Newcomer Liban Mohamed wins a rowdy Utah Democratic convention

A hot competition for Utah’s blue 1st Congressional District brought out not only a crowd of candidates vying for the Democratic nomination, but also a hint of what felt more like Republicans’ rowdy energy during Democrats’ state convention. 

Amid controversy over allegations of two candidates’ past problematic behavior, nominees’ speeches were briefly interrupted by a heckler and some boos, a change from what are otherwise short and sweet party conventions for Utah Democrats. 

SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX

Newcomer Liban Mohamed, a 27-year-old Salt Lake City resident, ended up winning 51% of delegates’ votes in the CD1 race, the most coveted ticket of the day. That’s according to preliminary results of a ranked-choice election after a lengthy voting process on Saturday. Former Utah Rep. Ben McAdams, the last Democrat to represent Utah in Congress, narrowly followed with about 49% of votes.

“It’s just the beginning,” Mohamed told reporters after the results were unveiled Saturday night. “The support is growing as people get to know us. What we’re about, the campaign that we’re running, the positivity that we seek to put out into our community, the fact that we’re focused on tangible outcomes for our communities and not headlines.”

Earlier that day, Mohamed announced that Minnesota Rep. Ilhan Omar had endorsed him, joining other high-profile endorsements from Utah House minority leader, Rep. Angela Romero.

But, the race for Democrats’ support is far from over. Mohamed will still have to face McAdams, state Sen. Nate Blouin and Michael Ferrell, who all gathered signatures and will appear on the June primary ballot. It’s one of the biggest races for Utah Democrats in years after a yearslong legal battle in an anti-gerrimandering lawsuit resulted in a map with a compact CD1 encompassing northern Salt Lake County, a blue dot in deep red Utah.

After the results were posted, McAdams said he was happy and looking forward to moving on to the next phase of his campaign.

“That’s the thing about primary elections. They bring out good candidates,” McAdams said. “But, we made the case that I have a track record of delivering, of actually delivering results. And I think that really resonated with the delegates.”

CD1 pitches

Thousands of delegates and the most influential Democrats in the state gathered in the auditorium at Jordan High School in Sandy to make their choice on candidates for congressional offices and contested Utah Legislature seats.

With recent news of the Department of Homeland Security’s purchase of a Salt Lake City warehouse with intentions to turn it into a detention center, immigration issues fired up Democratic leaders the most during the convention. However, the specific facility wasn’t mentioned in many of the candidates’ speeches.

As McAdams spoke in favor of Democrats standing together and fighting against Republicans and not each other, a heckler interrupted his allotted three-minute speech yelling, “you’re a liar.” However, that person was quickly escorted out of the auditorium.

During his speech McAdams directed delegates to think about people who weren’t in the room when casting their votes, while showing off his track record as a former congressman. 

“They cannot afford for us to get this wrong, because being progressive has to be making progress to pass a law, not just promise one,” he said. “I know because I’ve done it.”

Some delegates booed embattled candidates Blouin and Eva Lopez Chavez as they made their way onstage. Lopez Chavez didn’t address the allegations from multiple people who accused her of unwanted sexual advances and brought her family in her support.

“I’m Eva Lopez Chavez. I am the proud granddaughter of Graciela Corona and I’m asking you to vote for the future of this party, a future where Latino families like mine can belong and to be the next member of Congress,” she said. “Memorize these faces, these smiles and wrinkles, because they depend on you.”

She ended up only gathering 13 votes out of 699 ballots and was disqualified on the first round of voting.

Blouin did reference the hit his campaign took since Punchbowl News revealed comments he posted on online forums between 2009 and 2015 making jokes about sexual assault, using slurs and denigrating The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Utah’s predominant religion, and its members. He came in third place in the Saturday race, meaning the signatures he gathered will put him on the ballot.

“I was humbled last week. Reckoning with your past mistakes is an important part of life. It hurts. It can make you feel physically ill, but it also makes you stronger, and today, I am stronger. We are stronger,” Blouin said. “That’s why I’m here, because we built a campaign that can weather the storm, and that makes some people nervous, the people who keep selling us the same bill of goods.”

While those campaigns have received much attention from voters, Mohamed’s speech drew the most cheers, as he walked onstage alongside Utah House Minority Leader Angela Romero. Mohamed is new to Utah politics, having most recently worked on tech companies’ public policy teams.

“I’m grateful for these leaders right here, who carried the weight when it was heavy, who walked the path when it was uncertain, who made it so somebody like myself can look at each and every one of you guys in this beautiful, massive crowd and say with confidence that I too belong in this race,” Mohamed said. 

Mohamed’s January announcement that he was running for Congress swiftly drew hateful comments online focused on his race and religion.  

Ferrell focused on the standards “that Utahns deserve” with new representation in Congress. 

“This is the time to build something new, something exciting, something that is worth fighting for. Because what is the point of voting for someone who’s going to go in there and do nothing for two years? We need someone who’s going to go in there and be a fighter,” he said.

And, Luis Villareal, like Lopez Chavez, won’t appear on the ballot since he didn’t gather enough signatures to qualify. He pitched fighting against economic inequities, and for an immigration system that expands the workforce with more legal immigration pathways.

SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE