Utah changed its state flag to honor Mormon work ethic — but it was a total flop. Now, even the state's governor admitted he 'should have known better.'

• Utah's new flag design is ruffling feathers, and people are already trying to replace it.
• The flag's detractors claim it's too "woke," and glosses over parts of Utah's history.

A growing movement in opposition to a new state flag is buzzing in Utah after the state's governor signed off on a new flag in March, replacing a hundred-year-old design.

But lawmakers in Utah are already threatening to torpedo the new idea, claiming that the flag's reinterpretation of the state's beehive symbol is overly "woke." The re-design process examined thousands of designs, according to The Wall Street Journal.

But after the bill was signed, Utah's governor is being skewered for the effort, and a referendum to scrap the flag is building steam.

The old flag, designed in 1911, features a variety of nods to the Mormon pioneers who arrived in Salt Lake in July 24, 1847. The new flag keeps the beehive symbol — a marker of the work ethic of the pioneers but features a much simpler, more modern design with a five peaks representing Utah's mountains, and red mountains, in reference to the state's red rock canyons. In total 72 people contributed to the new design.

Gov. Spencer Cox's decision to sign the bill making the flag official in March has ruffled conservative feathers in the state, per the Journal. After criticism from the state's Republican reps, Cox said that he made sure the beehive would stay included, but was surprised at how divisive the design was.

"I was hoping this would be a thing that brings people together," Cox said, per the Journal. "I should have known better." Cox did not respond to Insider's request for comment.

Brandon Beckham, a member of Utah's Republican party central committee, told the Journal that the new design is "just a logo."

"The original Utah flag has built in its ideals that are true to the founding of the state that are linked to history," Beckham told the Journal.

Others took umbrage with how the new design removed a bald eagle, the words "Utah" and "Industry" from the flag, as well as the date 1896, which is when Utah became the 45th state, according to The Washington Post.

Ryan Woods, a conservative drag performer known as Lady MAGA USA, said the change flies in the face of history.

"Woke, politically correct mobs are erasing history across American states in statues, names of institutions and now flags," Woods told The Salt Lake Tribune.

A referendum to repeal the new flag is gaining steam, but detractors would need the support of 8% of voters in 26 of the 29 districts to move forward, according to the Journal.