The Associated Press called Utah’s 1st Congressional District Democratic primary for former Rep. Ben McAdams shortly after polls closed on Tuesday.
Utah Democrats chose experience and coalition-building over ideological purity when they selected McAdams for the newly created district.
A former Salt Lake County mayor and U.S. congressman, McAdams received 60.2% of the vote with 82% of the votes in, The Associated Press reported.
“The night belongs to every Utahn, who looked at this race and said, ‘We need someone with the courage to stand up and to stand alone, and the courage to reach across differences to get it done,’” McAdams said in his a victory speech after the election was called. “Most of all, I want to thank my family.”
McAdams served as a representative for Utah in Congress from 2018 to 2020, when he lost against current Rep. Burgess Owens in Utah’s 2nd District.
With Tuesday’s result, McAdams advances one step closer to a congressional comeback. He will face Republican Riley Owen in the November election, but is widely viewed as the front-runner in the Democratic-leaning district.
“I’m inviting you, and I am asking your supporters to join us in this fight,” he said to his competitors after the race was called.
Ahead of the results, polling showed the race would likely come down to McAdams, a seasoned politician who is seen as more moderate, or Nate Blouin, a progressive Democrat who aligns with prominent figures in the democratic socialist movement, including his endorser, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
After learning of the election results, Blouin told the Deseret News his hope for the Democratic Party is to prioritize the “individual,” not “big money.”
“I’d so much rather be out there on the ground talking to people, but we saw how much money shapes a campaign,” he said, “and that’s the outcome we’re seeing.”
Blouin’s focus now, he said, is “helping really strong progressives get elected up and down the ballot here in Utah, maybe even elsewhere.”
Votes were also cast on Tuesday for progressive candidates Michael Farrell and Liban Mohammed, who won the Democratic nomination at the state convention in April.
District 1 primary results as of 8:45 p.m. MDT on Tuesday:
- Ben McAdams — 60.2%.
- Nate Blouin — 24.0%.
- Liban Mohammed — 12.0%.
- Michael Farrell — 3.8%.
McAdams added a pitch:
“The Great South Lake is disappearing. Our democracy is under attack. People are counting on us to stand up against corruption, to stand up against the assault on our democracy, and to move forward solutions that will bring down the cost of housing, gas, groceries, and we’ll make sure that healthcare is affordable for everyone.
“And I know what it takes to move a vote, not just cast one, to pass a law, not just promise one,” he said.
King: This is an opportunity
In April, Utah’s 1st District race was initially met with multiple controversies.
As he got to know the candidates throughout the campaign, Utah Democratic Party Chair Brian King said he came away impressed by all four, describing them as “high-quality candidates” focused on helping move Utah in the right direction.
He told the Deseret News his concern lies in Utahns focusing too heavily on identity politics when casting their votes.
“I think we’re far too attached to the labels and to party affiliation, it’s not good for us in Utah, it’s not good for us across the country,” he said. “I really think people need to make the best choice for their preferences and their values and their priorities, and let the party affiliation go by the wayside.”
In tandem with party politics, King said too many Utahns — specifically Democrats — think voting is pointless in a Republican dominated state.
“I just want people to get out and be involved. The worst thing that could happen in our country and in our state is for people saying it doesn’t matter,” he continued. “That is absolutely not true.”
Utah’s congressional map was redrawn by two nonprofits then selected by a judge last November after a long legal battle, creating a blue dot in Utah’s red landscape. King said that has definitely energized some Democrats who now see it as an opportunity to elect one of their own to Utah’s congressional delegation.
“They’re getting off the sidelines more this year than they have been in the past,” he said. “I think they do feel their vote matters now.” Combined with state and federal issues that have generated significant anxiety, frustration and anger, he said, that sense of urgency is driving more people to the polls.
