An incumbent who has been endorsed by President Donald Trump? Or a challenger who paints himself as the “Make Utah Great Again” candidate?

Some 4,000 Utah Republican Party delegates will elect their next leader during their state organizing convention on Saturday at Utah Valley University in Orem.

Their decision will have major implications for the future direction of the Utah GOP, and it’s sure to stir heated debate between two factions within the party — those who like the direction the party has already been heading under incumbent Chair Rob Axson versus anti-establishment conservatives who are fans of former state lawmaker and failed gubernatorial candidate Phil Lyman.

Lyman is likely to get a warm reception from delegates, who handed him the party’s nomination in his bid for governor with 67.5% of the vote during last year’s nominating convention. But because Gov. Spencer Cox used the state’s other option to get his name on the ballot as a Republican by gathering signatures, Cox and Lyman both qualified for the GOP primary, which Lyman lost. He still didn’t give up, continuing his bid in the general election as an unaffiliated write-in candidate, which he also lost — however, he captured more than 13.5% of the vote, which was the most ever seen for a write-in bid.

But Axson, who has served as Utah GOP chair since 2023, got a major boost when Trump endorsed him in a post on Truth Social on Thursday, with just over a week to go before the convention.

Axson has also been endorsed by other Utah Republican Party heavyweights including Sen. Mike Lee, who called him in a post on X “one of the most effective state party chairmen we’ve ever had in Utah, he’s one of the best in the entire country.”

“He’s uniformly respected and admired as a member of the RNC,” Lee added. “He’s an unusually dedicated, talented, and energetic person. I’ve known and worked closely with him throughout the last 16 years, and he’s one of the most decent people I’ve ever known.”

Lyman — who is championing a “MUGA” slogan, often mirrors Trump’s style and was even pardoned by Trump back in 2020 for leading an illegal ATV protest on federal lands — shrugged off Trump’s endorsement of his opponent.

“Reminder – MAGA is about America – and I love it,” Lyman wrote in a post on X. “My support for Donald Trump is not contingent on his support for me. We have work to do. Oh, and Cox cheated.”

Lyman also continues to refuse to accept that Cox legally won the election, even though Lyman and his team have lost every single court challenge. Throughout both his campaigns for governor and Utah GOP chair, Lyman has also catered largely to a faction of Utah Republicans who continue to despise SB54, the 2014 law that set a dual path to the primary ballot through both the caucus and convention system and through signature gathering.

After more than 10 years, SB54 has survived years of court challenges — to the point of almost bankrupting the Utah GOP. But angst over SB54 persists, and it’s one of the biggest wedges dividing Utah Republicans.

That angst is sure to boil up again Saturday in more ways than one.

Proposal to yank party membership from signature gatherers

According to the convention’s agenda, delegates are also slated to consider a proposed amendment to the party’s constitution that would temporarily revoke a Republican candidate’s party membership if they gain access to the ballot through signature gathering rather than through the caucus convention system.

“Any person who seeks public office ballot access as a Republican by any mechanism other than that specifically provided within this Constitution shall be deemed to have failed to comply with the Republican Party Constitution and that person’s membership shall immediately be revoked for one year,” the proposed amendment reads.

In its bylaws, the Utah Republican Party accepts the caucus and convention process as the nominating process. Because of SB54, however, state law specifies that candidates can get their name on the ballot through the convention nomination, the signature gathering path, or both.

State law also specifies two types of political parties: registered parties and qualified political parties. Candidates of registered parties must use signature gathering to access the ballot, while candidates of qualified parties (a designation the Utah GOP currently functions under), can either gather signatures or be nominated at convention. Utah law does not have a designation that lets parties only allow ballot access through nomination.

If the GOP’s proposed amendment to strip a candidate’s party membership for using a legal pathway to the ballot passes, it’s possible it could lead to yet another court challenge.

It’s also possible that party leaders could try to push the Utah Legislature to change the law.

Axson vs. Lyman

Axson, in a statement on his campaign website, pledged he will “keep pushing back against signature gathering on all fronts.” He added that the “timing is right” because “for the first time since SB54 was signed into law, there will be no statewide offices up for election this cycle.”

“Unlike previous attempts to reverse SB54, we must be strategic and work with the Legislature to protect the most meaningful nominating process in the country – our neighborhood delegates!” Axson said.

Lyman, in multiple posts on his X profile, has promised to prioritize “pursuing the possibility of the party running its own primary elections independent of the state.” He has also said the party has been “infiltrated with those who do not respect the GOP, who do not accept our platform, and who are actively trying to undermine our caucus system.”

He’s also called for a “revival” within the party.

“A revival of our caucus-convention system where delegate voices matter. A revival of transparent, honest elections so we can feel comfortable that are (sic) elected officials earned their responsibilities. A revival of a party that stands its ground and doesn’t bow to the wishes of the elites and lobbyists,” Lyman said in a post on X.

Axson, on the other hand, has campaigned with the slogan “redder is better,” with an emphasis on “connecting and building relationships.” He has also pointed to his past experience leading the party, noting that after he was elected chair in 2023, he and his team raised nearly $3 million, a record amount for a year that saw some of the most conservative wins in an election cycle.

“As Chair, Rob is committed to sustaining a serious statewide political organization to further the goals of conservatives in Utah,” Axson’s website says. “Gone are the days of debt and fear of bankruptcy!”

Given both Axson and Lyman appear to be well liked among delegates, Saturday’s convention will be revealing — not just of infighting, but of what kind of leadership style resonates most with delegates and what kind of strategy to expect for future challenges of SB54.

Utah News Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.