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Good morning, my little patriots! I hope you have a good coat:

🌨️ 29 – 37° in Logan | ❄️ 80% chance

🌨️ 32 – 42° in Salt Lake City | ❄️ 80% chance

🌧️ 39 – 49° in St. George | 💧 70% chance

The energy in a newsroom is always exciting on election night! We ordered pizza, fought over which news channel to watch and buckled up for a crazy ride.

Growing up, my family had an election night tradition of getting a nice dinner and watching the results roll at one of the big hotel ballrooms in downtown Salt Lake.

Tell me: Do you have an election night tradition? Whether it’s making predictions, having a watch party or just doom scrolling, I’d love to hear what you do!

Now get ready for an election result round-up.

Also on our minds: Trump and DeSantis’ relationship looks strained, whether abortion or inflation got voters to the polls and the “red wave” was more of a puddle.

Sen. Mike Lee wins one of the most competitive Senate races Utah has seen in decades

In one of the tightest races Utah has seen in decades — and one of the strangest this election — Sen. Mike Lee prevailed over contender Evan McMullin. While McMullin managed to pull together a coalition of Republicans, Democrats and independents, Lee managed to appeal to his conservative GOP base, receiving 55% of the vote as of Tuesday night.

McMullin conceded just before 11 p.m. saying, “Our cross-partisan coalition has filled me with hope. I’m so proud of the movement we’ve built together — and I’m forever grateful for your support.”

In Lee’s acceptance speech, he said, “Utah has spoken loudly and clearly that the policies of the Democratic Party have failed us, failed us to the point that red states are having none of it. And tonight blue states don’t want much of it either.”

Read the full story here.

The red wave that became a red ripple

The projected "red wave" didn't wash over the country as expected, which could hurt former President Donald Trump's chances if he does launch a reelection bid. The former president handpicked some of the GOP candidates on the ballot this election and they underperformed. This gives weight to Mitch McConnell's concern that the Republicans have a “candidate quality” problem.

Where did things go south? Read more here.

Other election results:

Here's what you need to know about Utah's early election results (KSL)
Utah's 4 Republicans easily keep their House seats (Deseret News)
Georgia governor’s race: Who won the repeat of 2018? (Deseret News)
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and Sen. Marco Rubio clinch victory (Deseret News)
Republican Kari Lake trails in Arizona governor’s race (Deseret News)
Full Election Day results from Utah’s 2022 midterms (KUER)

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Election Analysis:

Perspective: Inflation versus abortion — which won? (Deseret News)
I was a mail ballot judge: This is how it worked (Deseret News)
What we learned from the Mike Lee-Evan McMullin race in Utah (Deseret News)

Election Night Stories:

Are Trump and DeSantis starting to feud? (Deseret News)
Trump speaks out on voting machine issues in Arizona county (Deseret News)
Pennsylvania Senate: Fetterman files federal lawsuit to count misdated mail-in ballots (Deseret News)

Perspective:

Opinion: Powerball, the ultimate government fraud (Deseret News)

Faith:

How political engagement can go wrong for people of faith (Deseret News)
Who were the Latter-day Saints on the ballot for Congress from Utah and beyond? (Deseret News)
Elder and Sister Holland promise Ukrainian refugees in Germany: ‘Things are going to be all right’ (Church News)

Technology:

Here’s what Gov. Cox hopes to accomplish with Utah’s 1st annual ‘Week of Stem’ (KSL)
Ryan and Ashley Smith boost Primary Children’s cancer efforts with $20 million donation (Deseret News)

Wasatch Front:

Millcreek Canyon temporary closed as part of ongoing wildfire mitigation project (KSL)
Utah business owner pays off West Jordan school's lunch credit (KSL)
Salt Lake City officers shoot man after mental health outreach team requests police backup (Salt Lake Tribune)

Southern Utah:

No crimes were committed by those in viral blackface video, Cedar City police conclude (KSL)

The West:

Most charitable state in the U.S. revealed (Deseret News)
Social media campaign highlights Indigenous names of popular Utah locations (KSL)

Sports:

Could F1 racing’s return to Las Vegas be 2023’s biggest, and most expensive, global sporting event? (Deseret News)
What is Utah’s plan for backup quarterback Nate Johnson? Will Utes burn his redshirt? (Deseret News)
Brett Favre is getting bad press — again. Here’s what happened (Deseret News)

Thanks for reading Utah Today! If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, we’d love to hear them — just reply to this email or reply to newsletters@deseretnews.com. 🐝

— Kathleen