This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Draper • Saying that Donald Trump's faltering campaign is "essentially ensuring" Hillary Clinton will win the presidential race, independent candidate Evan McMullin is already starting to look past the 2016 election.

He still wants Utahns to vote for him because he believes winning the state's six Electoral College votes could be the start of "a new conservative movement," which might require the creation of a new political party.

"I believe, no matter what happens on Nov. 8, if we can send a strong message here from Utah and from the broader Mountain West, it will change the discussion in Washington," he said Friday before about 700 people gathered for a rally in the gymnasium of the American Preparatory Academy. "It very well may change the direction of this country."

His running mate, Mindy Finn, said it's possible they may try to launch a movement outside of the two-party system if the Republican Party doesn't change in reaction to Trump. That movement would focus on empowering states and equality for all.

Their ticket is on the ballot in 11 states.

McMullin, the former chief policy director for the House Republican Conference, criticized GOP lawmakers for not standing up to Trump earlier, particularly when the candidate made comments that disparaged women, minorities and the disabled. He said they worried they'd lose their chance to be a part of his administration or fearing the brash candidate may turn on them.

"They told me, 'Evan, if we stand up to him, he might become angry with us and criticize us and his supporters will attack us online, and then maybe we'll lose our re-elections and we'll lose our seats in Congress.' And I said, 'You ought to be willing to lose your seats.' "

McMullin left his congressional job to launch his long-shot presidential bid in early August. At the time, he hoped that if there was a tight race, he could stop either Trump or Clinton, the Democrat, from getting 270 electoral votes, forcing the House to choose the next president.

But since then, Trump has faltered in the three presidential debates and chances were wounded seriously when a video emerged, showing him bragging about being able to force himself on women sexually because he was a star. Clinton holds a major advantage in swing-state polls.

That video also marked a turning point in Utah, when McMullin, a Provo-born member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, started pulling support from Trump and Libertarian Gary Johnson. In one poll, McMullin, who still lives in Washington, D.C., now has a 4 percentage point lead over Trump, while three others say there's a statistical tie between Trump, McMullin and Clinton.

Utah is a swing state, though if Clinton's national lead holds, the results here might be mostly symbolic, at least in the short term.