Katy Owens

This page was current at the end of the individual's last campaign covered by Ballotpedia. Please contact us with any updates.

Katy Owens

Democratic Party

Elections and appointments

Last election

November 3, 2020

Education

Bachelor's

Lewis and Clark College, 2006

Graduate

University of Colorado Denver, 2012

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

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Campaign YouTube

Personal LinkedIn

Katy Owens (Democratic Party) ran for election to the Utah State Senate to represent District 19. She lost in the general election on November 3, 2020.

Owens completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. Click here to read the survey answers.

Biography

Katy Owens earned a bachelor’s degree from Lewis and Clark College in 2006 and a graduate degree from University of Colorado Denver in 2012.

Elections

2020

See also: Utah State Senate elections, 2020

General election

General election for Utah State Senate District 19

John Johnson defeated Katy Owens in the general election for Utah State Senate District 19 on November 3, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Johnson (R)	57.1	27,728
		Katy Owens (D)	42.9	20,857

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 48,585
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Christopher Neville (D)

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Utah State Senate District 19

John Johnson defeated Johnny Ferry in the Republican primary for Utah State Senate District 19 on June 30, 2020.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Johnson	56.4	8,493
	Submit photo	Johnny Ferry	43.6	6,553

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 15,046
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

• Denver Lough (R)

Democratic convention

Democratic convention for Utah State Senate District 19

Katy Owens advanced from the Democratic convention for Utah State Senate District 19 on April 25, 2020.

		Candidate
✔		Katy Owens (D)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Republican convention

Republican convention for Utah State Senate District 19

Johnny Ferry and John Johnson advanced from the Republican convention for Utah State Senate District 19 on April 25, 2020.

		Candidate
✔	Submit photo	Johnny Ferry (R)
✔		John Johnson (R)

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2020

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Katy Owens completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Owens' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

I'm Katy Owens and I'm running for Utah Senate District 19 to bring back a more responsive and representative legislature. I'm a small business owner and public policy consultant who is thankful every day to be living in the beautiful state of Utah.

I live with my husband and two children in Summit County, where we spend our days exploring the nearby trails and watching out for moose. I have a bachelor's degree in international affairs and a master's degree in political science.

I am the daughter of two teachers who taught me the importance of lifelong learning and of being involved in the community. As a nationally known expert in election policy, my greatest dream is to see everyone eligible get out and vote.

My job takes me to state capitols all over the country. I love taking photos of capitol domes and seeing what makes different communities around the country work. I believe that talking to and really listening to everyone, regardless of political affiliation or background, is the key to making good public policy.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• Healthcare: Families need access to preventative care and shouldn't have to go bankrupt to make sure their kids are healthy.
• Quality educational opportunities: Providing a good educational foundation when children are young will ensure they are productive members of society in the future.
• A voice in the state legislature: More and more Utahns are voting and want a legislature that listens to them.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

As the mom of two young kids I'm passionate about ensuring that they have quality educational opportunities, especially in early childhood and the elementary school years. I'm also passionate about ensuring that families have access to preventive healthcare, as I've personally seen the impact that discovering health problems early can have on children and their development. As the wife of an energy efficiency engineer I would like to see the expansion of programs that promote saving energy and sourcing it from renewable sources. And as a policy consultant in election policy I'm passionate about programs that expand access to voting and include traditionally marginalized communities.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

I look up to my parents, who are teachers. They've had an impact on more lives then I can count, and always approached their jobs with humor and grace (which is particularly impressive if you're ever heard seventh grade jokes...)

I've also had the good fortune of having many female bosses in my life who have had a profound influence on me in both my work and my personal life. It's inspiring to have a community of women who believe in each other and build each other up in everything from dealing with work relationships to raising kids.

As a graduate student I had the good fortune to have internships with former President Jimmy Carter and former U.S. Senator Mark Udall. What I appreciated about both of them was their nuanced understanding of public affairs and their humility and good humor in dealing with everyone around them. I hope to emulate that example as an elected official.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

The falling of the Berlin Wall. My extended family comes from Germany so it was an emotional moment for many of my family members. As a child I lived in Germany for a time (my parents were teachers on a U.S. military base there) and we were there for the first anniversary of the reunification of Germany. My classmates and I linked arms to make the shape of the country and the wall, and then symbolically "broke" the wall and became one country.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My parents are both teachers and so my first jobs were at their schools. As a teenager I was a teacher's aide, a counselor at school-sponsored summer camps, and a P.E. climbing instructor. Those experiences certainly influence my first "real" jobs as well. When I graduated from college I was a teacher at an early education center and then taught English as a Foreign Language in Peru.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

My daughter has Can't Stop the Feeling by Justin Timberlake on repeat, so that's often stuck in my head.

Every state besides Nebraska has two legislative chambers. What do you consider the most important differences between the legislative chambers in your state?

A state senator represents a larger population and a larger geographic area, so there is a wider range of constituent issues and needs. There are only 29 senators, so each one has more of an individual voice than do the members of the house. This is also why it's so important for there to be more diversity in the body. To be the voice of the people the legislature needs representation from all ages, income levels, professions and life experiences.

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

I don't think it's necessary but it can be beneficial. Being involved in government or politics teaches you to listen to different perspectives and find areas of potential agreement or collaboration. The best policies are those that draw from a variety of sources, which includes looking at hard scientific data when it's available, speaking with people about their experiences, and learning from experts in a given field. What I find exciting about state legislature is that opportunity for everyone to speak - in committee hearings or personally to legislators - and be a part of creating laws for the state.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

See also

2020 Elections

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External links

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Footnotes

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Current members of the Utah State Senate

Leadership

Majority Leader:Kirk Cullimore

Minority Leader:Luz Escamilla

Senators

District 1

Scott Sandall (R)

District 2

Chris Wilson (R)

District 3

John Johnson (R)

District 4

Calvin Musselman (R)

District 5

Ann Millner (R)

District 6

Jerry Stevenson (R)

District 7

Stuart Adams (R)

District 8

Todd Weiler (R)

District 9

Jennifer Plumb (D)

District 10

Luz Escamilla (D)

District 11

Daniel Thatcher (F)

District 12

Karen Kwan (D)

District 13

Nate Blouin (D)

District 14

Stephanie Pitcher (D)

District 15

Kathleen Riebe (D)

District 16

Wayne Harper (R)

District 17

Lincoln Fillmore (R)

District 18

Dan McCay (R)

District 19

Kirk Cullimore (R)

District 20

Ronald Winterton (R)

District 21

Brady Brammer (R)

District 22

Heidi Balderree (R)

District 23

Keith Grover (R)

District 24

Keven Stratton (R)

District 25

Mike McKell (R)

District 26

David Hinkins (R)

District 27

Derrin Owens (R)

District 28

Evan Vickers (R)

District 29

Don Ipson (R)

Republican Party (22)

Democratic Party (6)

Forward Party (1)