who served as a United States senator from Utah from 1977 to 2019. Hatch's 42-year Senate tenure made him the longest-serving Republican U.S. senator ...

declares candidacy for President of the United States (as Republican). *2002 :

Mitt Romney Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...

elected Governor of Massachusetts. *2004 :

becomes the Democratic Leader of the United States Senate, and the

Senate Minority leader The positions of majority leader and minority leader are held by two United States senators and members of the party leadership of the United States Senate. They serve as the chief spokespersons for their respective political parties holding ...

*2005 :

Michael O. Leavitt Michael Okerlund Leavitt (born February 11, 1951) is an American politician who served as the 14th Governor of Utah from 1993 to 2003 in the Republican Party, as Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2003 to 2005 and ...

appointed U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services. *2007 :Harry Reid becomes Senate Majority Leader :

announces his candidacy for the U.S. presidency. *2011 :

announces his candidacy for the U.S. presidency. ::First Latter Day Saint to receive a major party's presidential nomination. :

Jon Huntsman, Jr. Jon Meade Huntsman Jr. (born March 26, 1960) is an American businessman, diplomat and politician who served as the 16th Governor of Utah from 2005 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, he served as the Ambassador of the United States to ...

announces his candidacy for the U.S. presidency. *2016 :

Evan McMullin David Evan McMullin (born April 2, 1976) is an American politician and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) officer. McMullin ran as an independent in the 2016 United States presidential election and in the 2022 United States Senate electio ...

announces his candidacy for U.S. presidency.

References

{{Reflist

Political History Political history is the narrative and survey of political events, ideas, movements, organs of government, voters, parties and leaders. It is closely related to other fields of history, including diplomatic history, constitutional history, social ...

Mormonism and politics

See also

References