On Nov. 5, three names are on the ballot in the Utah race to replace outgoing Sen. Mitt Romney in the U.S. Senate — and Thursday marked the first general election debate with a Republican, an Independent American candidate, and a Democrat facing off on stage.
Currently Utah’s 3rd Congressional District congressman, Republican Rep. John Curtis framed himself as a conservative candidate best situated to take Romney’s place. He argued he has both the experience and the political savvy to know when it’s time to work across party lines and when to be a “team player” with his party.
Democrat Caroline Gleich, a professional ski mountaineer and social media influencer, pitched herself as the best candidate to answer Romney’s call for the “next generation” to help lead the U.S. as someone who’s more “in touch” with Utah’s young population and their concerns about climate change.
Independent American Carlton Bowen was the slugger — repeatedly throwing the most punches at Curtis for being a “former Democrat” (referring to Curtis’ time serving as vice chairman and chairman of the Utah County Democratic Party from 2002 to 2003). Bowen painted himself as the only “pro-Trump” candidate on the ballot, though he told reporters in the scrum afterward that he would not caucus with either Republicans or Democrats if he were elected.
The hour-long televised face off was hosted by the Utah Debate Commission and moderated by Glen Mills, former ABC4 anchor and chief political correspondent who is currently working as director of communications and government relations for the Utah Department of Corrections. The debate took place at Weber State University in Ogden.
One other candidate — Laird Fetzer Hamblin — is in the race as a write-in candidate, but he did not receive enough support in the Utah Debate Commission’s polling to qualify him for the debate.
In the red state of Utah, Curtis led that poll, conducted by Salt Lake City polling firm Lighthouse Research, with 52.5% of the vote. Gleich got 33.8% and Bowen got 8.4%. The poll of 526 randomly drawn Utah registered voters was conducted Aug. 29 to Sept. 19. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.27 percentage points, according to the Utah Debate Commission, which also made clear its results shouldn’t be “misinterpreted as predictions of the outcomes of any race.”
During Thursday evening’s debate, Mills and Weber State University students asked a wide range of questions, from how candidates would tackle the U.S. national debt, housing affordability, public lands, water, judicial nominations, engaging young voters, foreign policy, immigration, abortion, and political polarization and more.
For the full report and to watch the full debate visit UtahNewsDispatch.com.
