Nancy Workman (December 9, 1940 – May 3, 2020) was an American politician who was the first county mayor of

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The coun ...

, and a member of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

. She was the last Republican to have held this office. She was born in

Pueblo In the Southwestern United States, Pueblo (capitalized) refers to the Native tribes of Puebloans having fixed-location communities with permanent buildings which also are called pueblos (lowercased). The Spanish explorers of northern New Spain ...

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, but grew up in

Boise Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown area's ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

where her father was an automobile dealer. She finally settled in the

Salt Lake Valley Salt Lake Valley is a valley in Salt Lake County in the north-central portion of the U.S. state of Utah. It contains Salt Lake City and many of its suburbs, notably Murray, Sandy, South Jordan, West Jordan, and West Valley City; its total po ...

during her senior year of

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

. Workman went to college at the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

and ran a construction business before seeking office as county recorder. After an unsuccessful bid in 1990 she was finally elected in 1994 to a six-year term. Later, after the post was approved by the county commission, Workman was elected to the newly-created post of county mayor of Salt Lake County. As County Mayor, Workman presided over a budget of nearly $700 million and never asked for a tax increase. She moved the county-owned planetarium from its historic but outdated facility on State Street to the new Gateway shopping development. Workman also worked to establish a fire district and supported self-determination of unincorporated areas in the county. In 2004, Democratic District Attorney David Yocum accused Workman of misusing funds to pay for an employee at a local chapter of the

Boys & Girls Clubs of America Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) is a national organization of local chapters which provide voluntary after-school programs for young people. The organization, which holds a congressional charter under Title 36 of the United States Code, ...

. She faced two

felony A felony is traditionally considered a crime of high seriousness, whereas a misdemeanor is regarded as less serious. The term "felony" originated from English common law (from the French medieval word "félonie") to describe an offense that resu ...

charges Charge or charged may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Charge, Zero Emissions/Maximum Speed'', a 2011 documentary Music * ''Charge'' (David Ford album) * ''Charge'' (Machel Montano album) * '' Charge!!'', an album by The Aqu ...

of misusing county monies by allegedly placing county employees at the club: one Second Degree Felony and one Third Degree. During the trial, it was revealed that the county employee was actually hired as a replacement for Workman's daughter at the Boys & Girls Club, rather than an assistant, as the D.A. had suspected. On February 10, 2005 a jury found Workman not guilty of all charges. Originally, Workman decided not to drop out of the 2004 county mayoral race, even when the Utah GOP dropped public support for her. The Republicans replaced her with

Ellis Ivory Ellis is a surname of Welsh and English origin. Retrieved 21 January 2014 An independent French origin of the surname is said to derive from the phrase fleur-de-lis. Surname A *Abe Ellis (Stargate), a fictional character in the TV series ''Sta ...

as a

write-in candidate A write-in candidate is a candidate whose name does not appear on the ballot but seeks election by asking voters to cast a vote for the candidate by physically writing in the person's name on the ballot. Depending on electoral law it may be poss ...

. On October 12, 2004, Workman then dropped out of the race in an effort to give the Republicans a better chance at securing the office. She was succeeded in office by Democrat

Peter Corroon Peter Maitland Corroon (born July 16, 1964) is an American politician, former Utah Democratic Party chair, and the former mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah. He was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for governor in the 2010 election. Corroon is a ...

. Workman later served as the President and CEO of the Sandy Area Chamber of Commerce. She died at her home in St. George in 2020, aged 79.Nancy Workman, Salt Lake County’s first mayor, dies at 79
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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Workman, Nancy 1940 births 2020 deaths Businesspeople from Utah People from Pueblo, Colorado People from Boise, Idaho Mayors of Salt Lake County, Utah University of Utah alumni Women in Utah politics Women mayors of places in Utah Utah Republicans 21st-century American women