SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — According to unofficial preliminary results from the Associated Press and the Lt. Governor’s Office, Utah Republican voters appear to have chosen to send incumbent Gov. Spencer Cox to the general election in November.
Officials results from the election’s canvassing will not be available until July 22.
Gov. Spencer Cox appears to be continuing his fight for a second term in office after outperforming primary challenger Dist. 69 State Rep. Phil Lyman, despite losing the Republican nomination to him in April. Cox won his first term in the 2020 election with around 63% of the vote, defeating Democratic challenger Chris Peterson.
Cox will advance to face the following candidates in the Nov. 5 general election:
- Democratic: Brian Smith King
- Libertarian: J. Robert Latham
- Independent American: Tommy Williams
- Unaffiliated: Tom Tomeny
Fairview native Cox originally served as a state representative and Utah’s lieutenant governor starting in 2013, following the resignation of former Lt. Gov. Greg Bell. After serving as former Gov. Gary Herbert’s running mate in the 2016 election, Cox secured the 2020 Republican nomination, eventually becoming Utah’s 18th governor.
In May 2014, Lyman faced controversy as part of a protest in Recapture Canyon. The area under protest was closed to motor traffic by the Bureau of Land Management to protect cultural artifacts. Lyman and supporters drove ATVs through the area and were arrested. While Lyman and his supporters viewed the act as one of civil disobedience, he was eventually convicted.
In December 2020, former U.S. President Donald Trump granted clemency to Lyman, erasing his conviction.
