Ben McAdams, a Democrat, is running for the U.S. House of Representatives in Utah's 1st Congressional District. The general election is Nov. 3, 2026. Other candidates are Riley Owen (Republican), Elias Henry Montgomery (Independent) and Jesse West (Libertarian), according to BallotReady election data.

Asked why he is running, McAdams said in our candidate questionnaire: "I'm running because the ladder I climbed is being pulled up behind me. My mom raised six kids on a teacher's salary in West Bountiful. Some months the power got shut off, and I started working at 11 to help."

He added: "Today, a family in Salt Lake County needs about $187,000 a year to qualify for the median home. … Those costs came from choices made in Washington, and Utah families are picking up the tab."

Candidate information

Party: Democrat

Family: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "My wife, Julie, and I live in Salt Lake City with our four kids. … I'm a seventh-generation Utahn."

Born: Dec. 5, 1974, in West Bountiful, Utah, according to Wikipedia.

Education: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "Weber State University, Associate's Degree (Sept.–Dec. 1993 and Jan.–April 1996) University of Utah, Bachelor's Degree, January 1997–May 2000 Columbia Law School, Juris Doctor (J.D.), August 2000–May 2003"

Experience and public service

McAdams has held elected office at the state, county and federal levels, and his questionnaire responses describe a career spanning law, government and policy work. He said in our questionnaire: "Before that, I was U.S. Representative for Utah's 4th District, Salt Lake County Mayor, a Utah State Senator, senior adviser to Salt Lake City Mayor Ralph Becker, and an attorney."

Asked about accomplishments, he said: "I led the fight that killed SkiLink and protected the Central Wasatch watershed, and I worked with Republicans to pass LGBTQ+ nondiscrimination and consumer protections." He added: "As Salt Lake County Mayor, I built the coalition behind Targeted Adult Medicaid, which ended a nearly year-long waitlist for addiction treatment and became the model for Utah's Medicaid expansion."

He also said: "In Congress, my VA High Altitude and Suicide Research Act became law, and my oil and gas lease reform was folded into the Inflation Reduction Act."

On the issues

Top priority: McAdams identified "the high cost of living" as his top priority. He said in our questionnaire: "I've pledged that my first three bills will go after those costs. On housing, I'll introduce or support legislation that gives renters relief now, opens a path to ownership for first-time buyers on an average salary, and limits hedge funds buying single-family homes. … On health care, I'll restore the ACA premium tax credits and the Medicaid and SNAP funding Congress cut. On corruption, I'll sign onto the bill banning members of Congress from trading individual stocks."

Health care: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "A Utah family of four went from paying $99 a month for coverage to $415." He added: "Expand Medicare drug price negotiation to more drugs, and cap insulin at $35 for everyone, including people with private insurance."

Environment: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "I will fight to protect Utah's public lands, defend Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante, restore the Great Salt Lake, advance lasting protections for the Wasatch, and work to pass America's Red Rock Wilderness Act and the Central Wasatch National Conservation and Recreation Area Act."

Immigration: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "Congress should rebuild the system. That means securing the border, creating legal pathways that don't take decades, giving every asylum seeker a real hearing, granting Dreamers permanent status, and offering an earned path to citizenship for long-term immigrants who work and pay taxes here."

Iran: McAdams said in our questionnaire: "I oppose the war in Iran. The Constitution gives Congress, not the president, the power to take this country to war, and this administration never asked."

Endorsements

McAdams has received the following endorsements:

  • LCV Action Fund (League of Conservation Voters Action Fund), according to the LCV Action Fund
  • Women's Democratic Club of Utah, according to BallotReady
  • Teamsters Local 222 (Salt Lake City), according to BallotReady

Candidate responses were collected through the Surround Sound News candidate questionnaire. All answers are presented in the candidate's own words.