Another Utah Democrat has entered the race for the state’s new 1st Congressional District — former state Sen. Derek Kitchen.
He said he saw an opportunity he couldn’t pass up after a Utah judge gave the state a new congressional map with one left-leaning district, one where Kitchen has spent nearly his whole life.
“I realized, wow, these are my people, this is my family, these are my friends, these are my associates and my colleagues,” he told KUER. “I felt this deep calling in my belly to jump in this race, and I'm so excited to throw my hat in the ring and earn the support of the people of congressional district one.”
Earlier in November, Third District Court Judge Dianna Gibson ruled that a lawmaker-drawn map did not comply with the state’s ban on partisan gerrymandering, known as Proposition 4. Instead, Gibson chose a map that centered the 1st Congressional District on Salt Lake County.
Kitchen is the owner of Laziz, a restaurant in Salt Lake City, and was the plaintiff in a 2013 case that helped pave the way for marriage equality in Utah. He first entered politics in 2016 as a member of the Salt Lake City Council before serving one term in the Utah Senate from 2019-2023. After leaving office, he was senior vice president at the Export-Import Bank of the United States under the Biden administration, a position he held until January of this year.
He joins a growing field that already includes state Sen. Kathleen Riebe and former congressman Ben McAdams. The newly redrawn district is a rare chance to flip one of Utah’s four congressional districts. Traditionally, Democrats who have made it to Congress from Utah have come from the more moderate wing of the party, with McAdams chief among them. He was the last Democrat to hold federal office and is widely seen as a more centrist candidate.
For Kitchen, he said voters in the new 1st District deserve a “strong progressive voice” representing them in Congress.
“At the end of the day, we can either send someone to Congress who's spent their career playing it safe and running to the middle and avoiding tough conversations, or the Democratic voters have an opportunity to select someone who's built their entire career fighting for justice, fighting for equality, and standing up even when it's not popular,” he said.
Voter concerns today aren’t what they were five or 10 years ago, he said. Kitchen plans to champion issues like the environment, reproductive freedom and health care on the campaign trail and positioned himself as someone who is in tune with a district that is “growing and changing very quickly.”
The Democratic primary for this seat could get crowded. Kitchen is the third candidate to declare for the race and could likely be followed by several more as the January candidate filing window approaches, something director of the Olene S. Walker Institute of Politics & Public Service Leah Murray thinks makes this race a lot less predictable than past Democratic primaries for contested seats.
“I'm not sure that we know yet what the winning profile is of the Democrat who comes out of that crowded seat,” she said. “I'm 100% sure it's competitive.”
For Kitchen, he’s confident his record of activism and public service can propel him to victory.
“I've touched every branch of government,” he said. “I think my experience sets me apart from my opponents pretty clearly.”
