Sheryl L. Allen (born June 30, 1943) is a Republican politician and educator from

Bountiful, Utah Bountiful is Davis city. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 42,552, a three percent increase over the 2000 figure of 41,301. The city grew rapidly during the suburb growth of the late 1940s, 1950s, and 1960s and was Davis County's ...

. She represented the 19th District of the

Utah House of Representatives The Utah House of Representatives is the lower house of the Utah State Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Utah. The House is composed of 75 representatives elected from single member constituent districts. Each district con ...

from 1994 to 2011. Before entering politics, Allen was a teacher and the president of the Davis County Board of Education. In May 2010,

Salt Lake County Salt Lake County is located in the U.S. state of Utah. As of the 2020 United States Census, the population was 1,185,238, making it the most populous county in Utah. Its county seat and largest city is Salt Lake City, the state capital. The co ...

mayor

Peter Corroon Peter Maitland Corroon (born July 16, 1964) is an American politician, former Utah Democratic Party chair, and the former mayor of Salt Lake County, Utah. He was the unsuccessful Democratic nominee for governor in the 2010 election. Corroon is a ...

, the

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

candidate for

Governor of Utah A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

, selected Allen as his

running mate A running mate is a person running together with another person on a joint ticket during an election. The term is most often used in reference to the person in the subordinate position (such as the vice presidential candidate running with a pres ...

for the office of

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

, making them the first major

bipartisan Bipartisanship, sometimes referred to as nonpartisanship, is a political situation, usually in the context of a two-party system (especially those of the United States and some other western countries), in which opposing political parties find c ...

ticket Ticket or tickets may refer to: Slips of paper * Lottery ticket * Parking ticket, a ticket confirming that the parking fee was paid (and the time of the parking start) * Toll ticket, a slip of paper used to indicate where vehicles entered a to ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to its ...

state history. However, they were defeated by the all-Republican ticket of

Gary Herbert Gary Richard Herbert (born May 7, 1947) is an American politician who served as the 17th Governor of Utah from 2009 to 2021. A member of the Republican Party, he chaired the National Governors Association during the 2015–2016 cycle. Herbert wo ...

and Greg Bell in the 2010 gubernatorial election.

Background

Sheryl Allen was born in 1943 in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City (often shortened to Salt Lake and abbreviated as SLC) is the capital and most populous city of Utah, United States. It is the seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in Utah. With a population of 200,133 in 2020, th ...

, Utah. Allen attended the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of D ...

, where she received a Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education in 1965. She is married to John Allen, the chief statistician of the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference, Northwest Division. Since the 1991–92 season, ...

. The Allens have four children and twelve grandchildren.

Educational career

In 1976, Allen, Lucile Cardon Reading, and Theo Italisano were the first three women to be elected to the previously male-dominated Davis County Board of Education and took office on January 1, 1977. Reading, who became board president, and Allen worked to stop alleged mismanagement and ended the practice of officials receiving

kickbacks A kickback is a form of negotiated bribery in which a commission is paid to the bribe-taker in exchange for services rendered. Generally speaking, the remuneration (money, goods, or services handed over) is negotiated ahead of time. The kickback ...

from building contractors. Allen became board president with the death of Reading in March 1982. In 1988, Allen stated that she was stepping down from the board the following year to pursue graduate studies. In 1990, she received a Master's degree in Education Administration from the University of Utah. Allen was also the public relations director of the

Davis Technical College Davis Technical College (Davis Tech) is a public technical college in Kaysville, Utah. It provides competency-based education in an open-entry, open-exit environment which prepares over 6,000 high school and adult students with career and tech ...

(formerly known as the Davis Applied Technology Center) from 1985 to 1995. She became the foundation director of the

Davis School District Davis School District is a school district serving Davis County, Utah, United States. Headquartered in the county seat of Farmington, it is the 61st largest school district in the United States and the 2nd largest school district in Utah with ...

in 1995.

Political career

Allen ran against Quinn Gardner in June 1994 to succeed Utah state representative

Kim Burningham Kim Burningham (September 14, 1936 - July 7, 2017) was a member of the Utah House of Representatives for 15 years (serving in the 43rd through the 50th Utah State Legislatures. He also served on the Utah Board of Education for 16 years. Burn ...

, who was stepping down after 15 years of service. Allen won with 54% of the vote and took office on July 20, 1994. On January 26, 1996, eight hours after the

execution by firing squad Execution by firing squad, in the past sometimes called fusillading (from the French ''fusil'', rifle), is a method of capital punishment, particularly common in the military and in times of war. Some reasons for its use are that firearms are ...

John Albert Taylor John Albert Taylor (June 6, 1959 – January 26, 1996) was an American who was convicted of burglary and carrying a concealed weapon in the state of Florida, and sexual assault and murder in the state of Utah. Taylor's own sister tipped of ...

, Allen introduced a

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

to eliminate the firing squad, which did not pass. She later succeeded in passing HB180, which removed the right of the condemned to choose their method of execution after February 2004. In 2005, Allen was awarded Legislator of the Year by the Utah School Board Association. She was re-elected to her eighth term in the state legislature in 2008 with over 80% of the vote. Allen is a member of the House Judiciary Committee and the Revenue and Taxation Committee. She is also the co-chairperson of the Economic Development and Revenue Appropriations Subcommittee. In 2008, Allen was involved in bringing forth an investigation by the Utah House Ethics Committee that led to the

reprimand A reprimand is a severe, formal or official reproof. Reprimanding takes in different forms in different legal systems. A reprimand in custody may be a formal legal action issued by a government agency or professional governing board (e.g. medica ...

of fellow Republican house member Greg Hughes. Facing political ostracization from within her own party, Allen announced that she would not seek another term as a state representative in 2010.

2010 campaign for Lieutenant Governor of Utah

On May 1, 2010,

mayor

asked Allen to be his

for lieutenant governor in his gubernatorial bid against incumbent Republican

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

. As Corroon ran as a Democrat and Allen as a Republican, this was the first

team on a single

between major political parties in a Utah state election. In 1976, governor Scott M. Matheson and lieutenant governor

David Smith Monson David Smith Monson (born June 20, 1945) is an American politician and former U.S. Representative and the second Lieutenant Governor of Utah. He is a member of the Republican Party. Born in Salt Lake City, Utah, Monson attended public schools. ...

were elected from different parties, but on separate tickets. Political clashes between Matheson and Monson led to changes in state election law, requiring joint tickets in subsequent elections. Corroon and Allen ran on a moderate ticket to appeal to

independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in the New Hope, Pennsylvania, area of the United States during the early 1930s * Independe ...

voters. A major

platform Platform may refer to: Technology * Computing platform, a framework on which applications may be run * Platform game, a genre of video games * Car platform, a set of components shared by several vehicle models * Weapons platform, a system ...

of their campaign was the improvement of education in the state of Utah. Corroon's campaign accused Herbert's governorship of being "corrupt." After the second most expensive gubernatorial campaign in Utah history, Herbert won the election on November 2, 2010.

Awards and honors

Susa Young Gates Susa Gates ( Young, formerly Dunford; March 18, 1856 – May 27, 1933) was a writer, periodical editor, and women's rights advocate in Utah. In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Gates wrote the first lesson manual, was a member of ...

Award, 1998 *Utah School Board Association Legislator of the Year, 2004 *Utah Hotel and Lodging Association Legislator of the Year, 2005 *Utah Medical Association Legislator of the Year, 2006

Affiliations

*100 Women for 100 Years (1996 co-chair) *Colorado Plateau Archeological Project (board member) *Forum on Democracy and Trade (board member) *

George Washington University , mottoeng = "God is Our Trust" , established = , type = Private federally chartered research university , academic_affiliations = , endowment = $2.8 billion (2022) , presi ...

Elliott School of International Business (trade advisory committee) *

Hogle Zoo Utah's Hogle Zoo is a zoo located in Salt Lake City, Utah. It houses animals from diverse ecosystems. It is located at the mouth of Emigration Canyon. Hogle (pronounced "ho-gul") is an accredited member of the Association of Zoos and Aquariu ...

(former board member) *

KUED KUED (channel 7), branded on-air as PBS Utah, is a PBS member television station in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The station is owned by the University of Utah, and has studios at the Eccles Broadcast Center on Wasatch Drive in the north ...

(

PBS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of ed ...

) (board member) * NCSL Economic Development Committee (2004–06 chair) * NCSL Standing Committee (2007 vice chair) *Utah Humanities Council (former board member)

References

External links

Sheryl Allen
at

Ballotpedia Ballotpedia is a nonprofit and nonpartisan online political encyclopedia that covers federal, state, and local politics, elections, and public policy in the United States. The website was founded in 2007. Ballotpedia is sponsored by the Lucy Bur ...

Sheryl L. Allen
at FreedomSpeaks.com
Sheryl L. Allen
at Vote-UT.org {{DEFAULTSORT:Allen, Sheryl L. Living people 1943 births University of Utah alumni Latter Day Saints from Utah School board members in Utah Republican Party members of the Utah House of Representatives Politicians from Salt Lake City Women state legislators in Utah 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians