Misty K. Snow is an unlikely candidate for the US Senate.
The 31-year-old Salt Lake City native never went to college and works as a cashier at a Harmons Grocery. If elected, she would be the first Millennial elected to the Senate and the first woman that Utah has ever sent to that chamber of Congress. She’s also transgender, making her the first transgender nominee from a major party for the US Senate.
A complete political novice, Snow only decided to run after she read about Democratic candidate Jonathan Swinton, a self-described conservative who was running unopposed at the time.
“I didn’t find his position just unacceptable, but offensive,” Snow told CNN. “It was more about standing up for the values I care about.”
Spurred on in part by Bernie Sanders candidacy, Snow ran all the way to Swinton’s left, advocating for a $15 minimum wage, paid maternity leave and the legalization of marijuana. She forced and later won a primary against Swinton, garnering nearly 60% of the vote.
If her nomination was improbably, her chances of winning the general election against Utah’s incumbent GOP Sen. Mike Lee are, by some polls, literally infinitesimal. Lee is favored by a whopping 99.9% to reclaim his seat.
Snow says her candidacy is about more than election results.
“People have told me over and over again,” Snow said, “that no matter what happens in November, I’m making a difference just by running.”
CNN spent three days with her on the campaign trail in Utah and documented the experience in the video above.