I wonder if this is any different when in Rome, how the Vatican predominates in the politics of the state there?
Religion in Utah most definitely shapes politics. From the state owned and ran liquor stores, to being one if not the only state that does not run a state lottery.
Once again: the ambition of an ecclesiastical hierarchy to wield absolute power over the lives of the members without regard for individual wants , needs or desires. It seeks to exercise control unrestrained by any civil power.