Utah Incumbents Concede 3 Primaries as 2 Davis County Races Stay Within 1%

Q: With thousands of ballots left to count, could Utah's closest local races see their results completely overturned?

Yes. In Utah’s closest local primaries, the remaining ballots are large enough to change the leaders. The clearest examples are in Davis County, where about 6,000 ballots were still awaiting tabulation as of Wednesday. In the County Commission Seat B race, incumbent Lorene Kamalu led Susan Lee by just 42 votes. In the sheriff’s race, Jon Atkin’s lead over Aaron Perry was 237 votes. Those margins are far smaller than the number of ballots still outstanding, so either race could still flip depending on how the remaining ballots break. Weber County also had roughly 4,700 ballots left to count, though several candidates there had already conceded because their deficits were much larger. Concessions do not make results final; Utah results remain unofficial until canvassing and certification. Utah’s counting process also leaves room for late movement beyond the next batch of routine ballots. Counties still must process provisional ballots, resolve signature issues through the cure process, and count eligible military and overseas ballots that arrive within the legal window. Election officials have said very close races can and sometimes do change during that post-election period. If the final margin is extremely small, a recount is also possible under Utah law. So while many races appear settled, the tightest local contests in Davis County are still genuinely in play and could be overturned before certification.

3 articles · Updated · Standard-Examiner · Jun 24

Three incumbents conceded after Tuesday’s Utah primary, including Senate President Stuart Adams, who trailed Stephanie Hollist 43.32% to 34.57%; Weber County Commissioner Sharon Bolos and Rep. Trevor Lee also acknowledged defeat.
The unresolved action centered on Davis County, where Commission Seat B was separated by 42 votes—Lorene Kamalu at 50.06% and Susan Lee at 49.94%—and the sheriff race by 237 votes, with Jon Atkin leading Aaron Perry 50.32% to 49.68%.
About 6,000 Davis County ballots and roughly 4,700 Weber County ballots still awaited counting Wednesday, with updated totals expected before 5 p.m. in Davis and later in the afternoon in Weber.
Elsewhere, Duane Kearsley led Weber County Commission Seat A with 30.13% in a four-way race, while Tami Tran, John Taylor and Lili Bitner posted clear legislative primary leads and several trailing candidates publicly conceded.
The results also pointed to broader Republican primary turnover in northern Utah, with Blake Moore and Celeste Maloy projected to win their congressional primaries as local contests reshaped county and legislative slates.