Riley Owen, a 27-year-old conservative, has been chosen as the Republican nominee for Utah's newly created 1st Congressional District, after winning 71.2% of delegates' vote at the state GOP convention. His opponents, Dave Robinson and Stone Fonua, failed to qualify for the primary and Owen will automatically advance to the general election in November. The 1st District covers the northern two-thirds of Salt Lake County and leans Democrat. Despite this, delegates and candidates were optimistic that voters would consider policy over party affiliation during their upcoming congressional elections. Owen has been endorsed by Utah Attorney General Derek Brown and President Donald Trump’s former national security adviser, Robert O’Brien.