Americans will chose their next president on Tuesday. Eyes will be glued on the results of a handful of states where polls show former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris separated by less than the margin of error.
Utah is far from being a “swing state,” but the battle for the White House has hung over the biggest statewide and congressional elections in Utah as candidates have been asked to weigh in on the personalities and issues that underly the national debate.
The Republican Party nominee for president, who is expected to win the Beehive State by 30 percentage points, has been a near-constant feature of Utah’s election season: from the U.S. Senate race — where Rep. John Curtis relied on his pragmatic approach to Trump in a bid to replace outspoken Trump-critic Sen. Mitt Romney — to the gubernatorial race — where Gov. Spencer Cox put his “Disagree Better” mantra to the test with an endorsement of Trump.
As Utah voters watch Trump and his Democratic opponent, Harris, rack up Electoral College votes on Tuesday night, they can also keep an eye out for how the state’s favored Republican candidates fare and how they respond to the presidential election results.
Here are the biggest Utah races to follow and how the candidates have incorporated presidential politics into their bid to represent their home state.
Races to watch in Utah
U.S. Senate:
- Republican Rep. John Curtis of Utah’s 3rd Congressional District is running for the open seat against Democratic candidate Caroline Gleich to replace Sen. Mitt Romney.
- During a televised debate, Curtis rebutted criticisms from his left and right alleging that he is either too beholden to Republican “extremism” or not “pro-Trump” enough.
- Curtis pointed to his seven years in Congress as evidence that he supports Trump when the president acts in line with “Utah values” and opposes Trump when he conflicts with those values.
- Third-party candidates include Independent American candidate Carlton Bowen and write-in candidate Laird Hamblin.
3rd Congressional District:
- Republican state Sen. Mike Kennedy will face Democratic candidate Glenn Wright for an open seat to represent southeast Salt Lake County, most of Utah County and all of eastern Utah.
- During their debate, Wright alleged that pro-Trump lawmakers can’t be trusted to vote independently and called on Kennedy to denounce Trump for “racist” and “hate-filled” conduct.
- Kennedy argued that partisan labels can hinder problem solving. Identifying lawmakers with their party leader contributes to the dysfunction of Congress, Kennedy said.
Governor:
- Gov. Spencer Cox will face off against Democratic state Rep. Brian King for a second term following a contentious primary election where he defeated state Rep. Phil Lyman.
- King used the debate stage to argue that Cox’s sudden endorsement of Trump after July’s failed assassination attempt conflicts with Cox’s “Disagree Better” initiative.
- Cox said his endorsement shows he can work with the president to unify the country despite their many disagreements. King’s attitude amounts to a dismissal of Trump voters in Utah, Cox said.
- Third-party candidates include Independent American candidate Tommy Williams, Libertarian candidate J. Robert Latham, unaffiliated candidate Tom Tomeny and write-in candidate Phil Lyman.
Other races:
- Rep. Blake Moore of Utah’s 1st Congressional District is running against Democratic candidate Bill Campbell.
- Rep. Celeste Maloy of Utah’s 2nd Congressional District is running against Democratic candidate Nathaniel Woodward.
- Rep. Burgess Owens of Utah’s 4th Congressional District is running against Democratic candidate Katrina Fallick-Wang.
- Republican candidate Derek Brown, Democratic candidate Rudy Bautista, Libertarian candidate Andrew McCullough and United Utah Party candidate Michelle Quist are running for Utah’s open Attorney General position.
What do the polls tell us?
Deseret News/Hinckley Institute of Politics polls conducted less than a month before the Nov. 5 general election found Trump leading Harris in the Beehive State by more than 30 percentage points, 61%-30%. This trend applies to other statewide races polled by the Deseret News between Oct. 15-19.
Senate:
- Curtis — 55%
- Gleich — 20%
- Bowen — 4%
- Unsure — 21%
Governor:
- Cox — 51%
- King — 19%
- Williams — 4%
- Latham — 3%
- Tomeny — 2%
- Unsure — 22%
When will we know the results?
County clerks will report their first batch of results after every individual waiting in line to vote in-person has done so.
While polls are schedule to close at 8 p.m., this instruction from the state Lieutenant Governor’s Office could result in a delay before results are published from every county.
More than 90% of Utah voters have historically cast their vote by submitting a mail-in ballot to the U.S. Postal Service or a secure county dropbox.
Mail-in ballots must be deposited in a dropbox by 8 p.m. on Election Day or receive a postmark stamp from a post office on or before Monday, Nov. 4, in order to be counted.
The last day to register to vote online was Oct. 25. Utahns can still register to vote at the polls on Election Day.