[2] Wilkinson's family moved to Provo, Utah, when his father became president of Brigham Young University.
In 1980, Wilkinson ran for Attorney General of Utah as a Republican, defeating incumbent Robert B. Hansen in the primary.
Wilkinson won the general election in 1980 and re-election in 1984, defeating Park City attorney Joe Tesch.
Though Wilkinson spent up to $2 million defending the measure, the law was prevented from ever being enforced, and in 1987, by a 7-2 ruling, the law was declared unconstitutional by the United States Supreme Court due to being a violation of the First Amendment of the United States Constitution.
Wilkinson ran for a third term as Attorney General in 1988, though his use of taxpayer money for his cable television feud resulted in an unsuccessful bid, as Wilkinson was defeated by Democrat Paul Van Dam in the general election by roughly 28,000 votes.