Mike Winder

Winder was born in Salt Lake City, Utah and graduated from Taylorsville High School.[1][2] From 1995 to 1997 he was a missionary in Taipei, Taiwan for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

He holds a Masters in Business Administration and an Honors B.A. degree in History from the University of Utah. He has also completed an executive leadership program with Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government.[3]

Winder is married to Karyn Hermansen, who was elected to the Granite School District Board of Education in November 2014.[4] They have four children.[5]

Winder was Business Development Manager for West Valley City from 2000–2004, during which time he also chaired the Chamber West Economic Development Committee.[6]

From 2004-2009 he was vice president of marketing for Winder Farms.[7] He was director of public affairs for The Summit Group Communications from 2009–2011.[8]

Winder founded Neptune Strategies in 2012, a marketing and development firm.[9] During the 2016 election cycle, Neptune Strategies was paid at least $65,000 for consulting by Friends of Traditional Banking, a Super PAC.[10]

Winder is the executive director of Friends of Traditional Banking.[11] Since July 2014, Winder has been employed as director of entrepreneurship programs for Zions Bank.[12]

Winder has served as a member of the state and Salt Lake County Republican Party Executive Committees, deputy campaign manager for Congressman James V. Hansen, and chair of the Research and Policy Committee for the Jon Huntsman, Jr. for Governor campaign. He is the founder of the GenX GOP Network.[13]

He was elected to an at-large seat on the West Valley City Council in November 2005 with 71% of the vote over 12-year incumbent Barbara Thomas.[14]

He was elected on November 3, 2009 as the seventh mayor of West Valley City, Utah, with 76% of the vote; his opponent was Kevin Fayles.[15]

At 29, he was the youngest council person in city history, and when sworn in on January 4, 2010, at age 33, he became the youngest mayor in city history.[16]

In 2012, Winder and former county council member Mark Crockett emerged from the Salt Lake County Republican Convention field of six to face off for the GOP nomination for county mayor.[17] Crockett narrowly defeated Winder in the GOP primary election, 50.7% to 49.3%.[18]

In 2016, Winder ran for the Utah State House of Representatives, defeating his Democratic opponent. He was sworn in as a member of the Utah State House of Representatives on January 1, 2017.

An historian, he is the author of twelve published books on Utah and LDS history, including Presidents and Prophets: The Story of America's Presidents and the LDS Church.[19] In 2005, Winder was appointed by Governor Jon Huntsman Jr. to a four-year term on the Utah Board of State History, and reappointed in 2009. In 2012, he was appointed by Governor Gary Herbert to a four-year term on the Advisory Board for the Office of Museum Services.[20]

Winder presented an academic paper as part of the Abraham Lincoln Sesquicentennial in 2009 and was published in the Journal of the Theodore Roosevelt Association in 2011.[21][22] As mayor in 2012, he also authored the first photographic history of West Valley City for Arcadia Publishing.[23] Winder is a past president of the Utah British Isles Association.[24]

In 2011, Winder wrote articles promoting West Valley City for the Deseret News and KSL.com under the assumed name "Richard Burwash". The name was a pseudonym inspired by a 16th-century ancestor of Winder's. In the articles, Winder quoted himself as mayor.[25][26]

Winder confessed to the use of a pseudonym and said he wrote the articles because he was "frustrated that the newspaper had drastically reduced its city government coverage after layoffs last year but not its crime coverage and wanted to try to restore balance."[27] Winder accepted a reprimand by the West Valley City Council, resigned from his job with a public relations firm, and issued a public apology to his constituents.[28][29][30]

In 2017, he sent robocalls to display a false source phone number in telephone caller ID systems, causing it to appear that the calls were coming from the cell phone of the leader of Americans for Prosperity (AFP). AFP had sent out attack mail that falsely criticized Winder's stance on an issue that never came before a vote on the House floor.[31][32] This practice, known as "spoofing", is illegal.[32] AFP filed a complaint with the Utah Attorney General's office, but later withdrew the complaint after receiving a public apology from Winder.[32] Winder said "I was taken aback by the mail piece, and in a knee-jerk reaction sent some calls I shouldn't have. I appreciate Evelyn and her team and look forward to a better working relationship going forward."[32]

In 2017, Winder was also accused of using multiple user accounts to edit the Wikipedia article about him, to promote his accomplishments and remove unflattering information. He refused to confirm or deny the allegation.[31]

• John R. Winder: Pioneer, Temple Builder, Dairyman; Horizon Publishers; ISBN 978-0-88290-676-8; (1999; Hardback)
• Counselors to the Prophets; Eborn Books; ISBN 1-890718-04-1; (2001; Hardback)
• The Christmas Animals: A Children's Book illustrated by Lindsey E. Ayres; Eborn Books; ISBN 1-890718-09-2, (2002; Hardback)
• Ned Winder: The antics and adventures of a Utah Legend; with Bret R. Bassett, (2002; Paperback)
• Presiding Bishops; Eborn Books; ISBN 1-890718-10-6, (2003; Hardback)
• Utah in 2050: Glimpses of Our Future; Eborn Books; ISBN 1-890718-11-4, (2003; Hardback)
• Presidents and Prophets: The Story of America's Presidents and the LDS Church; Covenant Communications; ISBN 1-59811-452-2, (September 2007; Hardback)
• Life Lessons from Fathers of Faith: Inspiring True Stories About Latter-day Dads with Gary W. Toyn; Covenant Communications; ISBN 978-1-59811-603-8, (2010; Hardback)
• When the White House Comes to Zion with Ronald L. Fox; Covenant Communications; ISBN 978-1-60861-232-1, (2011; Hardback)
• It's Fun to Be the Mayor: A children's book illustrated by Andrea Vitali; Eborn Books; ISBN 978-1-890718-72-5; (2011; Hardback)
• Images of America: West Valley City; Arcadia Publishing; ISBN 978-0-7385-9541-2; (2012; Paperback)
• Called to Serve: Celebrating Missionary Work around the World; Covenant Communications; ISBN 978-1-62108-667-3; (2014; Paperback)
• Guy Stuff in the Scriptures; Covenant Communications; ISBN 978-1-62108-753-3; (2014; Paperback)
• Favorite Scriptures of 100 American; Plain Sight Publishing; ISBN 978-1-46212-313-1; (2019; Hardback)

• Official website
• Works by or about Mike Winder in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
• Appearances on C-SPAN