Two out of three Utah voters support restoring greater protections to all of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments.
A new poll shows that the Trump administration’s illegal July 13, 2026 attempt to slash Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments by more than 90% and terminate the Bears Ears Commission is deeply unpopular with voters in Utah.
2026 Utah national monuments poll
An August 2026 poll of 500 registered voters across Utah by Republican public opinion research firm New Bridge Strategy shows bipartisan support for restoring protections to the monuments, as well as overwhelming support for Native American tribes having a strong role in managing their ancestral lands.
The survey is consistent with the findings of a 2024 poll, indicating widespread public support for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante in particular, and for presidents’ ability to protect public lands as national monuments in general.
- 66% of Utah voters say greater protections should be restored to all of the area that was previously included in the two monuments
- 82% of Utah voters say it is important for Native American tribes to have a strong role in managing public lands containing sacred or culturally significant sites
This includes majorities across political party affiliations. Here’s a look at the poll’s key findings.
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View a slide deck of the poll’s key findings ›
Read an overview of the poll’s key findings in a memo from the polling firm ›
Utah voters support Native American co-stewardship
Native American tribes have stewarded and maintained strong cultural connections with the lands of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments since time immemorial.
And Utah voters overwhelmingly agree that Native American tribes should have a strong role in continuing to manage their ancestral lands. This support is strong across party lines, with supermajorities of Republicans (76%), Independents (86%), and Democrats (97%) agreeing it is important for Native American tribes to have a strong role in managing public lands containing sacred or culturally significant sites.
When Bears Ears National Monument was designated in 2016 at the request of the five tribal nations of the Bears Ears Inter-Tribal Coalition, the national monument proclamation also established the Bears Ears Commission, a first-of-its-kind collaborative management body composed of elected leaders from five Native American tribes (the Hopi Tribe, Navajo Nation, Ute Indian Tribe of the Uintah and Ouray Reservation, Ute Mountain Ute Tribe, and the Zuni Tribe). The commission co-manages Bears Ears National Monument with federal agencies.
The Trump administration’s July 13, 2026 attempt to terminate the Bears Ears Commission is deeply unpopular across Utah. By a more than three-to-one margin, voters say terminating the commission was a bad idea. Voters in every region of the state view this negatively.
Utah voters strongly support national monuments and keeping public lands public
Support for presidents designating national monuments remains strong. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of Utah voters support president’s ability to designate national monuments. This finding is consistent with the 2024 poll. Since 1906, presidents of both parties have used the Antiquities Act to protect existing national public lands as national monuments.
Moreover, voters are strongly opposed to the sale of Utah public lands to private interests; with 81% indicating they are opposed to the sale of public lands, including 74% of Republicans, 86% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.
The future of Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante
This survey demonstrates that public support for Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante remains strong across the political spectrum. The Trump administration’s latest attempt to slash the monuments is out of step with what most Utah voters want and deeply unpopular in the state.
On September 1, 2026, the Grand Canyon Trust, represented by Earthjustice, joined other organizations in filing two lawsuits in U.S. District Court challenging the illegal July 2026 cuts to Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante. The lawsuits aim to reactivate litigation against the Trump administration’s 2017 monument rollbacks and challenge both the 2017 cuts and the 2026 cuts together.
At a time when the state and the country appear divided on so many issues, this poll is an important reminder that when it comes to public lands, many Utah voters actually do agree on a number of important things. They want to see public lands continue to be protected and stewarded for future generations.
Elected leaders in the state and across the nation should take note and respect the will of their voters. In Utah that means keeping national monuments intact and assuring a strong role for Native American tribes in managing their ancestral lands.
