2014 Utah elections

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Utah on November 4, 2014. The state's four seats in the United States House of Representatives are up for election and there is a special election for Utah's Attorney General. Primary elections were held on June 24, 2014.[1]

Attorney General

Background

Republican Attorney General John Swallow resigned in December 2013, less than a year into his first term, following multiple investigations into alleged bribery and campaign finance violations.[2]

Appointment

Pursuant to Utah law, Governor Gary Herbert was required to pick a replacement from three names chosen by the Utah Republican Party Central Committee.[3] Nine Republican candidates put their names forward for consideration. They were:

• Scott Burns, former Iron County attorney, former Deputy Director for State and Local Affairs at the ONDCP and nominee for Attorney General in 1992 and 1996
• Michelle Mumford, an attorney, assistant dean of admissions at the Brigham Young University law school and secretary of the Utah Republican Party
• Bret Rawson, a reserve Bountiful policeman and attorney
• Sean Reyes, an attorney who lost to Swallow in the primary in 2012
• Stephen Sorenson, a retired prosecutor and former head of the litigation division of the Attorney General's office
• Robert Smith, an attorney and managing director of Brigham Young University's International Center for Law and Religion Studies
• Brian Tarbet, a retired Adjutant General of the Utah National Guard and the Acting Attorney General
• Brent Ward, former United States Attorney for the District of Utah and a candidate for the U.S. Senate in 1992
• Michael J. Wilkins, a former Justice of the Utah Supreme Court and former Chairman of the Utah Independent Ethics Commission.

Burns, Sorensen, Tarbet and Wilkins all said they would not run in the special election if chosen.[4]

Sorenson withdrew from contention on December 9, with Ward also withdrawing two days later.[5] A debate was held on December 11[6] and Reyes, Smith and Tarbet were chosen as the finalists by the Central Committee on December 14.[7] Herbert chose Reyes on December 23,[8] who was sworn-in on December 30.[9]

Special election

A special election will thus be held for the remaining two years of Swallow's term, with the office then up for the regularly-scheduled election in 2016. Reyes was unopposed in the Republican primary. Opposing him in the general election are Democratic rancher and attorney Charles A. Stormont,[10][11] American Independent Party nominee Leslie Curtis, Constitution Party nominee Gregory Hansen and Libertarian nominee Andrew McCullough, a perennial candidate for office.[12]

Polling

Poll source	Date(s) administered	Sample size	Margin of error	Sean Reyes (R)	Charles A. Stormont (D)	Other	Undecided
Brigham Young University	October 15–22, 2014	159	± 3.42%	47%	27%	7%[13]	19%

United States House of Representatives

Utah's four seats in the United States House of Representatives will be up for election in 2014.

References

1. "2014 Election Dates". Utah Lieutenant Governor. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
2. "Utah A.G. John Swallow resigns, citing toll on family, finances". Deseret News. November 21, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
3. "AG candidate race heats up". KSL-TV. December 6, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
4. "Acting A.G. joins GOP race to replace Swallow". The Salt Lake Tribune. December 7, 2013. Archived from the original on April 23, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
5. "Ward drops out of A.G. race over residency questions". The Salt Lake Tribune. December 11, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
6. "AG candidates agree: Office needs change and they're best fit for the job". The Salt Lake Tribune. December 12, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
7. "GOP picks Reyes, Smith and Tarbet as finalists for Utah attorney general". The Salt Lake Tribune. December 14, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
8. "Gov. Gary Herbert names Sean Reyes as Utah attorney general". Deseret News. December 23, 2013. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
9. "Reyes sworn in as Utah's new Attorney General". 4Utah. December 30, 2013. Archived from the original on January 21, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
10. "Democrat Charles Stormont to Run for Attorney General". KUER-FM. March 18, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
11. "Democratic lawyer, ranch manager to run for Utah attorney general". Deseret News. March 18, 2014. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
12. "2014 Candidate Filings". Utah Lieutenant Governor. Retrieved April 23, 2014.
13. Leslie Curtis (AI) 1%, Gregory Hansen (C) 2%, Andrew McCullough (L) 4%