SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4) — November 4 is Election Day, and while there aren’t any statewide elections in Utah this year, there are plenty of local elections that are worth paying attention to. Here are the highest-profile city elections for 2025.
Provo is one of the largest cities in the state, and it is also the county seat of Utah County. The Provo area is the second-largest metropolitan area in the state, after Salt Lake City. Provo is also the home of Brigham Young University, one of the state’s major educational institutions.
Mayors in Provo serve four-year terms, and so whoever wins this election will run this major city for the next four years. This race has also gotten a bit nasty, with one candidate accusing the other of spreading misinformation to discredit her, so it will be interesting to see how that affects the results, if at all.
Two candidates are running for mayor of Provo: incumbent Michelle Kaufusi, who has been the mayor of Provo since 2017, and Marsha Judkins, who has previously served on the Provo City School Board and in the Utah House of Representatives.
Marsha judkins, courtesy of provo cityMichelle kaufusi, courtesy of provo city
Kaufusi’s campaign is focused on her established reputation as the current mayor, and her campaign website boasts that she will build on Provo’s “strong foundation.” It states that Provo is a successful city and a desirable one to live in, citing “strong leadership, careful planning, and a shared vision” from Kaufusi’s time as mayor.
Her guiding principles, according to her campaign website, are keeping taxes low to maintain fiscal responsibility and manage growth, revitalize East Bay and Provo Towne Center to transform underused areas, preserve open space and refresh neighborhood parks, and invest in infrastructure.
Judkins’ campaign is focused on giving Provo “a fresh vision,” according to her campaign website. Her website states that she will bring “openness, transparency, strong leadership, fiscal responsibility, and a wealth of experience” to the role of mayor.
Judkins also has a fact-checker section on her website, where she accuses Kaufusi and her campaign team of misrepresenting her record in the state legislature by spreading flyers. In that section, Judkins highlights her belief in transparency and her belief that it should start with the mayor’s office.
Ogden Valley City is the newest city in the state, so this election will fill all the spots on the city council, including the mayor. It’s a historic election, and a busy one, with six races. Ogden Valley will officially have its own power of governance on January 1, 2026. The city is broken up into five districts, so there will be five members of the city council.
In the future, the terms for all the city council members will be four years, but to avoid having to have elections for the entire city council each election cycle, some of these initial terms will be only two years. The city council seats for districts 1, 3, and 5 will be for terms of two years, and they will then transition to four-year terms in future election cycles.
Districts of Ogden Valley, courtesy of Ogden Valley Incorporated
The mayor will also serve a four-year term. There are two candidates for mayor of Ogden Valley: Janet Wampler and Shanna Francis. Douglas James Dickson is also running as a write-in candidate. You can find Janet Wampler’s campaign website here, where she states that she was a founding member of the transition team preparing Ogden Valley for cityhood. You can learn more about Shanna Francis on her campaign website. Francis was a professor at Weber State University and has worked in community development.
This election in Kearns is for its first mayor since Kearns was incorporated as a city in May 2024, so it will be history in the making. Kearns is located in Salt Lake County, and it began as Kearns Army Air Base during World War Two, turning into a town after the war. Two candidates are running for Kearns mayor: Tina Snow and Jesse Valdez.
Tina Snow was involved in transitioning Kearns from a township governance to an incorporated city, and she is a former small business owner, operating a local daycare in Kearns. “I am proud to be a part of the Kearns community and developing autonomy,” her website reads. According to her campaign website, she is focused on issues of education investment, thoughtful growth and revitalization, sustainable infrastructure, and safer neighborhoods.
Jesse Valdez is a Kearns native and a former photojournalist at ABC4. He currently works with the Utah Department of Corrections. He highlights a history of “telling Utah stories” and public service on his campaign website. He is focused on city development and infrastructure, community engagement, public services and safety, and government transparency.
You can learn more about the 2025 election in Kearns on the city website.
Hurricane Mayor
The Hurricane mayoral race is another one that has gotten heated, with accusations of election interference flying, and a formal request for an investigation from the Utah Attorney General’s Office.
Current Hurricane Mayor and incumbent candidate Nanette Billings was accused of stealing signs placed by candidate Gary Sanders that read simply, “Hurricane deserves better.” Another candidate, Rick Crow, filed a request for an investigation into potential election interference, but the Attorney General’s Office found that Billings did nothing illegal, as Utah law states that political signs need to be associated with a candidate or ballot initiative.
The four candidates are Nanette Billings (incumbent), Rick Crow, Gary Sanders, and Clark Fawcett. Billings has served as mayor of Hurricane since 2021, and she wants to preserve the “small-town charm” of Hurricane. You can learn more about her on her campaign website.
Crow did not submit a bio to the city when he became a candidate, but he listed himself as retired in his Conflict of Interest Statement. He does not appear to have a campaign website, but you can learn more about him in an interview he did on the 435 Podcast.
Fawcett is a self-described lifelong resident of Hurricane, and he has worked for the city as the City Manager for over 37 years. He is also currently serving on the city council. He doesn’t appear to have a campaign website, but you can learn more about him in an interview he did on the 435 Podcast.
Eagle Mountain is a newer city in Utah, being incorporated as a city in December 1996. The city has grown rapidly since its founding, making it a hotbed for development, so this race is important to watch from an economic and business standpoint.
The current mayor of Eagle Mountain, Tom Westmoreland, ran for re-election in the primary in August, but he did not advance to the general election, which makes this race even more interesting.
The two candidates in the general election are both currently serving as city council members. Melissa Clark is also the CEO of the Eagle Mountain Chamber of Commerce, and she is focused on “transparent, accountable, experienced leadership,” according to her profile. She also touts a focus on smart economic growth and writes, “I know how vital a strong local economy is to our future.” You can learn more about Clark on her campaign website.
Jared Gray is an excavator in addition to serving on the city council, and he is focused on “responsibly managing growth, reducing traffic, and building much-needed infrastructure,” according to his profile. “I’m ready to lead with grit, common sense, and heart,” he writes. You can learn more about Gray on his campaign website.
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