Controversial Utah school board member Natalie Cline has been defeated in the GOP caucus

MURRAY, Utah – Natalie Cline, the controversial Utah State School Board member who became the first elected official in the state to be censured by the legislature, lost her re-election bid at the Salt Lake County Republican Party convention on Saturday.

Cline failed to advance the vote of 123 delegates (37%) against challenger Amanda Bollinger who received 211 votes (63%). That means Bollinger will be the Republican nominee for the school board seat.

“We know that our parents and members make a statement that our goal is to protect our children, and that we want to make sure they are safe at school and we, who are their leaders, prioritize the safety of our students. ,” Bollinger said shortly after his victory.

Cheri Ford was one of the Salt Lake County GOP delegates who voted for Bollinger.

“I feel like, unfortunately, I can’t support someone who bullies students, and it was very unfortunate,” he said.

Cline sparked controversy when he attacked a student, insisting that the young athlete might be transgender in a social media post (the girl is not). It led to the child receiving death threats. Cline apologized for the “negative attention” the post drew. Public records obtained by FOX 13 News found that within the first 48 hours of the Facebook post, the Utah State Board of Education filed more than 350 complaints about Cline.

Cline’s action, one in a long line of controversial social media posts by the social conservative, drew immediate criticism from Utah political leaders. The Governor, Speaker of Parliament and school boards asked him to resign.

He refused.

The Utah State Legislature voted overwhelmingly to impeach Cline, but stopped short of impeaching him. His colleagues on the Utah State School Board stripped him of his duties.

Still, Cline wanted to be re-elected.

“My concern is again with the kids and the things that are being brought into the schools, the practices, the policies, the pedagogy that is being used, the integrated curriculum and the divisive ideologies,” Cline said at Friday night’s candidate meet-and-greet. “I want parents to be able to trust public education again and I really care about the safety of our students and making sure we still have parental involvement. But in the end, I want to have a better education where students have the skills and abilities we need to succeed in the future.”

Under Utah law, political candidates can go through the caucus system, gather signatures or both to qualify for a spot on the primary ballot. Bollinger collected enough signatures, earning a spot on the June GOP primary ballot before Saturday’s convention even began.

Cline took his place with GOP delegates, and the deadline to collect signatures has passed.

This is breaking news. Information on FOX 13 News as information becomes available.