Voting is sooo important. But understanding elections can also be time-consuming and confusing. Between figuring out what district you’ll be voting in for six different races to understanding each candidate’s position in a party primary, a lot can go into casting that final ballot. Luckily, this midterm voting guide has you totally covered. From candidate stances to important issues, read on for a quick look at what to focus on when you’re casting your vote this November.
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Note: All voting information corresponds to Utah, specifically the Salt Lake City area and its neighborhoods near the University of Utah. To find your state voting districts, click here.
Federal Elections
Utah House District 2
Utah House District 2 Candidate Shireen Ghorbani
Democratic Candidate – Shireen Ghorbani
Working in organization and communications for the Facilities Management Department at the University of Utah, Ghorbani is focused on raising the minimum wage, protecting Utah’s public lands, legalizing marijuana, protecting LGBT+ rights, and protecting Medicaid and Medicare.
Republican Candidate – Chris Stewart (incumbent)
A former Airforce pilot turned businessman, Stewart’s priorities this November include enforcing strong borders, supporting further low-tax legislation, lobbying for more state control of public lands, and repealing and replacing Obamacare.
Libertarian Candidate – Jeffrey Whipple
A businessman living in St. George, Utah, Whipple is focused on prioritizing spending cuts before tax cuts, gaining state control of public lands, promoting criminal justice reform, and advocating for gun rights.
Utah Senate
Utah Senate Candidate Mitt Romney
Republican Candidate – Mitt Romney
Returning from his 2012 presidential loss to Barack Obama, some of the issues Romney is focusing on in his 2018 senate race include supporting more state control of public lands, protecting the second amendment, repealing and replacing Obamacare, and forming a merit-based immigration system.
Democratic Candidate – Jenny Wilson
A Salt Lake City Councilwoman, Wilson’s priorities include reforming immigration through creating a path to citizenship, supporting Obamacare but addressing rising healthcare costs, engaging rural communities in the economy, and continuing to protect federal lands.
Libertarian Candidate – Craig Bowden
A small business owner who served nearly 8 years in the Marine Corps, Bowden vows to support free markets, repeal the income tax, end the war on drugs, and uphold the second amendment, especially opposing the prosecution of those using weapons in self-defense.
State Elections
State Senate District 2 candidate Derek Kitchen.
Though often overlooked, state legislators create most of the laws that affect day-to-day life in Utah. Many of the State House Districts in Utah are holding elections this November, and the State Senate District 2 is also holding an election after Senator Jim Debakis’s retirement announcement.
Many of the neighborhoods by the U are a part of State Senate District 2. However, there are three main house districts in between most of the neighborhoods near the U. To find your district, you can use the state legislature’s district map, located here.
State House District 24
Democratic Candidate – Jen Dailey-Provost
The current executive director of the Utah Academy for Family Physicians, Dailey-Provost will work to provide affordable healthcare for all Utahans, to create a legislative task force to target Utah’s high rates of youth suicide, to allocate funding for affordable housing, and to limit the number of guns that one person can own.
Republican Candidate – Scott Rosenbush
A former New Jersey major, Rosenbush is focused on approving legislation that would create harsher punishments for hate crimes, removing regulations that hinder small business, working to solve Salt Lake’s homelessness crisis, and approving research for medical marijuana usage.
State House District 28
Democratic incumbent Brian King is running unopposed in this election.
State House District 25
Republican Candidate – Gary Gabrielson
This candidate is listed on Ballotpedia’s list of candidates for the 2018 election, but appears to not have a website or any press coverage online.
Democratic Candidate – Joel Briscoe (incumbent)
A former high school teacher, Briscoe identifies his priority legislative issues as education, climate and environment, public lands, and equity.
United Utah Party – Cabot Nelson
This candidate is also listed on Ballotpedia’s list of candidates for the 2018 election, but appears to not have a website or any press coverage online.
State Senate District 2
Democratic Candidate – Derek Kitchen
A small business owner and Salt Lake City councilman, Kitchen promises to protect public lands, work for affordable housing, strengthen hate crime laws, and create policy to make Utah a safe place for refugees and immigrants.
Republican Candidate – Chase Winder
An executive for Qualtrics software, Winder is hoping to increase education funding, protect public lands through local and state measures, advocate for LGBT+ equality, and strengthen the local economy.
Elections can be a mess of names, details, and hot-button issues. Thankfully, this guide should provide a great start to understanding the candidates running in Utah’s midterm elections. Be sure to vote in November, collegiettes!