"Vulgar" comments surface in the primary for Utah's new Democratic district

Nate Blouin, a contender for Utah's new Democratic-leaning seat, is under fire after a report chronicled online comments he wrote more than a decade ago condemning Latter-day Saints and minimizing sexual abuse.

Why it matters: Blouin, a Democratic state senator, is widely seen as the leading progressive running to the left of former Rep. Ben McAdams.

• He's been endorsed by Sen. Bernie Sanders and Reps. Pramila Jayapal, Ro Khanna, Maxwell Frost and Jill Tokuda, among others.

Driving the news: Blouin's posts from 2009 to 2015 surfaced in a Punchbowl News article Wednesday.

• They originally appeared on Reddit and some sports and outdoor rec forums when Blouin, now 36, was in his early- to mid-20s.

What's inside: Amid some derogatory jokes and slurs are comments that are particularly likely to inflame Latter-day Saints and women — overlapping groups that could be decisive in a Utah Democratic primary.

• Blouin in 2013 called Mormons the worst part about living in Utah and said he once defecated in a church parking lot.
• In 2014, when a former BYU student was charged with sexual battery after 16 women reported being groped on campus, Blouin wrote: "while slapping girl's [sic] asses as you run by is inappropriate, it shouldn't land you in jail or anything by any means. people are too damn sensitive."

In a prepared statement, Blouin wrote, in part: "There's no excuse for these posts — they're vulgar, stupid, and reflect a version of me in my early twenties that I'm ashamed of and have thankfully evolved past. … I was horrified to see my use of language toward women and about a faith that my family, friends, and millions of Utahns practice."

What they're saying: "These comments … are offensive and personally hurtful to us and to the people we represent," Blouin's Democratic colleagues in the Legislature wrote in a statement that called his posts "beyond unacceptable."

• Meanwhile, Michael Farrell, a Democrat who is running against Blouin, called on him to withdraw from the race.
• Salt Lake County's Democratic Mayor Jenny Wilson advised Blouin to leave not only the race, but also public office.

Zoom out: Blouin's posts are circulating as Democrats nationally try to show the party is more committed than Republicans to holding members accountable for past wrongs — especially as the Trump administration has refused to release the Epstein files in full.

• Two congressmen, one of whom is a Democrat, resigned this week after accusations of sexual misconduct.

Yes, but: Dem voters may still prove more leery of "establishment" candidates — and of renewed allegations of "cancel culture" — than they are of skeletons in their leaders' closets.

• Case in point: In Maine, left-leaning Democrat Graham Platner is leading the primary race despite controversy over his past comments about rape and a now-covered tattoo of a Nazi emblem.

Zoom in: Blouin's opponent, McAdams, has struggled to shed his Blue Dog reputation after branding himself a centrist Democrat during his 2019-2021 term, when he represented a district that was far less blue than the one he's running in now.

The bottom line: Democrats running for Utah's new 1st District may have a wide leftward berth, but it doesn't mean voters will forgive disparaging remarks against two core constituencies.

Editor's note: This story has been updated with a comment from Salt Lake County Mayor Jenny Wilson.