About this position
Congressional District 3 (“CD3”) is one of Utah’s four seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Utah has four House representatives who work full-time in Washington, D.C. House members vote on issues like healthcare, taxes, public lands, infrastructure, immigration, and education. Because of this, these federal races can have a significant impact on both Utah and national policy. Federal congressional members also provide a myriad of services for their constituents.
With the recent redistricting of federal house districts to match the terms in Utah’s Proposition 4, starting in 2027, Utah’s CD3 will cover eastern and southern Utah, and also include a central portion of the state, including Provo, Spanish Fork, and much more.
About the Candidates
We strive to give quality information on every candidate on the ballot. Find what qualities the Network of Utah Moderates is looking for in candidates.
Top priorities come from candidates’ official websites. This guide is merely a starting point to help you understand and research candidates yourself. We always encourage reaching out to the candidates directly (email, call, in-person events) to learn more about their issues and experience.
Celeste Maloy, Republican Party
About: Southern Utah native born in Cedar City and lived most of life in Washington County. Current U.S. House Representative for Congressional District 2. Before her election, Ms. Maloy was a public lands and water law attorney, deputy county attorney, and chief legal counsel to Congressman Chris Stewart. In late 2023, Ms. Maloy was elected in a special election to replace her boss.
Top priorities (from campaign messaging and public statements): Border security and immigration enforcement, public lands and local control, protecting religious liberty and the right to bear arms, energy production and rural economic development.
Insights: Ms. Maloy is a traditional conservative, closely aligned with the Republican caucus. She has strong ties to Utah’s legal and public lands communities. Supporters describe her as pragmatic, policy-focused, and institutionally minded—things we appreciate.
However, we are deeply concerned about her strong support for the current administration. She enthusiastically voted for legislation like the One Big Beautiful Bill that significantly increased our budget deficit through tax cuts on the wealthy. To our knowledge, Ms. Maloy has not spoken out against the War in Iran, attacks on freedom of the press, the president impounding money appropriated by Congress, violations of due process in ICE detentions, or any other Constitutional violations. She seems to favor developer interests over the public interest, including supporting the recent decision by the current administration to shrink the Bear’s Ears National Monument and Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument by roughly 90% each, opening that land to mining, industrial development, and mineral extraction (a clear majority of Utahns oppose this decision).
Kent Udell, Democratic Party
About: Born in Lehi and current Moab resident. Worked as both a professor and mechanical engineer, teaching at both Berkeley and the University of Utah. Worked with energy industries including solar, geothermal, mining, and petroleum, and also on water issues and environmental remediation. Served with federal agencies such as the EPA, Navy and Dept. of Defense, and the National Science Foundation.
Top priorities (from campaign messaging and public statements): defending the Constitution and rule of law; stewardship of public lands, responsible water use, humane immigration reform, commonsense gun policies, a moratorium on new data centers, AI regulation, affordable housing and healthcare, ethics and accountability, energy policy rooted in economics, innovation, and science
Insights: We believe Mr. Udell should have considerable appeal for voters on both sides of the aisle and across his district. He’s lived in both urban and rural areas of the state (currently on a ten acre property near Moab). He owns a gun and is in favor of reasonable gun safety measures.
We seldom see anyone with as deep technical experience in Congress. As an educator and engineer, Mr. Udell brings broad experience dealing with water and energy issues that are critical right now in Utah and around our nation. He created and taught a course on engineering ethics. He hasn’t accepted any corporate political donations, (which can’t be said of Ms. Maloy). In fact, 75% of his campaign donations are from voters giving $200 or less. He supports investigating and charging those whose names are in the Epstein files. We particularly appreciate his community involvement: his campaign joined a number of service projects for communities within the CD3, such a Navajo back-to-school supply drive, a community weeding and trash removal project in Roosevelt, and cleaning up after flooding in Beaver.
Other Candidates:
Cassie Easley, Constitution Party: Wants to limit government overreach and get back to the government only exercising powers enumerated in the Constitution. Describes herself as a Christian who has lived in rural Utah for over 20 years. Currently a student at SUU. Strong supporter of the 2nd amendment. We
Adonis Hooslyn, unaffiliated: Born and raised in Ogden, After school in Florida and work in California, he moved back to Utah in 2021. 28 years-old; emphasizes working-class roots. Supports Medicare for all, affordability, ending censorship and corruption, protecting jobs while regulating AI.
Ayden Scott, unaffiliated: Grew up in Northern Utah; studied at UVU while working as a firefighter paramedic. Priorities include home ownership, cost of living, rural area support, and small business growth, well–funded military, pro-life policies, balanced budget, free market healthcare solutions.
Michael Stoddard, Libertarian Party: Born in Montana, has lived in Utah since coming to study at BYU. CPA who is committed to accountable and transparent government spending. Wants to restore the militia, end health insurance tied to employment, and federal monopoly on money. Has been involved in audits of entities in Wasatch and Utah Counties.
Our Recommendation:
We recommend Kent Udell as the best candidate to represent Utah in the CD3 race. Like Ms. Maloy, Mr. Udell brings deep roots and experience in rural Utah, much of the area he would be representing. He also seems more responsive to constituent concerns about ethics reform and accountability, protecting public lands, pursuing an all-of-the-above energy policy, data centers, and more.
Moreover, we believe Mr. Udell brings the determination to protect Congressional prerogatives relative to the executive branch of government, which we have found Ms. Maloy reluctant to do. Watch their debate for yourself to see if you agree.