President Donald Trump signed executive orders last week reducing Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by approximately 90 percent each. The action was announced alongside Utah’s Republican congressional delegation members and Governor Spencer Cox, with the administration citing access to critical minerals including copper, nickel, and uranium as justification for the reduction. However, polling data from multiple sources suggests the decision conflicts with the preferences of Utah residents.
Surveys conducted by Utah State University researchers in 2024 and 2025 found that 61 percent of Utah respondents supported or strongly supported preserving Bears Ears as a national monument, with only 19 percent opposed or strongly opposed. Additionally, 53 percent opposed or strongly opposed reducing the monument’s size. A broader survey by Colorado College across eight Mountain West states found that 91 percent of voters wanted existing national monuments kept in place as of January. Support for monument protection was demonstrated across political affiliations, with 87 percent of Republicans, 92 percent of independents, and 96 percent of Democrats backing preservation.
Utah political leaders have argued that the monument designations were excessive and that the reductions reflect public sentiment. Governor Cox stated at Monday’s announcement that the original designations did not align with the Antiquities Act’s directive to preserve “the smallest area compatible with the proper care” of protected lands. Trump similarly asserted that the previous boundaries restricted recreational access to hunting, fishing, and other activities.
Researchers and surveyors noted discrepancies between polling results and political leadership claims. Utah State University professor Michaelann Nelson, who led the Bears Ears survey, observed that officials appear to be “picking and choosing which Utahns they’re paying attention to.” The polling also revealed that 90 percent of Utahns supported Native American tribes having a strong role in managing ancestral lands, and 81 percent said the Trump administration should maintain agreements with tribes for Bears Ears management. Trump’s order disbanded the intertribal commission that had been consulted for monument management.
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