Jenny Wilson

Jenny Wilson (born November 1, 1965) is an American politician currently serving as the Mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah. In September 2007, she was a primary candidate for mayor of Salt Lake City, Utah. In 2016, she was Utah's national committeewoman for the Democratic Party. She is the daughter of Ted Wilson, a former mayor of Salt Lake City. Wilson was the Democratic nominee in the 2018 Utah Senate race, running against Republican nominee Mitt Romney. After her election defeat, she was appointed to replace Ben McAdams as Salt Lake County Mayor, taking the oath of office in January 2019. She was elected to that position for a full four-year term in the 2020 general election. Early career Wilson's background is as a leadership, public relations and media consultant. She has held positions in administration, fundraising and project management for the Sundance Institute and Film Festival, the Sundance Group, the Salt Lake City Olympic Winter Games of 2002, Voices for Utah Children, and the University of Utah’s John A. Moran Eye Center. In 1991, she served at the federal level as assistant press secretary to U.S. Rep. Les AuCoin (D-OR) and from 1992–1996 as chief of staff to U.S. Rep. Bill Orton (D-UT). She assisted the Democratic Caucus of the Utah State Legislature in 1998. Salt Lake County Council Wilson served two non-consecutive terms on the Salt Lake County Council, once from 2005 to 2011, and again from 2014 to 2019. On the Council, Wilson supported policy initiatives for ethics reform and open space preservation, and an initiative that provides health benefits to the partners of LGBT county employees. She served as a member of the Salt Lake County Council of Governments and as a board member of the Unified Fire Authority. She also co-founded the Jordan River Commission.