Follow along with live updates from the Utah GOP convention at Utah Valley University in Orem.
Congressional District 3
The contest between Rep. Celeste Maloy and former state Rep. Phil Lyman promised to be the most competitive of the day. It lived up to that billing, going to a second round of voting. Both Maloy and Lyman advance to the June primary.
Maloy said she understood that delegates might be frustrated with the trajectory of the country.
"I've been talking to a lot of you the last few weeks, and I know a lot of you are frustrated. And there are good reasons to be. We have really high debt, there's instability around the world, and people who have violated our trust aren't always held accountable as quickly as we would like," Maloy said.
Lyman, on the other hand, rattled off a laundry list of right-wing culture war greatest hits, primarily immigration.
"We are Americans. And we are not required to stand idle while our country is undergoing a coordinated invasion. The crime worthy of deportation is crossing the border illegally. No other crimes required." Lyman said.
Lyman then made Saturday's only reference to Jeffrey Epstein.
"We're done being lied to. Release the Epstein files," Lyman said to a smattering of applause.
Lyman referenced numerous conspiracy theories during his speech, including election fraud, government surveillance, vaccine skepticism and chemtrails.
Maloy heads to the primary with a massive campaign funding advantage. According to the most recent FEC disclosures, Maloy has more than $461,000 cash on hand. Lyman has not yet filed a report because he has not raised or spent at least $5,000.
Congressional District 2
Rep. Blake Moore has never prevailed at convention, finishing second every time since he first ran in 2020. It happened again on Saturday, with state Rep. Karianne Lisonbee receiving 61.5% to Moore's 33.7%.
That result forces Moore into his fourth straight primary election. Moore collected signatures to qualify for the primary. Had he not done that, he would have been eliminated from the race.
Moore, who heard a few boos from delegates as he came to the podium, ticked off a long list of his accomplishments since he was first elected to Congress in 2020, including becoming the first Utahn in history to secure a spot on the influential Ways and Means Committee. He also cast Republicans as the party of "common sense" while tarring Democrats as "crazy."
"Republicans secure borders. Democrats open them. We support law enforcement. They refuse to fund ICE and Border Patrol. Women play in women's sports. Men do not play in women's sports. We embrace merit over DEI. Energy should be abundant, not restricted. Conservative policies enhance upward mobility where progressive policies create dependence," Moore said.
He also urged delegates to give him enough support so that he can avoid a primary election.
"I have always been a convention-supported candidate, but today I'm asking you to make me the outright winner so that I will go and spend the next six months making sure every American knows the difference between common sense and crazy," Moore said.
Lisonbee continued her attacks on Moore for his work with Better Boundaries in 2018, which originally put Prop. 4 on the ballot.
"My opponent worked with Democrats to turn a reliably red Utah congressional seat deep blue. Now, more than ever, we need real leadership in D.C.," Lisonbee said.
She added that, if elected, she would work to end corruption in D.C., pledging not to trade stocks during her time in office.
Moore has a massive money advantage over Lisonbee ahead of the June primary, with more than 16 times as much cash on hand.
Congressional District 1
Utah Republicans are in an unfamiliar spot: whoever wins the GOP nomination in the 1st District is the underdog in November, thanks to a new map put in place by Judge Dianna Gibson last year.
That map created a Democratic-leaning district centered on Salt Lake County that the Cook Political Report rates as D+14. Had the district been in place in 2024, Democrat Kamala Harris would have carried the district by more than 20 points.
Republican Riley Owen won the nomination outright, securing 71.2% of the vote in the first round.
During his speech, Owen conceded the map favors Democrats but argued the hill is climbable.
"To win this fight, we must expand our coalition beyond this arena by earning blocks critical to our victory. Our neighbors on the west side, who so frequently feel ignored and forgotten. Our moderate and independent friends who feel that their interests have not been captured. And our young people, who feel anxious about the costs of raising families and buying homes," Owen said.
Dave Robinson, who started gathering signatures to make the ballot, then abandoned the effort, made a similar case that a Republican can still win a deep-blue seat.
"In 2020, Joe Biden won Salt Lake County by 15 points. Our candidates won by anywhere from a point and a half to 10 points. Those same voters that voted for Joe Biden then came down and voted for Republican candidates and voted on policy," Robinson said.
Stone Fonua gave a bizarre performance during his speaking slot, leading the crowd in the singing of the LDS Church hymn, "Love is Home." Fonua previously was the U.S. Senate nominee for the Independent American Party in 2016, then ran for U.S. Senate as a Republican in 2018. He also ran for Congress in the special election to replace Rep. Chris Stewart as a member of the United Utah Party in 2023.
Just 473 delegates in CD1 showed up to vote on Saturday.
Congressional District 4
There wasn't much drama on Saturday as Rep. Mike Kennedy cruised to an easy win over three other candidates, winning 78.7% support from delegates.
Addressing delegates, Kennedy drew applause when he highlighted his votes to repeal SB54, which allows candidates to bypass convention delegates through signature gathering, while he served in the Utah Legislature. He also noted his work on banning gender-affirming care for transgender youth in Utah.
"When I was in the state legislature, I had the privilege to run the bill that banned transgender surgeries on minors in this state. And I will tell you right now that if there's any federal legislation that's going to jeopardize that bill, I will vote against it. I have voted over and over again to keep men out of women's locker rooms, men out of women's bathrooms, and men out of women's sports. And I'm proud to stand with you as a conservative," Kennedy said.
Kennedy will be a heavy favorite in November. The Cook Political Report rates Utah's 4th District as R+17.
More election results
Here are the results from the rest of the legislative elections on Saturday:
- HD4 - Rep. Tiara Auxier won 92.2% of the vote and wins the nomination over Kris Campbell.
- HD12 - House Speaker Mike Schultz cruised past Dava Ann Neal with 94.6% of the delegate vote.
- HD29 - Alexis Wheeler won the nomination outright for the open seat being vacated by Rep. Bridger Bolinder.
- HD59 - Luke Searle and Jeffrey Pierce advance to a primary for the seat left open by Rep. Mike Kohler's retirement.
- HD66 - Incumbent Troy Shelley won 79% of the delegate vote to win the nomination outright, eliminating Justin Zohner from the race.
- HD67 - JR Bird is the party nominee for this open seat. Rep. Christine Watkins is not running for another term.
- HD69 - Rep. Logan Monson is forced into a primary by Daniel Gardner after neither candidate was able to secure the 60% needed to win the nomination outright.
- SD1 - Incumbent Sen. Scott Sandall handily beat Fred Hayes for the GOP nomination, avoiding a primary.
Senate President Stuart Adams gets another primary challenger
Senate President Stuart Adams has already been forced into his first-ever primary election after both he and Stephanie Hollist submitted enough signatures to automatically advance to the primary.
There was another first for Adams on Saturday. It marked the first time he failed to win enough support from delegates to keep another candidate from advancing to the primary election.
In the third and final round of voting, Adams only got 54.8% of the delegate vote, short of the 60% required to secure the delegate nomination.
Adams was only able to get 54.8% of the delegate vote in SD7 on Saturday, while Braden Hess scored 45.2%.
Hess advances to the primary along with Adams and Hollist.
Rob Bishop returns to the Utah Legislature
Former congressman Rob Bishop is returning to the Utah Legislature.
Delegates overwhelmingly gave him the GOP nomination in HD6 on Saturday, then voted to have him fill the vacancy in that seat after former Rep. Matt Gwynn resigned following the 2026 legislative session.
Bishop served in the Utah Legislature from 1978 to 1994, rising to House Speaker from 1992 to 1994.
Sen. Mike Lee calls for the repeal of SB54, continues to push election falsehoods (with video)
Sen. Mike Lee, who is a favorite of Republican delegates, took the stage to a large cheer (and a few boos).
During his speech, Lee ripped Prop. 4, the voter-approved anti-gerrymandering measure that established an independent redistricting commission.
"This so-called independent redistricting commission was wrong. It was designed to circumvent you, us, and who we elect to make our laws under the Utah Constitution," Lee said.
Last year, Third District Judge Dianna Gibson ruled the Utah Legislature illegally repealed Prop. 4 in 2020. As a result of that litigation, Gibson tossed out the congressional map passed by lawmakers in 2021 and put in place the current map that includes a Democratic-leaning district centered on Salt Lake County.
"It is the Utah legislature. It is not courts. It sure as heck is in a commission. It's our lawmakers," Lee continued.
He then pivoted to call for the repeal of SB54, which created the dual-path nomination system that allows candidates to collect signatures to appear on the primary ballot.
"This charade has gone on long enough, and we can't put up with it anymore," Lee said to loud cheers from delegates.
"Now, it's not going to be easy, but we all have to unite. We have to make our voices heard. We have to talk to those who represent us in the state capitol, and we have to get it done."
Lee also repeated his false claim that Democrats are bringing undocumented immigrants into the country and allowing them to vote to win elections.
"Our Democratic colleagues in the Senate and their counterparts in the House also want to outsource voters. American voters. American voters outsourced with foreign voters, whom they brought in to the tune of 10 or 15 million just in four years alone. They want to make it easier for them to vote. And we will have nothing of it," Lee said.
It's already illegal for non-citizens to vote in federal elections. Utah election officials reviewed more than 2 million voter registrations and identified just one possible noncitizen who registered to vote, but they did not cast a ballot.
Despite that, Lee is using the dubious claim to push the SAVE America Act, which would require proof of citizenship to register to vote. Critics say that the legislation would disenfranchise up to 10% of voters because the only documents that could be used to prove citizenship would be a birth certificate or passport.
Charlie Kirk tribute
During his opening remarks, Party Chair Rob Axson paid tribute to conservative podcaster Charlie Kirk, who was shot and killed on the UVU campus last year.
During his speech, Axson compared Kirk to the founding fathers. It was then a graphic depicting Kirk in Revolutionary War garb resembling George Washington flashed on the screen.
Last week, Utah Republicans and legislative leaders pressured UVU officials to drop Sharon McMahon as the school's commencement speaker over her past comments about Kirk.
Early election surprises
SD18
Sen. Dan McCay's political career survived by the thinnest of margins on Saturday.
McCay is being challenged by Rep. Doug Fiefia for the GOP nomination in SD18. McCay, who did not collect signatures, advanced to a primary against Fiefia by just two votes.
Tracie Halvorsen was eliminated in the first round of voting.
SD11
Former House Majority Whip John Knotwell had support from legislative leadership and a massive campaign war chest in his bid to return to the Utah Legislature.
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