Utah Reagan Caucus
Welcome to the movement to restore the Republican Party! We are an independent, Utah-based Political Action Committee endorsed by the national Reagan Caucus, working to reassert conservative values in the Utah Republican Party. We are a big tent coalition looking to renew the GOP into a platform and vessel for a sane, responsible, and principled strain of conservatism. This coalition is united by the three fundamental planks of Reagan-style conservatism: fidelity to the Constitution, limited governance, and keeping faith with friends and allies abroad.
Please join us in our efforts first by signing our national pledge to dependably participate in GOP caucuses and primaries in support of principled Reaganite Republicans, and then join us here in Utah as we champion the Utah-based conservative approach that has served our state so well for so long.
A Loss of Principle
Talk to most any bread-and-better conservative, especially here in Utah, and the values that make them proud conservatives and Republicans will be some variation of fidelity to the U.S. Constitution, commitment to the rule of law, peace through strength, more governing decisions made close to home and fewer in far away Washington D.C., and one nation under God with liberty for all. These are the values that constitute what’s often called Reagan conservatism since Reagan’s presidency in the 1980s is considered the high watermark of their national appeal. These are the values held by multiple generations of American conservatives and are the binding sinews that connect us both to the founders who forged our great nation and to the Utah pioneers who came to the tops of the mountains seeking the freedom to worship God according to the dictates of conscience.
But despite these being the common held values of the average conservative and Republican, a new right-wing faction has increasingly held sway over the last decade within the Republican Party who, despite claiming to pay homage to traditional conservative values and to be heirs to the legacy of Reagan Republicanism, has led the GOP and many of those who still think of themselves as conservative to depart from basic tenets of conservative civic convictions.
This populist faction is a strand of right-wing activism and thought that holds very little sacred that traditional conservatives hold as paramount and inalienable. Populists more often than not tend to be haughty, distempered, and even unhinged in the manner they go about arguing for their brand of right-wing politics. In many ways, they are a council of despair, all but having given up on basic ideas of decency, character, commitment to fair play, and trust in our constitutional system. They are not even shy in admitting that they want to “play by the left’s rules” as they seek, not to unravel the growth of government, the violations of liberty, or the undermining of the constitutional order but to precipitate these things in the name of their own nationalized, centralized, big brother schemes.
And the results in the Republican Party’s electoral prospects have been as might be assumed. In 2016, the Republican Party had majorities in both Houses of Congress, controlled the White House, held 31 State governorships, and controlled 37 State Senates and 33 State Houses. Thanks to the gains of the Tea Party years, we were on the precipice of a conservative revolution unseen since 1984 when Ronald Reagan won re-election with the support of 49 states. But since 2016, the Senate and the House have flipped back and forth between the parties with the smallest majority possible held in any given year, the populist brand lost control the White House in 2020 and barely won it back in 2024, the Republican Party only holds 26 State governorships, and only controls 30 State Senates and 29 State Houses. And there is little indication that this trend will change any time soon without meaningful efforts to change the present direction of the Republican Party.
A Republican Renewal
In 2024, as evidenced by the numbers of Republican voters who cast votes for such political options as Nikki Haley and Ron DeSantis, a small but not insignificant number of conservatives and Republicans finally said that enough is enough. We recognized that the serious issues our country faces both at home and abroad require a true conservative vision and a conservative party to sell that vision to the country. But under the Republican Party as it presently stands, there is little evidence of a conservative vision nor of the seriousness and soberness necessary to make a persuasive case to the American people of its value. This unacceptable situation cannot be allowed to continue. American needs a conservative party.
And so, serious-minded Republican voters chose to coalesce under the banner of the Reagan Caucus and her various state and college chapters, pledging to work together toward a restoration of the Republican Party that stood for timeless values and that has championed a winning conservative message so often in the past. We want to see conservative governance and we’ve determined its high time a new faction arises within the GOP who will rebuild it as a party that can deliver conservative governance.
We know what the naysayers will say, that the form of government established by our founding fathers no longer exists, that the Constitution has become a dead letter, and that voters who are not currently open to a conservative message are unpersuadable and attempts to engage them is a lost cause. But such cynicism and such nihilism is not befitting the conservative sensibility. Conservatism, if it’s anything, is gratitude for what we have and hope that it can endure. If we lose a grasp on this gratitude and hope, then what are we? Certainly not conservative.
We at the Utah Reagan Caucus simply do not believe that this wonderful thing called the American Republic for whom so many generations have sweat, bled, and died for can disappear so easy into the mists of time. Nor do we believe that time-tested truths and principles suddenly cease to have relevance or staying power in the face of whatever calamities strip us of our faith and resolve. We believe the sacrifices of those who came before us built a strong foundation for our great nation, that truth endures, and that principles are meant for the hard times and not for times of ease.
Join us as we endeavor to restore and renew the Republican Party into an effective vessel for the conservative vision our country so desperately needs. Sign our national pledge to dependably participate in GOP caucuses and primaries and vote for principled Reaganite Republicans, and then join us here in Utah as we champion the Utah-based conservative approach that has served our state so well for so long.
Utah Reagan Caucus Platform
The Utah Reagan Caucus exists to organize in favor of ensuring the Utah Republican Party is the conservative party in Utah politics. We have named ourselves the Utah Reagan Caucus because the administration of Ronald Reagan and the era in which he rose to national leadership best exemplifies the values, principles, and rhetoric of successful conservatism in the minds of our fellow Utahns.
To best lay out those values, principles, and our belief in the dignity of conservatism, we declare these following statements as the platform of the Utah Reagan Caucus:
1. A conservative is a happy warrior who demonstrates the stoic persona appropriate to the commitments of deep conviction. Anger, fear, hostility, anxiety: these are not the marks of deep conviction, but the panicked emotions of those who are insecure in the truth and durability of what they claim to believe. The absence of panic is not a sign of apathy but a testament of grit.
2. A conservative is humble and grateful for the gifts of history. The fabric of a nation is not formed by chance and was not formed in a day. It involves effort and sacrifice. It develops and grows over time. For this reason, the foundational principle of conservatism is gratitude for the heritage passed on from those who came before. It is our duty to safeguard this heritage from being lost under our stewardship and to pass it on to our posterity.
3. A conservative believes in honesty, integrity, and accountability. There can never be a worthwhile tradeoff for any conservative victory if the end result is the elevation of dishonorable people to positions of power. Character is destiny.
4. A conservative believes in ordered liberty. Liberty is the ultimate end of organized government, and the greatest duty of government is to protect the self-evident rights of mankind. But the ultimate end of society is virtue, not vice. The duty of the people and of both public and private institutions, most pointedly educational and religious institutions, must be to exercise the liberty safeguarded by the government to develop virtue in the hearts of the people.
5. A conservative believes in the rule of law. A sovereign people have the right to be governed by laws established by their representatives, through a legislative process that balances the will of the majority with the rights of all the people. The phrase “We the People” is not a majoritarian declaration nor a promise of unbridled direct democracy. It is not a populist phrase. “We the People” is a promise to establish and preserve a form of government that governs by consent of the majority but administers the laws in the interest of the freedom and security of every American.
6. A conservative believes in individual freedom. Each person in a free society has the right to live their life as they see fit and to exercise their God-given rights to whatever extent and in whichever direction they choose so long as the rights of others are not imposed upon.
7. A conservative believes in law and order. While it is the chief mandate of government in a free society to preserve the liberty of the people, it is its secondary mandate to ensure that people can live their lives while feeling secure in their persons and their property. Chaos and disorder are as much a threat to liberty as tyranny and oppression.
8. A conservative believes in limited government. The United States of America is a constitutional republic and not a direct democracy. The Bill of Rights establishes the limits of government action, no matter the extent of popular mandate claimed by a given executive or iteration of legislative authority.
9. A conservative believes all forms of government power should be checked and balanced. Congress alone has the authority to create the law. The President alone has the authority to execute the law. The Courts alone have the authority to render judgement under the law. These three branches of government are granted their respective power and authority from the people through the creation and perpetuation of the U.S. Constitution. No branch of government has the power or authority to delegate the powers entrusted to them by the people to another entity or branch of government. This reality establishes the nature of our government as a republic. And the Constitution guarantees this republican form of government in each of the states.
10. A conservative believes in federalism and localism. The closer the decisions of government are to the people, the more representative, responsive, and effective government is. The founders established a Union of States and affirmed and safeguarded that Union by establishing a system of dual sovereignty. The federal government has limited jurisdiction, with only the power to establish the general laws that govern society. All other governing power belongs to the states, most notably the police power. Just as the federal government should limit itself to its sphere of power and allow the states to govern themselves under the general law, state governments should practice this same approach in their dealings with local forms of government.
11. A conservative believes in freedom of conscience. It is the natural right of every individual to worship God according to the dictates of conscience, or to choose not to engage in any form of worship at all. The coercion or constraint inherent to any form of government action should be fully separated from religious worship and the self-governance of religious fellowship.
12. A conservative believes in the duty of civic engagement. Free citizens should exercise their right to participate in political processes at every possible opportunity. The right to vote in the general election is paramount, but such a civic exercise should be the culmination of civic engagement. Free citizens should engage in party processes, should involve themselves in every step of choosing political representation, should attend civic meetings, and be active in redressing the government for grievances.
13. A conservative believes in civic celebration. A free citizen has the duty to honor and appreciate the civic culture of a free nation. Civic virtue should be celebrated and shared. Everyone shares in the responsibility to educate one another on the benefits of free society and there is special duty to raise up the children of America as responsible citizens prepared to enter adulthood with an appreciation for the heritage of a free society and with the knowledge requisite to participate in society as responsible, free citizens.
14. A conservative believes in free markets, free trade, and free association. Freedom unleashes prosperity. There has never been an attempt at centralized control of the economy that has come near the unprecedented success of the American nation’s experiment in free market economics. And no contemporary attempt to recreate the policies of mercantilism under the false cloak of conservatism will fare any better.
15. A conservative believes in fiscal responsibility. The successful fiscal practices of the kitchen table are no different than the successful fiscal practices of governing policy. Live within your means. Balance the budget. Save for a rainy day.
16. A conservative believes in taxation for and only for the proper functions of government. It is the duty of all citizens in a free society to allow the government to collect the necessary monetary support to function as it safeguards our liberty and security. But taxation should always be the minimal necessary level to support such functions. Taxation should never be punitive, discriminatory, or wielded as a means to accomplish policy outcomes. Taxation should not be used as a cudgel for the government to manage and control the market, nor should it be used to redistribute wealth from one group to another.
17. A conservative believes in the sanctity of life. It is the duty and responsibility of government in a free society to jealously guard the safety and security of every individual under its protection. It is not only inherently immoral but damaging to the soul of a nation to justify the slaughter of those who cannot defend themselves in the false name of choice. Everyone has a choice to be responsible with the powers of life and creation given to them by nature and nature’s God.
18. A conservative believes in the right of self-defense. If ever an individual is faced by the threats of an armed criminal without the requisite means of equal self-defense, they are at the mercy of that criminal and the only reliance they have for the preservation of their life and their property is the response of armed agents from the state. In such a moment, such a person cannot in any way be defined as free. The right to bear arms is a fundamental and inalienable right that must be preserved and cannot be infringed upon if a society wishes to call itself a free society.
19. A conservative believes in national sovereignty. A free people should only ever answer to the laws established by their own legislative process and treaties freely entered into by the government to which the people have given consent. Global governance, international organizations, presidential agreements, and non-treaty accords have no binding authority nor legitimacy in the eyes of a sovereign people. Additionally, while freedom of movement is a natural right, a sovereign nation and the demands of the rule of law dictate that the crossing of international borders must be a regulated process, and the immigration of people from one country to another must be subject to the demands of security and stability.
20. A conservative believes in peace through strength. America should be the best of friends and the worst of enemies. The perpetuation of peace is not only best secured when free nations and free peoples bind themselves together willingly as friends and allies and keep full faith with one another; doing so is a reflection of national honor and character. It is a self-evident value that “to be prepared for war is one of the most effectual means of preserving peace.” While America should not go abroad “in search of monsters to destroy” and should avoid foreign entanglements that might involve us in conflicts of ambition and conquest, the best security for peace is the consistent and unquestioned policy of deterrence which, from time to time, requires the unflinching exercise of American military might against the enemies of peace and prosperity.
21. A conservative is color blind. While cultural traditions and unique beliefs and practices should be celebrated in a free nation populated by the descendants of immigrants from all over the world, neither race, creed, nor ethnicity should ever dictate different treatment under the rule of law. Justice is blind to any argument that seeks to discriminate against anyone for any reason. Every individual is of equal value under the eyes of God, and every citizen in a free society should have equal rights and consideration under the rule of law.
22. A conservative believes in secular government. Government should never involve itself in the establishment of religion. Government should never exercise its power to force the exercise of religion. While virtue is the highest end of society, it is not something that can be forced or coerced. The reason a conservative affirms liberty as the highest end of government, is because the practices of true religion and the only path to actual virtue must be freely chosen.
23. A conservative believes in the importance of morals and values in society, and that religion is the surest bedrock upon which to establish a moral people. While there should be a wall of separation between the exercise of governing power and the establishment of religion, this does not mean that religious speech is a lesser form of civic engagement, nor that the morals and values of religion should be forced to stay only in homes and houses of worship. Government should not be hostile to religion. Deeply held religious beliefs and morals should be allowed to inform the process of creating laws and governing society.
24. A conservative believes in the right of parents to raise their children. Until the age of majority, established as 18 years old in our society, the freedom that naturally belongs to every individual is safeguarded and held in trust by a child’s parents or legal guardians. This means no one in society can claim more of a right to make choices for the growth and development of a child than a parent. While government can and should safeguard children against abuse and make reasonable requirements regarding the education of children, parents should always be the penultimate voice in the destiny of their children.
25. A conservative believes in the importance of education for the maintenance of a free society. Every child has the right to a quality education. Government has a responsibility to ensure a K-12 education is provided to every child and to offer higher education opportunities to those who seek them. Parents have a responsibility to ensure their children attend school and should be personally involved in helping their children learn and grow. The government should both provide quality public education while also offering and supporting parents in the opportunity to choose other forms of quality education. While education is an endeavor of the government, free market principles should still inform the effort to provide the highest quality of education possible.
26. A conservative believes in freedom of association but also the right to work. Unions can be a healthy form of civic engagement, and a healthy exercise of the freedom of association. But so is a contract of employment. Union membership should never be a requirement to gain employment. Unions should voluntarily restrict themselves to efforts of collective bargaining and avoid involvement in partisan politics. If mandatory membership is allowed, unions should be legally barred from engaging in politics. Workers should not be forced to offer monetary support to political efforts they disagree with to maintain their livelihoods. Public unions are a distortion of representative government. The threat of withholding critical services to the community should never be used to hold elected officials hostage to union demands.
Please join us in our efforts first by signing our national pledge to dependably participate in GOP caucuses and primaries and vote for principled Reaganite Republicans, and then join us here in Utah as we champion the Utah-based conservative approach that has served our state so well for so long.
State Director: Justin Stapley is the founding state director of the Utah Reagan Caucus. He previously worked in law enforcement before returning to higher education to study political theory and constitutionalism. He completed his Bachelor’s degree in 2023 at Utah Valley University and is now a graduate student at UVU studying Constitutional Government, Civics, and Law. He is a Visiting Fellow in Higher Education at FREOPP. Justin is also a Middle East veteran having deployed to Kuwait, Iraq, and Syria from 2022-2023 and was also activated in support of the 60th Presidential Inauguration in Washington D.C. in January, 2025.
State Co-Director: Matt Jacobsen is the founding state co-director of the Utah Reagan Caucus. He works as an Electronic Warfare and Signals Intelligence Analyst at CACI International. Matt was the State Director for the Utah Modern Whig Party before deciding to return to the Republican Party. He is also a Middle East Veteran having deployed to Afghanistan in 2014.
The Utah Reagan Caucus endorses and mobilizes in support of candidates at all levels of Utah politics who reflect our platform, the broader values of the national Reagan Caucus, and who have demonstrated character and poise against the unhinged factions assaulting the conservative nature of the Republican Party. While we are a coalitional organization, we do not endorse candidates we identify as populists. If there is a Utah political candidate you feel represents the values of Reagan Republicanism and would like to have them considered for endorsement by the Utah Reagan Caucus, please send an email making your case to [email protected].
Current Endorsements
Tami Tran, Utah Senate, District 6
Doug Fiefia, Utah Senate, District 18
Brady Brammer, Utah Senate, District 21
Casey Snider, Utah House, District 5
Kara Toone, Utah House, District 14
Bob Stevenson, Utah House, District 16
Paul Cutler, Utah House, District 18
Anthony Loubet, Utah House, District 27
Sheldon Birch, Utah House, District 29
Dave Parke, Utah House, District 30
Monique Ketcham, Utah House, District 35
Jordan Teuscher, Utah House, District 44
Tracy Miller, Utah House, District 45
Jake Hunsaker, Utah House, District 48
Candice B. Pierucci, Utah House, District 49
Luke Searle, Utah House, District 59
Doug Welton, Utah House, District 65
Scott Chew, Utah House, District 68
Logan Monson, Utah House, District 69
Standing Endorsements
Legacy Endorsements
We have plans to begin holding neighborhood gatherings across the state soon. Such events will be listed here. If you would like to host a cottage meeting to discuss the Utah Reagan Caucus, hold a digital summit, or organize a fundraising event, please send your interest to [email protected].
March 12th, 2026, 6:30-8:30pm: Meet the State Director, Justin Stapley at Herriman Library.
© Utah Reagan Caucus, all rights reserved. Not authorized by any candidate or candidate’s committee.