Utah's 3rd Congressional District election, 2020

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2022
2018
Utah's 3rd Congressional District
Ballotpedia Election Coverage Badge.png
Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 19, 2020
Primary: June 30, 2020 (canceled)
General: November 3, 2020

Pre-election incumbent:
John Curtis (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Utah
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2020
See also
Utah's 3rd Congressional District
1st2nd3rd4th
Utah elections, 2020
U.S. Congress elections, 2020
U.S. Senate elections, 2020
U.S. House elections, 2020

All U.S. congressional districts, including the 3rd Congressional District of Utah, held elections in 2020.

Incumbent John Curtis won election in the general election for U.S. House Utah District 3.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
March 19, 2020
June 30, 2020 (canceled)
November 3, 2020


Heading into the election the incumbent was Republican John Curtis, who was first elected in 2017.

As of the 2010 redistricting cycle, Utah's 3rd Congressional District was located in the eastern portion of the state and included Carbon, Emery, Grand, San Juan, and Wasatch counties as well as portions of Salt Lake and Utah counties.[1]

Post-election analysis

The table below compares the vote totals in the 2020 presidential election and 2020 U.S. House election for this district. The presidential election data was compiled by Daily Kos.

Presidential and congressional election results, Utah's 3rd Congressional District, 2020
Race Presidential U.S. House
Democratic candidate Democratic Party 35.2 26.8
Republican candidate Republican Party 60.3 68.7
Difference 25.1 41.9

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Utah modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

  • Absentee/mail-in voting: The third-party collection and return of absentee ballots was restricted to individuals residing in the same household as the voter.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. House Utah District 3

The following candidates ran in the general election for U.S. House Utah District 3 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of John Curtis
John Curtis (R)
 
68.7
 
246,674
Image of Devin Thorpe
Devin Thorpe (D) Candidate Connection
 
26.8
 
96,067
Image of Daniel Clyde Cummings
Daniel Clyde Cummings (Constitution Party)
 
2.5
 
8,889
Image of Thomas McNeill
Thomas McNeill (United Utah Party) Candidate Connection
 
2.0
 
7,040
Image of Trey Robinson
Trey Robinson (Independent) (Write-in) Candidate Connection
 
0.1
 
250
Image of Jeremy Friedbaum
Jeremy Friedbaum (Independent) (Write-in)
 
0.0
 
7

Total votes: 358,927
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic convention

Democratic convention for U.S. House Utah District 3

Devin Thorpe defeated Jared Lyle Anderson and Trey Robinson in the Democratic convention for U.S. House Utah District 3 on April 25, 2020.

Candidate
Image of Jared Lyle Anderson
Jared Lyle Anderson (D) Candidate Connection
Image of Trey Robinson
Trey Robinson (D) Candidate Connection
Image of Devin Thorpe
Devin Thorpe (D) Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican convention

Republican convention for U.S. House Utah District 3

Incumbent John Curtis defeated Timothy Noel Aalders in the Republican convention for U.S. House Utah District 3 on April 25, 2020.

Candidate
Image of John Curtis
John Curtis (R)
Image of Timothy Noel Aalders
Timothy Noel Aalders (R)

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

There are no Pivot Counties in Utah. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Utah with 45.5 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 27.5 percent. Independent candidate and Utah native Evan McMullin received 21.5 percent of the vote, his strongest showing in a state. In presidential elections between 1900 and 2016, Utah cast votes for the winning presidential candidate 76.7 percent of the time. In that same timeframe, Utah supported Republican candidates more often than Democrats, 73.3 to 23.3 percent. The state favored Republicans in every presidential election between 2000 and 2016.

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Utah. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[2][3]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won seven out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 20.8 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 19 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 21.9 points. Clinton won six districts controlled by Republicans heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 68 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 54.4 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 56 out of 75 state House districts in Utah with an average margin of victory of 30.7 points.

District analysis

See also: The Cook Political Report's Partisan Voter Index
See also: FiveThirtyEight's elasticity scores

The 2017 Cook Partisan Voter Index for this district was R+25, meaning that in the previous two presidential elections, this district's results were 25 percentage points more Republican than the national average. This made Utah's 3rd Congressional District the 16th most Republican nationally.[4]

FiveThirtyEight's September 2018 elasticity score for states and congressional districts measured "how sensitive it is to changes in the national political environment." This district's elasticity score was 1.06. This means that for every 1 point the national political mood moved toward a party, the district was expected to move 1.06 points toward that party.[5]

Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[6]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[7][8][9]

Race ratings: Utah's 3rd Congressional District election, 2020
Race trackerRace ratings
November 3, 2020October 27, 2020October 20, 2020October 13, 2020
The Cook Political ReportSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid RepublicanSolid Republican
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe RepublicanSafe Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every week throughout the election season.

Candidate ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for 3rd Congressional District candidates in Utah in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Utah, click here.

Filing requirements, 2020
State Office Party Signatures required Signature formula Filing fee Filing fee formula Filing deadline Source
Utah 3rd Congressional District Qualified party 7,000 Fixed number $485.00 Fixed number 3/19/2020 (declaration of candidacy); petitions due two weeks before party convention Source
Utah 3rd Congressional District Unaffiliated 300 Fixed number $485.00 Fixed number 3/19/2020 Source

District election history

2018

See also: Utah's 3rd Congressional District election, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. House Utah District 3

Incumbent John Curtis defeated James Singer, Gregory Duerden, and Tim Zeidner in the general election for U.S. House Utah District 3 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of John Curtis
John Curtis (R)
 
67.5
 
174,856
Image of James Singer
James Singer (D)
 
27.3
 
70,686
Image of Gregory Duerden
Gregory Duerden (Independent American Party)
 
2.6
 
6,686
Tim Zeidner (United Utah Party)
 
2.6
 
6,630

Total votes: 258,858
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. James Singer advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. House Utah District 3.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. House Utah District 3

Incumbent John Curtis defeated Christopher Herrod in the Republican primary for U.S. House Utah District 3 on June 26, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
Image of John Curtis
John Curtis
 
73.3
 
66,404
Image of Christopher Herrod
Christopher Herrod
 
26.7
 
24,158

Total votes: 90,562
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2016

See also: Utah's 3rd Congressional District election, 2016

Heading into the election, Ballotpedia rated this race as safely Republican. Incumbent Jason Chaffetz (R) defeated Stephen Tryon (D) in the general election on November 8, 2016. Chaffetz defeated Chia-Chi Teng in the Republican primary on June 28, 2016.[10][11]

U.S. House, Utah District 3 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJason Chaffetz Incumbent 73.5% 209,589
     Democratic Stephen Tryon 26.5% 75,716
Total Votes 285,305
Source: Utah Secretary of State


U.S. House, Utah, District 3 Republican Primary, 2016
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngJason Chaffetz Incumbent 78.6% 47,439
Chia-Chi Teng 21.4% 12,922
Total Votes 60,361
Source: Utah Lieutenant Governor

2014

See also: Utah's 3rd Congressional District elections, 2014

Incumbent Jason Chaffetz won re-election to the U.S. House of Representatives on November 4, 2014. He defeated Brian Wonnacott, Zack Strong, Ben Mates and Stephen Tryon (I) in the general election.

U.S. House, Utah District 3 General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngJason Chaffetz Incumbent 72.3% 102,952
     Democratic Brian Wonnacott 22.5% 32,059
     Independent American Zack Strong 2.2% 3,192
     Independent Ben Mates 1.1% 1,513
     Independent Stephen Tryon 1.8% 2,584
Total Votes 142,300
Source: Utah Lieutenant Governor, "Elections,"

See also

External links

Footnotes


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
District 3
District 4
Republican Party (6)