Quick Facts
Biography
After previously stating that he would not run for re-election, Jason Chaffetz announced on May 19 that he was resigning his seat in the House, effective June 30. A special election was called to replace him with a filing period opening on May 19 and closing by June 30, an expected primary date of August 15, and an election day of November 7.
A crowded field of candidates emerged to compete for spots in their respective parties' primaries. 15 Republicans, 4 Democrats, 2 Independent American Party members and 1 Libertarian declared their candidacy. Candidates could qualify for the primary ballot by either being nominated by delegates at their party's convention or gathering 7,000 signatures from registered voters. Those gathering signatures could also seek nomination at their party's convention. The Republican and Democratic parties held conventions June 17 to select a nominee from the declared.
The primary election to determine the Republican Party's candidate for the general election was held on August 15. In addition to the partisan candidates, one unaffiliated candidate will appear on the general election ballot and two candidates have declared intent to run as a write-in. The winner of the general election will be seated by the U.S. House for a term that ends January 3, 2019.
Republican primary
The Republican primary was held on Tuesday August 15, 2017. Only registered Republicans living in the 3rd Congressional District were able vote in the primary, though unaffiliated voters were allowed to affiliate as Republicans at polling locations on election day.
Candidates
Fifteen candidates declared their candidacy for the Republican party nomination. While four candidates declared their intent to gather signatures, only two submitted signatures for verification by the required deadline. This election was the first time in Utah politics where three candidates were on the primary ballot since two candidates submitted enough signatures to qualify for the primary ballot and the party nominated a third candidate at its convention.
Nominated
- John R. Curtis, Mayor of Provo
Eliminated in primary
- Tanner Ainge, son of Danny Ainge
- Chris Herrod, real estate developer, former State Representative and candidate for the U.S. Senate in 2012
Ainge and Curtis submitted enough signatures to qualify for spots on the primary ballot. Curtis also participated in the convention process, but lost to Herrod who was nominated at the convention. Curtis would go on to win the primary.
Lost at convention
- Debbie Aldrich
- Brad Daw, State Representative
- Margaret Dayton, State Senator
- Paul David Fife
- Deidre Henderson, State Senator
- Damian Kidd, attorney
- Keith Kuder
- Stewart Peay, attorney
- Shayne Horton Row
Withdrawn before convention
- Jeremy Lewis Friedbaum
- Mike Leavitt, not to be confused with former Utah Governor Mike Leavitt
Failed to qualify for primary via signature gathering process
- Brigham Rhead Cottam
Convention results
| Republican Convention | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | First ballot | Pct. | Second ballot | Pct. | Third ballot | Pct. | Fourth ballot | Pct. | Fifth ballot | Pct. |
| Herrod, ChristopherChristopher Herrod | 200 | 25.64% | 238 | 31.23% | 264 | 34.87% | 337 | 44.81% | 415 | 55.11% |
| Henderson, DeidreDeidre Henderson | 202 | 25.90% | 225 | 29.53% | 271 | 35.80% | 301 | 40.03% | 338 | 44.89% |
| Dayton, MargaretMargaret Dayton | 145 | 18.59% | 140 | 18.37% | 113 | 14.93% | 68 | 9.04% | 00 !Eliminated | |
| Peay !Stewart Peay | 74 | 9.49% | 47 | 6.17% | 45 | 5.94% | 27 | 3.59% | 00 !Eliminated | |
| Curtis, John R.John R. Curtis | 71 | 9.10% | 52 | 6.82% | 35 | 4.62% | 19 | 2.53% | 00 !Eliminated | |
| Kidd !Damian Kidd | 48 | 6.15% | 39 | 5.12% | 29 | 3.83% | 00 !Eliminated | |||
| Daw, BradBrad Daw | 19 | 2.44% | 12 | 1.57% | 00 !Eliminated | |||||
| Fife !Paul Fife | 15 | 1.92% | 9 | 1.18% | 00 !Eliminated | |||||
| Aldrich !Debbie Aldrich | 4 | 0.51% | 00 !Eliminated | |||||||
| Row !Shayne Row | 2 | 0.26% | 00 !Eliminated | |||||||
| Kuder !Keith Kuder | 0 | 0.00% | 00 !Eliminated | |||||||
Endorsements
| Tanner Ainge |
|---|
|
| Chris Herrod |
|---|
|
Primary Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John R. Curtis | 31,481 | 43.28 | |
| Republican | Chris Herrod | 23,686 | 32.57 | |
| Republican | Tanner Ainge | 17,565 | 24.15 | |
| Total votes | 72,732 | 100% | ||
Democratic Party
Four candidates declared their candidacy for the Democratic party nomination. Two candidates declared their intent to gather signatures but neither submitted signatures for verification prior to the required deadline. On June 17, 2017 the Democratic Party formally nominated Kathie Allen as their candidate, eliminating the need for a primary election.
Candidates
Nominated
- Kathie Allen, physician
Lost at convention
- Carl Ingwell, biologist
- Ben Frank, activist
Withdrawn before convention
- Faeiza Javed
Convention results
| Democratic Convention | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | First ballot | Pct. |
| Allen !Kathie Allen | 76% | |
| Ingwell !Carl Ingwell | ||
| Frank !Ben Frank |
Endorsements
United Utah Party
Candidates
The United Utah Party submitted the required number of signatures to be recognized as a political party in Utah on May 25, one day before the candidate filing deadline. Jim Bennett, son of former US Senator Bob Bennett, grandson of former US Senator Wallace F. Bennett, and executive director of the newly formed United Utah Party, filed to run as a member of the newly formed party but was rejected because the state had not yet processed the submitted signatures.
The party took the issue to court, and a federal judge found that Utah had illegally violated Bennett's First and Fourteenth Amendment rights by denying him a spot on the ballot. The state elections office immediately complied with the court order and declined to appeal the decision. Jim Bennett was placed on the general election ballot as the United Utah Party candidate.
Nominated
- Jim Bennett
Independent American Party
Candidates
Two candidates declared their intent to seek the nomination of the Independent American Party.
Nominated
- Jason Christensen
Lost at convention
- Aaron Heineman
Libertarian Party
Candidates
Only one candidate declared for the Libertarian Party nomination. On June 10, 2017 the Libertarian Party formally nominated Joe Buchman as their candidate. He became the first candidate certified for the general election.
Nominated
- Joe Buchman
Independent
Candidates
Candidates that preferred not to participate in the political party process could declare as an unaffiliated candidate. To qualify for a spot on the general election ballot, candidates needed to gather at least 300 valid signatures from registered voters living in the 3rd Congressional District. Only one candidate met this qualification by the June 12 deadline.
Declared
- Sean Whalen
Write-in candidates
Candidates
Candidates had until September 8 to declare their write-in candidacy. Write-in candidates' names will not appear on the ballot and voters must write or type in the name of the candidate for the vote to count.
Declared
- Brendan Phillips
- Russell Paul Roesler
General election
The special general election will be held Tuesday November 7, 2017.
Candidates
Major
The following candidates have qualified to appear in the state-sponsored debates:
- John Curtis (Republican), Mayor of Provo
- Kathie Allen (Democratic), physician
- Jim Bennett (United Utah), son of former US Senator Bob Bennett, grandson of former US Senator Wallace F. Bennett. Bennett is the first third party candidate in history to cross the threshold to appear in the official debate commission debate.
Minor
The following third-party or independent candidates have qualified for the ballot but haven't polled high enough to currently qualify for the state-sponsored debates:
- Joe Buchman (Libertarian)
- Jason Christensen (Independent American)
- Sean Whalen (Independent)
Endorsements
| John Curtis |
|---|
|
| Kathie Allen |
|---|
|
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered | Sample size | Margin of error | Kathie Allen (D) | Jim Bennet (UU) | Joe Buchman (L) | Jason Christensen (IA) | John Curtis (R) | Sean Whalen (Independent) | Write-ins | Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dan Jones & Associates | August 30–September 5, 2017 | 607 | ± 4.0% | 19.82% | 5.59% | 2.78% | 0.99% | 50.17% | 0.99% | 0.16% | 1.82% | 17.69% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | John Curtis | — | — | |
| Democratic | Kathie Allen | — | — | |
| United Utah | Jim Bennett | — | — | |
| Libertarian | Joe Buchman | — | — | |
| Independent American | Jason Christensen | — | — | |
| Write-in | Brendan Phillips | — | — | |
| Write-in | Russell Paul Roesler | — | — | |
| Independent | Sean Whalen | — | — | |
| Total votes | — | — | ||