Paul Ray (Utah)
Paul Ray (Republican Party) was a member of the Utah House of Representatives, representing District 13. He assumed office in 2005. He left office on December 15, 2021.
Ray (Republican Party) ran for re-election to the Utah House of Representatives to represent District 13. He won in the general election on November 3, 2020.
Ray was a candidate for the Utah State House of Representatives in 1998 but was not elected. He joined the Utah House in 2001 and served in that position until 2003. He ran unsuccessfully for re-election in 2002.
Biography
Ray attended sports medicine courses at Indiana University from 1985 to 1988. His professional experience includes working as a police officer from 1987 to 1988, branch manager of a bank from 1988 to 1995 and loan officer at a credit union since 1995.
Committee assignments
2021-2022
Ray was assigned to the following committees:
2019-2020
Ray was assigned to the following committees:
2017 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:
| Utah committee assignments, 2017 |
|---|
| • Health and Human Services |
| • Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice |
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Ray served on the following committees:
| Utah committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Health and Human Services |
| • Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Ray served on the following committees:
| Utah committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Health and Human Services, Chair |
| • Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice |
| • Rules |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Ray served on the following committees:
| Utah committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Health and Human Services, Chair |
| • Judiciary |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Ray served on the following committees:
| Utah committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Health and Human Services |
| • Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice |
Noteworthy events
Execution
In May 2014, Ray announced his plans to introduce legislation reinstating the firing squad as a method of capital punishment in Utah. The state banned such executions in 2004, saying it gave inmates too much attention in the media. Ray defended the move, saying "It sounds like the Wild West, but it's probably the most humane way to kill somebody."[1]
Ray introduced the legislation in the 2015 session. The Utah State Legislature approved the bill in March 2015, and the governor signed the bill on March 23, 2015. Lethal injections would still be the primary method for executions in Utah. A firing squad would only be used when the drugs cannot be obtained.[2][3]
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2020
See also: Utah House of Representatives elections, 2020
General election
General election for Utah House of Representatives District 13
Incumbent Paul Ray defeated Tab Uno in the general election for Utah House of Representatives District 13 on November 3, 2020.
| Total votes: 17,100 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic convention
Democratic convention for Utah House of Representatives District 13
Tab Uno advanced from the Democratic convention for Utah House of Representatives District 13 on April 25, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ |  | Tab Uno (D) |
| ||||
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Republican convention
Republican convention for Utah House of Representatives District 13
Incumbent Paul Ray advanced from the Republican convention for Utah House of Representatives District 13 on April 25, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ |  | Paul Ray (R) |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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2018
General election
General election for Utah House of Representatives District 13
Incumbent Paul Ray defeated Tab Uno in the general election for Utah House of Representatives District 13 on November 6, 2018.
| Total votes: 12,325 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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2016
Elections for the Utah House of Representatives took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 28, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 17, 2016.
Incumbent Paul Ray defeated Bob Buckles in the Utah House of Representatives District 13 general election.[4]
| Utah House of Representatives, District 13 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Paul Ray Incumbent |
72.65% | 9,843 | |
| Democratic | Bob Buckles | 27.35% | 3,706 | |
| Total Votes | 13,549 | |||
| Source: Utah Secretary of State | ||||
Bob Buckles ran unopposed in the Utah House of Representatives District 13 Democratic primary.[5][6]
| Utah House of Representatives District 13, Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Bob Buckles (unopposed) | |
Incumbent Paul Ray ran unopposed in the Utah House of Representatives District 13 Republican primary.[5][6]
| Utah House of Representatives District 13, Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Paul Ray Incumbent (unopposed) | |
2014
Elections for the Utah House of Representatives took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 24, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 20, 2014. Bob Buckles was unopposed in the Democratic convention. Incumbent Paul Ray defeated Lorenzo Swank in the Republican convention. Ray defeated Buckles in the general election.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Paul Ray Incumbent |
71.5% | 4,067 | |
| Democratic | Bob Buckles | 28.5% | 1,618 | |
| Total Votes | 5,685 | |||
2012
Ray won re-election in the 2012 election for Utah House of Representatives District 13. Ray defeated Mark Sessions and Lorenzo Swank in the Republican convention and defeated K. Bradley Asay (D) in the general election, which took place on November 6, 2012.[8]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Paul Ray Incumbent |
69.2% | 8,256 | |
| Democratic | Bradley Asay | 30.8% | 3,667 | |
| Total Votes | 11,923 | |||
2010
On November 2, 2010, Ray won re-election to the Utah House of Representatives, District 13.[9]
| Utah House of Representatives, District 13 General Election (2010) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Paul Ray (R)
|
6,837 | |||
| Ben F Wofford (D) | 1,960 | |||
2008
On November 4, 2008, Ray won re-election to the Utah House of Representatives, District 13.
Ray raised $24,740 for his campaign while Wofford raised $460.[10]
| Utah State House of Representatives, District 13 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | Percent | ||
| Paul Ray (R)
|
11,014 | 72.9% | ||
| Ben F. Wofford (D) | 4,087 | 27.1% | ||
Campaign themes
2020
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Paul Ray did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
2014
Ray's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[11]
Family
- Excerpt: "As your state representative, Paul will support legislation that fosters the role of the family in society, gives more rights to parents, and promotes positive youth activities."
Crime Prevention
- Excerpt: " Paul feels keeping people safe in their homes and on the street is government's highest duty. Passing more laws is not always the solution. We need to enforce existing laws and take a look at what programs are working, then make sure that law enforcement has the funds necessary to implement them."
Education
- Excerpt: "Paul supports legislation that will provide for more accountability, class size reduction, competitive teacher salaries, and quality teaching materials for the classroom, while also giving more decision-making power to the local level."
The Future
- Excerpt: "When representing you, Paul will make decisions based on future generations. Each day residents find themselves sitting in more traffic, experiencing more air pollution, and losing more open space. Paul supports legislation that provides for planned growth. Such a plan pushes Utahns to consider ideas like Legacy Highway, commuter rail, land preservation, and clean air and water policies."
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Utah scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2021
In 2021, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 19 to March 5.
- Legislators are scored based on the organization's mission of "promoting the principles of limited government, constitution, representative government, participatory republic, free market economy, family, and separation of powers."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on bills the organization chose to evaluate.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes in relation to the organization's "mission to defend individual liberty, private property and free enterprise."
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on bills related to education.
- Legislators are scored based on their votes on tax related legislation.
2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 27 to March 12.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 28 through March 14.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 22 through March 8.
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2017
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2017, click [show]. |
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In 2017, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 23 through March 9. There was also a special session on September 20.
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2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 25 through March 10.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Utah State Legislature was in session from January 26 through March 12.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the 60th Utah State Legislature, second year, was in session from January 27 to March 14.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the 60th Utah State Legislature, first year, was in session from January 28 to March 14.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the 59th Utah State Legislature, second year, was in session from January 23 to March 8.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the 59th Utah State Legislature, first year, was in session from January 24 to March 10.
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The Libertas Institute Index
The Libertas Institute is a libertarian-leaning think tank located in Utah.[15] Each year the organization releases a Legislative Index for Utah State Representatives and Senators.
2010
Paul Ray received an index rating of 67 percent.
2011
Paul Ray received an index rating of 42 percent.
2012
Paul Ray received an index rating of 40 percent.
2013
Paul Ray received an index rating of 32 percent.
The Sutherland Institute Scorecard
The Sutherland Institute, "a conservative public policy think tank" in Utah, releases its Scorecard for Utah State Representatives and Senators once a year. The Score Card gives each legislator a score based on how they voted in the prior legislative term on specific issues which the Sutherland Institute thought were pro-conservative policies.[16]
2012
Paul Ray received a score of 80 percent in the 2012 scorecard.[17]
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Ray and his wife, Julie, have four children.
Ray was a treasurer for the Davis County Republican Party.
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms 'Paul Ray' 'Utah House'. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
2020 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ FoxNews, "Utah lawmaker proposes bringing back firing squads for executions," May 17, 2014
- ↑ New York Post, "Utah poised to bring back firing squad," March 11, 2015
- ↑ CNN.com, "Utah to allow firing squads for executions," March 23, 2015
- ↑ Utah Secretary of State, "2016 General Election," accessed November 29, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Utah.gov, "2016 Candidate Filings," accessed March 23, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Utah.gov, "2016 Primary Election Results," accessed August 20, 2016
- ↑ Utah Lieutenant Governor, "2014 Candidate Filings," accessed March 22, 2014
- ↑ Lieutenant Governor's Office, "Utah 2012 candidate filings," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Utah Election Results, "Utah House of Representatives election results," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Follow the Money, "2008 Utah Election Fundraising, Candidates," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ votepaulray.com, "Official Campaign Website," accessed May 23, 2014
- ↑ GrassRoots, "2015 Legislative Report," accessed May 30, 2017
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Utah Legislative Ratings, "UTAH HOUSE Scorecard - Compiled 2015 Conservative Liberal Index," May 19, 2015
- ↑ GrassRoots, "2015 Legislative Report," accessed May 30, 2017
- ↑ Libertas Institute, "Legislator Indexes," accessed January 21, 2014
- ↑ Sutherland Institute, "2012 Legislative Session," accessed March 29, 2014
- ↑ Sutherland Institute, "2012 Sutherland Institute Legislative Scorecard," accessed March 29, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ' |
Utah House of Representatives District 13 2005-2021 |
Succeeded by Karen Peterson |
