Suzanne Harrison is an American politician and physician who served as a member of the

Utah House of Representatives The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district cont ...

for the 32nd district from 2019 to 2022. She was elected to the Salt Lake County Council in November 2022 and assumed office in January 2023.

Early life and education

Harrison was born in

Provo, Utah Provo ( ) is the fourth-largest city in Utah, United States. It is south of Salt Lake City along the Wasatch Front. Provo is the largest city and county seat of Utah County and is home to Brigham Young University (BYU). Provo lies between the ...

. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in human biology from

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

in 1997 and a

Doctor of Medicine Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin language, Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a profes ...

from the

University of Utah School of Medicine The University of Utah School of Medicine is located on the upper campus of the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, Utah. It was founded in 1905 and is currently the only MD-granting medical school in the state of Utah. History The school began ...

in 2007. She completed a residency program in anesthesiology and critical care at

Harvard Medical School Harvard Medical School (HMS) is the graduate medical school of Harvard University and is located in the Longwood Medical Area of Boston, Massachusetts. Founded in 1782, HMS is one of the oldest medical schools in the United States and is consi ...

Career

Harrison works at Riverton Hospital and

Intermountain Medical Center Intermountain Medical Center is the flagship hospital of Intermountain Healthcare. Located in Murray, Utah on a site at the center of the Salt Lake Valley, Intermountain Medical Center serves as a major adult referral center for six surrounding ...

. She first ran for the

in 2016, losing to Republican incumbent LaVar Christensen by only three votes. Harrison ran against Republican Brad Bonham in 2018 and won with 56.3% of the vote. In 2020, Harrison ran for her second term and won with 55.1% of the vote over Republican challenger Cindie Quintana. In 2022, after redistricting, Harrison ran for a seat on the

Salt Lake County Council The Salt Lake County Council is the legislative body of the home rule government of Salt Lake County, Utah. The council consists of nine members, each representing one of the nine districts from which they were elected. History Like most count ...

. She defeated incumbent Richard Snelgrove by 10 points.

Political positions

Environment and energy policy

Harrison supports policies intended to limit pollution. She is a co-chair of the Bipartisan Clean-Air Caucus. Harrison opposed then-EPA Administrator

Andrew R. Wheeler Andrew R. Wheeler (born December 23, 1964) is an American attorney who served as the 15th administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 2019 to 2021. He served as the deputy administrator from April to July 2018, a ...

's policies of cutting regulations on clean air standards. Harrison supported Governor Spencer Cox's proposal to spend $50 million on electric car infrastructure.

Public lands

In 2021, Harrison criticized Senator

Mike Lee Michael Shumway Lee (born June 4, 1971) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Utah, a seat he has held since 2011. He is a member of the Republican Party. Lee began his career as a clerk for the U ...

's proposal to exempt Utah from the

Antiquities Act The Antiquities Act of 1906 (, , ), is an act that was passed by the United States Congress and signed into law by Theodore Roosevelt on June 8, 1906. This law gives the President of the United States the authority to, by presidential procla ...

, saying that "many of the places that need protection in our state could become even more vulnerable." She also criticizes Lee for "us(ing) his platform to make deceptive statements about public lands, including that monument designations do not make a place more beautiful or create community opportunities... clearly, they do."

Redistricting

Rep. Harrison supports legislative districts to be drawn by an independent commission, rather than by the legislature.

References

Living people Stanford University alumni University of Utah School of Medicine alumni 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Women state legislators in Utah Democratic Party members of the Utah House of Representatives Year of birth missing (living people) People from Provo, Utah Physicians from Utah {{Utah-politician-stub