It’s been less than two days since Utah got a new congressional map with one left-leaning district. And that district already has its first candidate: state Sen. Kathleen Riebe.
Riebe is the first Democrat to officially enter the race for the redrawn 1st Congressional District. She made the announcement via email Nov. 12.
“We have a lot of really strong feelings about progressive ideas, and we're a hard-working community,” she told KUER of the district, which encompasses much of Salt Lake County.
“I have two kids, one kid in college, one student staying at home right now, and it's hard, and I fear for them with what's happening and their ability to get ahead. And I think a lot of people in Salt Lake County are feeling that right now.”
The opening comes after Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson ruled Nov. 10 that a lawmaker-drawn congressional map did not comply with Proposition 4, which bans partisan gerrymandering. Gibson ultimately chose a map drawn by the plaintiffs in the case, which creates the Democrat-leaning district.
A teacher by profession, Riebe has served in the Utah Senate since 2019, representing Cottonwood Heights, Midvale, Sandy and parts of West Jordan. She is the current minority caucus manager and also ran for Congress in 2023, when she challenged Rep. Celeste Maloy in a special election to replace retiring Republican Rep. Chris Stewart. Ultimately, she was defeated by Maloy that November.
While news of a winnable district for Democrats is fresh, Riebe said she’d been contemplating a second congressional run since August, when Judge Gibson tossed out the 2021 congressional map.
She expects this campaign to be “a whole different race” compared to her 2023 attempt in a heavily Republican district, though she did learn from that run.
“It was really interesting to go into very, very red areas and have to kind of plead your case as a Democrat,” she said. “I think when you're genuine and personal and authentic, it comes through. I try really hard to not just say what people want to hear, but say what I believe.”
When it comes to her priorities, highlighting the struggles of working Utahns and the growing affordability crisis will be the centerpieces of her campaign.
“I think that people really are struggling with the raising of tariffs and taxes and prices,” she said. “When I look at this district, I can relate to them, because that's what I'm concerned about.”
Riebe also took a shot at congressional Democrats in her campaign announcement, saying she was frustrated they made a deal to end the shutdown that did not extend health care subsidies many working families rely on.
Riebe is the first Democrat to announce her run, but she’s likely to be followed by several more.
With the district heavily favoring Democrats, director of the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service Leah Murray explained that it will come down to which candidate has the best message. What that message is, however, is too early to tell.
“I would expect candidate quality to go up,” she said. “I would expect really good politicians to be like, ‘This is now worth running for, because I actually have a shot of winning,’ which I do think makes the Democratic side of the house, maybe more competitive.”
If a Democrat is successful, they would likely be the only one in Utah’s federal delegation.
Riebe said her experience in the Legislature working with a Republican supermajority makes her uniquely qualified.
“There's a lot of policies that I've tried to change with my name on it that would change the next year with somebody else's name on it,” she said of her time in Utah’s statehouse. “And I'm OK with that. I'm OK with working behind the scenes, doing the hard work for people to get that message out there.”
In fact, she sees disagreement in the caucus as a win for Utah overall.
“People pay attention more [when it’s divided] and I think it causes everybody to work a little harder.”
