While Pazell is Utah's youngest delegate, the oldest is, well, anyone's guess. Some were hesitant to say how old they are. The oldest actually admitted age belongs to Josie Valdez, an Obama delegate and the Democratic nominee for Utah's lieutenant governor, who says she is "a very young and energetic 60."

Among issues important to her, she said, are "women's right to choose" and immigration.

Delegate Carlos Vasquez is a father of six, and a teamster with United Parcel Service. "My No. 1 issue is working families in Utah," he said. He added he hopes Obama can help bring "the kind of jobs that can support families."

The delegation has 16 women and 16 men. Delegates' occupations include: composer, artist, attorney, salesman, retired teacher, labor union official, politicians (many of those), Realtor, physician, homemaker, lobbyist, postal worker, student (at Brigham Young University, no less) and law professor.

Among the politicians in the delegation are former U.S. Rep. Bill Orton, Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon; Salt Lake County Council members Jenny Wilson and Jim Bradley; and state legislators Christine Johnson, Scott McCoy, Pat Jones, Ross Romero and Phil Riesen (who is likely better known as a former TV news anchor and the TV ad pitchman for John Paras Furniture.)

The BYU student in the delegation is Brian Spittler. Despite the school's ultraconservative reputation, he said, "We registered almost 1,200 students as Democrats (before the primary.) I think there has been a notion that somehow being LDS and a Democrat were mutually exclusive things. We are starting to see this idea crumble."

Delegate Millicent Lewis is an artist who also makes and sells political novelties, including "Barack Rocks" featuring Obama faces on tiny resin "rocks." She met Obama earlier this year in Nevada when she was wearing an Uncle Sam shoulder puppet she had made.

"Sen. Obama walked right up to me and complimented me on my work," she said. "I also made myself a whole new wardrobe for the convention, re-did my Uncle Sam puppet to make it lighter and made a second puppet for the event."

Holland said he believes Obama offers the change that Utahns want.

"We don't believe Utah wants four more years of what we've seen in the last eight years. We do believe that big oil has been running the White House, and that if John McCain is elected, that obviously is not going to change," he said.

Holland said this could also be the beginning of big change in the West. Democratic leaders in the eight Rocky Mountain states have formed a group called the Western Majority Project, and have said Democrats chose Denver for their convention because the West is in the middle of significant political realignment and has become a new, key battleground.

"The eight Western (Rocky Mountain) states are the most fertile ground for Democratic victories in the United States. We have seen in the eight past years the Rocky Mountain states go from zero Democratic governors to five Democratic governors," with big gains in their congressional delegations, Holland said.

He added that Obama is ahead in Nevada, New Mexico and Colorado — and in a dead heat in Montana. He said he sees such gains eventually happening in Utah.

"Utah and Idaho always seem to be a few cycles behind. They will follow. The pendulum will swing," he said.

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