Utah Legislature Faces Leadership Elections After Turnover

Republican and Democratic caucuses will pick new leaders in November as midterm results and a Senate ouster reshape both chambers.

Updated on Nov. 6, 2026 in Legislative Policy

Bold flat-color editorial illustration of a domed state capitol silhouette above a desert horizon, deep navy and cream with a muted red accent. — Utah's Republican and Democratic caucuses will elect new leaders on November 6 and 16 after midterm results and the June ouster of Senate Republican Stuart Adams reshaped both chambers. AI Illustration. Upload story photo >

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Utah's House and Senate Republicans will hold leadership elections on November 6, and Democrats will hold theirs November 16, after midterm results and scandal-driven turnover. Democrats are poised to break the GOP supermajority in the Utah House for the first time since the late 1990s.

Why it matters

Stuart Adams was ousted in June's Republican primary following scandal over his role in the Box Elder data center, and Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore trails Democratic challenger Shana Anderson. Shifts in caucus leadership will determine who sets priorities when the 2027 session begins.

Democrats are positioned to break the Utah House GOP supermajority for the first time since the late 1990s, and the House Democratic caucus could more than double in size. Final results and leadership outcomes remain unresolved.

The players

Kirk Cullimore

Utah Senate Majority Leader who is trailing Democratic challenger Shana Anderson in the midterm election.

Shana Anderson

Democratic challenger leading Senate Majority Leader Kirk Cullimore in the midterm election.

Kathleen Riebe

Utah state senator who has held her seat since 2019 and was removed from the Senate Democratic caucus.

The details

Senate Democrats removed Minority Caucus Manager Kathleen Riebe from the caucus after an independent investigation found a pattern of conduct likely motivated by race, national origin, or ethnicity. Several Republican incumbents, including Jim Dunnigan, Ken Ivory, Steve Eliason and Norm Thurston, are poised to lose seats to Democrats, while Jordan Teuscher trails Democrat Jess Birtcher in a southern Salt Lake County district.

June 2026: Stuart Adams ousted in Republican primary.
Friday, Nov. 6, 2026: Scheduled House and Senate GOP leadership elections.
Nov. 16, 2026: Scheduled Democratic leadership elections.
January 19, 2027: 2027 Utah Legislative Session begins.

Political Context

Democrats breaking the GOP supermajority would mark the first such shift in the Utah House since the late 1990s. The outcome would reverse decades of Republican control in one of the state's most powerful chambers.

Leadership changes will shape which bills advance and how committees are staffed when the 2027 session opens. Utahns following these races should watch the November leadership votes for the new chamber priorities.

The takeaway

Party control of Utah's legislature may shift in ways that reshape policy agendas for years. Readers should track the November leadership votes for early signals of the coming session's direction.

What happens next

Scheduled Republican leadership elections are set for November 6, Democratic leadership elections for November 16, and the 2027 Utah Legislative Session begins January 19, 2027.