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Representative Raymond P. Ward
Utah legislator profile

Years served in the Utah legislature

First session in legislature: 2015
Most recent year of service for which data are available: 2024
Total sessions served in Utah House as of 2024: 10
Total sessions served in Utah Senate as of 2024: 0

How to read the statistical profile

I present a variety of statistics about Rep. Raymond P. Ward's service in the Utah legislature. I highlight differences from chamber averages using little green and red arrows. The number of arrows is statistically determined. More arrows indicate a larger difference compared to the chamber average, in relation to how much diversity there is among legislators on this metric. If all legislators introduce exactly 5 bills, then a legislator who introduces 10 is very different; if legislators vary wildly in how many bills they introduce (but the average is still 5), then a legislator who introduces 10 bills may be less different from average. The standard deviation measures this diversity.

Rep. Ward's statistical profile

2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Service summary. Service prior to 2007 (if any) is not shown here. My database goes back only to 2007.
  Chamber HouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouseHouse
  District H19H19H19H19H19H19H19H19H19H19
  Party RRRRRRRRRR
Leadership NoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNoneNone
Years in chamber 12345678910
Years comparison LowerLowerLowerLower====HigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Bills sponsored (learn more) Bills written and promoted by the legislator in his/her own chamber.
Introduced by Ward 268910913121312
Chamber average 6.77.06.77.17.37.36.67.18.18.5
Difference -4.7-1.0+1.3+1.9+2.7+1.7+6.4+4.9+4.9+3.5
Comparison LowerLower====HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Bill passage rate (learn more). What percent of Rep. Ward's sponsored bills pass and are officially "enrolled"? (I ignore whether the governor signed or vetoted the bill.)
Bills introduced 268910913121312
Bills passed 1122746536
Passage rate 50%17%25%22%70%44%46%42%23%50%
Chamber average 63%54%61%53%63%58%60%58%56%56%
Difference -13.0-36.5-36.4-31.4+6.5-13.6-13.8-16.2-33.3-6.3
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower==LowerLowerLowerLowerLower==
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Bills floor sponsored. A "floor sponsor" is like a secondary sponsor of a bill. After a bill passes the sponsor's chamber, its sponsor needs to find a "floor sponsor" in the other chamber to usher it through the other chamber.
Total floor sponsored 00321122122
Chamber average 3.83.33.63.43.43.13.13.03.53.3
Difference -3.8-3.3-0.6-1.4-2.4-2.1-1.1-1.0+8.5-1.3
Comparison LowerLower==LowerLowerLowerLower==HigherHigherHigherLower
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Missed votes (learn more). Usually missed votes occur because of competing obligations within the legislature, not because the legislator has left the capitol.
Missed votes 13201325252632262013
Total votes held 699657727734752698666711803845
Absentee rate 1.9%3.0%1.8%3.4%3.3%3.7%4.8%3.7%2.5%1.5%
Chamber average 6.3%6.4%5.2%8.0%6.4%7.1%6.1%5.7%6.4%6.8%
Difference -4.4-3.4-3.4-4.6-3.1-3.4-1.3-2.0-3.9-5.3
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower==LowerLowerLower
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
"Nay" votes (learn more). Most floor votes pass by overwhelming majorities, since unpopular bills get weeded out long before they reach the floor. As a result, "nay" votes are rare.
"Nay" votes 40353523282422263832
Total votes held 699657727734752698666711803845
"Nay" rate 5.7%5.3%4.8%3.1%3.7%3.4%3.3%3.7%4.7%3.8%
Chamber average 8.6%7.3%7.1%6.5%6.5%7.0%7.7%6.5%7.1%5.7%
Difference -2.9-2.0-2.3-3.4-2.8-3.6-4.4-2.8-2.4-1.9
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Winning side rate (learn more). What percentage of the time (excluding near-unanimous votes) is the legislator on the winning side of a floor vote?
Winning side rate 72%64%73%78%84%76%68%73%74%70%
Chamber average 67%66%67%66%68%67%66%67%69%68%
Difference +5.1-2.7+6.5+12+15+9.2+1.6+5.8+4.5+2.1
Comparison Higher==HigherHigherHigherHigherHigherHigher==Higher====
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Ideology score (NOMINATE method) (learn more). Using W-NOMINATE algorithm developed by Congressional scholars, I calculate each legislator's relative ideology after each General Session. I describe the method here. Scores have no intrinsic meaning. They are only relative: A legislator with a higher score is to the right ideologically of a legislator with a lower scale. Scores may be compared only within a single chamber and a single year. In most years, a conservative Republican will have a score above 0; a score close to 100 is extreme.
Contact me for scores. They get misinterpreted often enough that I now provide them only to political scientists.
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Party support score (overall) (learn more). How consistently does Rep. Ward support his/her party? That is, what percentage of the time does the legislator vote with the majority of the other members of his/her party? Scores are usually easily above 90%.
Score (overall) 93%94%95%97%96%95%94%94%95%96%
Chamber average 94%95%95%94%95%95%94%95%96%96%
Difference -0.4-0.90.0+3.1+0.7+0.4+0.5-1.4-0.7-0.4
Comparison ==Lower==========LowerLower==
 
2015201620172018201920202021202220232024
Party support score (party-line only) (learn more). This is the same as the "raw" party support score, but we look only at party-line votes when calculating this. A "party-line" vote occurs when the majority of Democrats votes against the majority of Republicans. Although party-line votes are rare, looking at the legislator's party support score in this setting can be revealing.
Score (party-line only) 66%61%71%74%68%67%61%57%70%77%
Chamber average 82%85%87%83%85%83%85%84%88%87%
Difference -16.0-24.0-15.7-9.5-16.7-16.8-24.0-26.6-17.5-10.5
Comparison LowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLowerLower

Votes on Rep. Ward's bills

Many votes have been held on bills sponsored by Rep. Ward. In the interest of space, I display only the most and least divisive votes held on Rep. Ward's bills.

Rep. Ward's most divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Ward that had the closest vote margin (as a percent of the total votes cast). When there are ties, I list the most recent bills first.

Year Sponsor Bill Ayes Nays Margin
(as % of total votes)
Type of vote
2020 Ward HB0209S01 40 35 6.7% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Ward HB0260S01 39 32 9.9% House/ passed 3rd reading
2018 Ward HB0260S01 15 11 15% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2023 Ward HB0052 30 42 17% House/ failed
2017 Ward HB0090S02 41 29 17% House/ circled
2023 Ward HB0239S02 28 41 19% House/ failed
2019 Ward HB0120S06 45 27 25% House/ passed 3rd reading
2023 Ward HJR008S01 45 26 27% House/ passed 3rd reading
2022 Ward HB0432S01 26 47 29% House/ failed
2018 Ward HB0260S01 9 18 33% Senate/ failed

Rep. Ward's least divisive bills

Listed below are the 10 votes on bills sponsored by Rep. Ward that had the widest vote margin (as a percent of the total votes cast). When there are ties, I display the most recent bills first.

Year Sponsor Bill Ayes Nays Margin
(as % of total votes)
Type of vote
2024 Ward HB0347S03 24 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd & 3rd readings/ suspension
2024 Ward HB0347S03 69 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Ward HB0193S03 67 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Ward HB0171 23 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Ward HB0171 19 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2024 Ward HB0171 72 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Ward HB0138S02 73 0 100% House/ concurs with Senate amendment
2024 Ward HB0138S02 26 0 100% Senate/ passed 3rd reading
2024 Ward HB0138S02 23 0 100% Senate/ passed 2nd reading
2024 Ward HB0138S02 74 0 100% House/ passed 3rd reading