Utah Congressional District 1 Debate

PBS Utah and the Utah Debate Commission are excited to announce the highly anticipated debate between candidates* in Congressional District 1, featuring Ben McAdams (D) and Riley Owen (R). The debate will take place on September 29 at 6:00 p.m. at Salt Lake Community College and will be moderated by Natalie Gochnour, director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute. This debate will be available to stream on the Utah Debate Commission’s YouTube channel and broadcast on PBS Utah at the same time. 

The 2026 Debate for Congressional District 1 is presented by the Utah Debate Commission in partnership with PBS Utah. The Utah Chamber is proud to serve as a supporting organization for the CD1 debate, helping promote the event and encourage engagement from Utah’s business community.

Moderator: Natalie Gochnour, Director of the Kem C. Gardner Policy Institute 

Candidate Participants:

• Ben McAdams (D)
• Riley Owen (R)

*The Utah Debate Commission uses independent polling to determine which candidates qualify to participate in its debates. Candidates must receive at least 10% support in the Commission’s poll to qualify. The poll is conducted by an independent research firm using voter registration data from the Lieutenant Governor’s Office. The threshold is intended to ensure debates include candidates who have demonstrated a meaningful level of voter support while maintaining a manageable debate format.