The race to replace Rep. Chris Stewart in Utah’s 2nd Congressional District was too close to call as of late Tuesday night.
Celeste Maloy led her opponents in the special Republican primary election by the end of vote counting Tuesday night because of a strong showing in rural and Southern Utah counties, while Becky Edwards was far ahead in Davis and Salt Lake counties, and Bruce Hough trailed behind.
Vote tallies showed Maloy with a narrow lead over Edwards, 38% to 36%, while Hough had 26% of the vote total as of late Tuesday. Shortly after 11 p.m., the state said they would not be updating election results until the next day.
“All 13 counties in Congressional District 2 are done reporting for tonight. Results will be updated on our website tomorrow at 5pm,” a social media post from Elections Utah said.
The counties that still had the most outstanding votes as of Tuesday night were some of the largest in the district, according to the New York Times, reporting Associated Press results. Salt Lake County had processed 77% of its ballots, Davis County 82% and Washington County 75%. The remaining votes could tip the balance of the race.
Jason Perry, director of the University of Utah’s Hinckley Institute of Politics, said the race was “lining up between urban vs. rural lines, which many expected.”
“While Edwards and Maloy both campaigned throughout the district, they worked hard on their bases and areas of support. Edwards concentrated on urban and suburban areas while Maloy centered on rural Utah. In the returns we have seen so far, rural Utah has shown up and has the capacity to significantly impact this race which is now too close to call,” he said.
For each of the three candidates, the sped-up special election has been a sprint to the finish line.
Each candidate had less than 100 days from the time Stewart announced his resignation to assemble a campaign, raise money, advance through the GOP convention or signature-gathering processes and make an impression on as many 2nd District voters as possible.
And each has approached the abbreviated campaign cycle in their own way.