Heidi Balderree wins the special election to replace Sen. Jake Anderegg

In spite of the rain and the somewhat cramped quarters of a junior high school, 129 Republican state delegates — 83% of the total number — showed up to select the next senator for Utah Senate District 22. Several hundred more came to support or observe the special election.

After a half-hour of instruction and adopting the rules governing the special election, and nearly an hour’s worth of speeches from 13 candidates (4 minutes each), delegates finally cast their votes in the first round of balloting.

It would eventually take six rounds before Heidi Balderree was announced as the winner.

While votes were being counted, Senate President Stuart Adams was invited to address the audience members. Several candidates had given speeches lashing out at Senate leadership and the “Utah political establishment.”

Adams used his time to praise Sen. Jake Anderegg, who is resigning effective Oct. 15, then pivoted to Utah’s standing as the No. 1 economy in the nation. He also noted that earlier this evening, he was standing on the steps of the Utah Capitol to show support for Israel. “I hope you are praying,” he told the crowd, “and that you stand with Israel, too.”

After the first round of results were announced, 10 candidates moved on to the second round and gave one-minute speeches. Each subsequent round of speeches clocked in at just 30 seconds each. Between rounds 4 and 5, Balderree’s speech was simple: “You want to see effective? Vote for me and we can all go home.”

Finally, at 11:10 p.m., after six rounds of balloting, Balderree was declared the winner, with 55% of the delegate vote. Out of the 13 candidates, she is the only one who doesn’t live in Lehi — she lives in Saratoga Springs.

When she was asked, “You’ve just won the special election! What are you going to do next?” right after her win, she responded: “I’m going to Cornbelly’s!”

After her post-election trip to Cornbelly’s, a local corn maze, Balderree says she is ready to hit the ground running. She has two pieces of legislation she is interested in running. First, legislation to prevent central bank digital currency and second, legislation that will “protect and harden” our energy grid.

Balderree will resign from her current role as community engagement director for Americans for Prosperity-Utah effective Friday, Oct. 13. She will be sworn in after Anderegg’s resignation is official on Oct. 15.

Holly Richardson is the editor of Utah Policy.