Tanner Ainge

Tanner D. Ainge

Republican Party

Education

Bachelor's

Brigham Young University

Law

Northwestern University School of Law

Personal

Religion

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (Mormon)

Profession

Lawyer, entrepreneur

Contact

Personal website

Tanner Ainge was a 2017 Republican candidate who sought election to the U.S. House to represent the 3rd Congressional District of Utah. He lost the Republican primary on August 15, 2017, to Provo Mayor John Curtis.

Ainge qualified for the Republican primary ballot on June 5, 2017, after collecting 7,000 signatures from registered Republicans in the district.

Biography

Ainge received his B.A. from Brigham Young University in international studies and served a two-year mission in Ghana. After graduating from Northwestern Unversity School of Law, he practiced law in the healthcare industry. As of July 2017, Ainge managed a consulting firm and lived in Alpine, Utah, with his wife Heidi and five children.

Elections

2017

See also: Utah's 3rd Congressional District special election, 2017

A special election was held in the 3rd Congressional District of Utah for the U.S. House of Representatives. The election replaced Jason Chaffetz (R), who resigned from office on June 30, 2017. John Curtis (R) defeated Kathie Allen (D) and four other candidates in the general election on November 7, 2017.

U.S. House, Utah's 3rd Congressional District general election, November 7, 2017
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	John Curtis	58%	85,751
	Democratic	Kathie Allen	25.6%	37,801
	UUT	Jim Bennett	9.3%	13,747
	Independent	Sean Whalen	3.1%	4,554
	Libertarian	Joe Buchman	2.5%	3,644
	Independent American	Jason Christensen	1.5%	2,286
Total Votes				147,783
Source: Lieutenant Governor's Office

Election results

U.S. House, Utah's 3rd Congressional District Republican primary, 2017
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Republican	John Curtis	43.3%	31,481
	Republican	Christopher Herrod	32.6%	23,686
	Republican	Tanner Ainge	24.2%	17,565
Total Votes				72,732
Source: Lieutenant Governor's Office

Republican convention

Republican Party rules called for delegates to vote until a candidate received support from a majority of the delegates. Christopher Herrod, former member of the Utah House of Representatives, won the convention on the fifth ballot. The following graphic indicates the vote tallies for each ballot.

Polling

Utah's 3rd Congressional District general election
Poll	John Curtis (R)	Kathie Allen (D)	Jim Bennet (UU)	Joe Buchman (L)	Other	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Dan Jones & Associates August 30-September 9, 2017	50%	20%	6%	3%	21%	+/-4.0	607
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

Utah's 3rd Congressional District Republican primary
Poll	John Curtis	Chris Herrod	Tanner Ainge	Undecided	Margin of Error	Sample Size
Dan Jones & Associates August 2-3, 8, 2017	29%	25%	16%	26%	+/-4.6	447
Dan Jones & Associates July 18-20, 2017	37%	14%	17%	32%	+/-7.5	234
UtahPolicy.com June 23-July 5, 2017	27%	9%	5%	57%	+/-4.9	400
Note: A "0%" finding means the candidate was not a part of the poll. The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to editor@ballotpedia.org

District overview

Utah's 3rd Congressional District, which stretches from Northwestern to Southeastern Utah, had a total population of 743,301 as of 2015. The district was 90.6 percent white, higher than the national average of 76.9 percent. The percentage of the district's population that identified as African-American / Black (0.6 percent), and Asian (2.1 percent) were below their respective national averages, while the percentage who identified as Natives of North America, Alaska, and Pacific Islands (2.3 percent) exceeded the national average (1.5 percent). The district's median household income was above the national average, $66,007 to $53,889, and the district has a slightly lower percentage of residents without health insurance, 9.3 percent to 10.5 percent. The district's population had a higher percentage of high-school graduates, 93.4 percent to 86.7 percent, and individuals with at least a bachelor's degree, 39.6 percent to 29.8 percent, than the respective national averages.

Campaign themes

2017

The following issues are listed on Ainge's campaign website. For a full list of campaign themes, click here.

“	Balance the Budget & Reduce National Debt: Our federal government simply must get back to the same basic financial principle that every household, city and state must follow: spend less than you bring in. Our enormous budget deficits translate into an even larger national debt, which we need to begin reducing today. Utah’s example of fiscal discipline must be followed in Washington. Stimulate Economic Growth with Tax Reform: Utah has demonstrated that a low tax rate, in connection with rapid economic growth and job creation, is superior in every way to a complex, burdensome tax policy which stifles the investment, hiring and entrepreneurship we need. Homegrown enterprises and out-of-state companies are doubling down on Utah due to a healthy business climate and simple tax policy. The same could be true for the rest of our country if Washington would reduce tax rates and simplify the code to ignite more economic activity. Preserve Religious Freedoms & Values: Religious freedom is one of our most fundamental rights protected by the Constitution and which many Americans have come to these shores, and this desert, seeking. In addition, the moral values taught by most religions are correlated with better life outcomes and less poverty. I will fight with any means necessary to defend and protect religious freedom. Utah ranks at or near the top in volunteerism, charitable donations, two-parent homes, and protecting the lives of unborn children. I am firmly pro-life and believe in the sanctity of marriage. Our values hold everything else together. More Jobs, Less Poverty: Despite operating on a lean budget, Utah is the best in the nation at helping individuals move from poverty and dependence into self-reliant, middle-class workers. Our country is already spending trillions on a variety of government assistance and entitlement programs. By emphasizing work, common sense and community-driven solutions we can lift more people out of poverty and reduce federal spending in the process. End Federal Government Overreach: Programs and policies are more effective when administered at the state and local level. More aggressive efforts must be made to rollback unnecessary and burdensome regulations and stop federal encroachment on our liberties and freedoms. Both the outcome and the process of the Obama administration’s Bears Ears designation are perfect examples of federal government overreach, and President Trump’s executive order is a step in the right direction.	”
—Ainge for Congress

See also

• United States House of Representatives
• Utah's 3rd Congressional District special election, 2017
• Utah's 3rd Congressional District

Footnotes

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Utah's current delegation to the United States Congress

Senators

John Curtis (R)

Mike Lee (R)

Representatives

District 1

Blake Moore (R)

District 2

Celeste Maloy (R)

District 3

Mike Kennedy (R)

District 4

Burgess Owens (R)

Republican Party (6)