Birkeland is a Morgan County native who served Summit, Morgan and Rich counties. She announced she was stepping down before the Utah Legislature’s 2025 General Session and after winning reelection, citing family obligations.
Of the eight Republicans hoping to replace her, three were from Summit County. They included Melanie Monestere, the county’s party chair; Ari Ioannides, who narrowly lost the Summit County Council election in November; and Kris Campbell, one of the newest members of the GOP.
Of the 72 GOP delegates, 68 gathered Saturday to elect Birkeland's replacement. Candidates gave speeches and delegates voted in rounds, eliminating candidates who didn’t receive enough votes.
Campbell was eliminated in the first round, Monestere in the fourth round and Ioannides in the sixth and final round.
Auxier of Morgan won with 36 votes, or an almost 53% majority. Before voting began, she told GOP delegates about her time on the district and school community councils in Salt Lake and Morgan counties. She’s a staunch advocate for parents' rights.
“I’ve been able to keep [Critical Race Theory] curriculum from our advisory programs. I've been able to get books out of our schools that are completely age-inappropriate,” Auxier said. “And I feel like there's a lot more that I can do at the state level.”
While representing District 4, Auxier aims to repeal or replace SB54. The 2014 bill is a controversial law that changed the candidate nomination process, adding an alternative way to get on a primary ballot: gathering voter signatures.
Auxier, a tax accountant, said she also wants to cut state spending and taxes.
“I think we need to be able to pay our taxes on the value that we bought our house for, not by some third party saying that our houses are now worth double or triple what we paid for it, and people being worried that they can’t afford their houses anymore,” she said.
She also announced her support for efforts to decrease illegal immigration into Utah.
Auxier will officially become the District 4 representative with Gov. Spencer Cox’s signature.