SALT LAKE CITY — Utahns took to the polls Tuesday and passed one of three proposed constitutional amendments, voting the other two down. Voters also re-elected Reps. Rob Bishop, Chris Stewart and Jason Chaffetz back into office.

U.S. 1st District

Six-term Republican incumbent Rob Bishop will return to Washington to carry out his work on crafting a compromise for Utah's public lands after a decisive victory in the 1st Congressional District.

Bishop was leading the midterm general election challenge over Democrat Donna McAleer to represent northern Utah residents, receiving 63 percent of the votes to McAleer's 30 percent, with 84 percent of precincts reporting.

With victories already secured for Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, and Chris Stewart, R-Utah, Bishop cheered his hope for an all-Republican delegation for the state.

"Four of us, together working there, thank for you everything," he said at the Utah GOP party. "We go back to Washington now having a Republican Senate, dealing with an even stronger Republican House. We can guarantee things will actually get done."

Votes are still being tallied, however, due to an election season push for mail-in ballots that was carried out in 10 of Utah's 29 counties, including the 1st District's Davis County.

An estimated 30 percent of Utah's registered voters mailed in ballots before the polls opened Tuesday.

U.S. 2nd District

With more than half the precincts in the expansive 2nd Congressional District reporting, victory has been ceded to Republican incumbent Chris Stewart.

The contest between Stewart, R-Utah, and state Sen. Luz Robles, D-Salt Lake, played out amicably and inexpensively in the shadow of the 4th District race between Republican Mia Love and Democrat Doug Owens.

Stewart had 61 percent of the vote with 50 percent of precincts reporting late Tuesday. Robles had secured 33 percent, falling behind in her bid to reclaim for the Democrats the seat Rep. Jim Matheson held for for 10 years.

Robles conceded shortly after 10 p.m., telling fellow Democrats, "It's a difficult district as we all know."

The freshman congressman brought in more than $700,000 in fundraising throughout his campaign, according to the final pre-election report filed with the Federal Election Commission, far outpacing the $150,000 raised by Robles.

Stewart said throughout the campaign he wants to prioritize national security, combating the nation's debt and preserving state control of public lands.

Stewart was first elected to represent Utah's far-reaching 2nd District in 2012, securing 62 percent of the vote when Matheson vacated the seat to run in the 4th District.

U.S. 3rd District

Republican incumbent Rep. Jason Chaffetz will return to Washington, D.C., for a fourth term representing Utah's 3rd District.

With overwhelming support from voters, Chaffetz reclaimed his seat in Congress after a veteran vs. underdog race against Democratic newcomer Brian Wonnacott, who conceded to Chaffetz just after 10 p.m. Tuesday.

Unaffiliated candidates Ben Mates and Stephen Tryon also ran for the seat, as well as Independent American Party member Zack Strong.

Results as of 11 p.m. Tuesday showed Chaffetz dominating the polls with 72.7 percent of the vote, leaving Wonnacott behind at 22.3 percent.

Early and absentee mail-in voting was estimated to account for about 30 percent of ballots cast in the state, with more people at the polls Tuesday than were expected, according to Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox's office.

"I was never running against the Democrats," Chaffetz said. "I'm just fighting for what I believe in and hoping the voters agree with me. And it appears they have and do."

Wonnacott said he enjoyed running and associating with people who are passionate about Utah issues.

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2014 Election Results

Follow along with the elections results as they're fed in all night.

"What an amazing experience," he said. "I would like to thank my opponent for a well-spirited campaign. In spite of the fact that I've run a very understated campaign, it's been fascinating to see what it means to run for office."

Chaffetz, currently in his third term in Congress, ran on what he calls the "core conservative principles," including fiscal discipline, limited government, accountability and a strong national defense.

Attorney General

Nearly a year after John Swallow resigned under a cloud of suspicion, Utah again has an elected attorney general.

Republican Sean Reyes had no problem holding on to the job the governor handed him last December, with an easy win Tuesday over Democrat Charles Stormont.

Reyes won the right to fill the remaining two years on Swallow's term and faces election again in 2016. Gov. Gary Herbert named Reyes to replace Swallow, who along with his predecessor, Mark Shurtleff, now faces felony public corruption charges.

"It is special in many ways," Reyes said after his victory. "Special in terms of winning tonight, I get to serve two years of my predecessor's term. Then in 2016, when we run again, we'll have four years after that."

Meantime, the man who launched the state investigation that led to the criminal charges against Swallow and Shurtleff also appeared to be holding on to his office Tuesday.

Salt Lake County District Attorney Sim Gill was leading Republican challenger Steve Nelson, the violent felonies prosecution unit chief in Gill's office.

Also in Salt Lake County, Democratic Sheriff Jim Winder won a third term with a victory over Republican Jake Petersen, a 15-year veteran with the Unified Police Department.

"This has been a difficult race in a lot of ways," Winder said, adding police have taken hits in the community, many of which are unfounded. "In law enforcement, you have to hold up personal ethics. I am convinced we have done that."

Amendments to Utah Constitution

Voters will see a change to the Utah Constitution after approving one and denying two proposed amendments Tuesday.

Voters passed Constitutional Amendment B — with 55.7 percent for and 44.4 percent against the measure as of press time — intended to clarify the term of an appointed lieutenant governor in Utah.

The governor and lieutenant governor run together in Utah. Supporters of the amendment saw the need to fix a 2008 constitutional amendment that they say would create a possibility of one running without the other, or the two offices hailing from different political parties.

Without an amendment, supporters of the measure say, an appointed lieutenant governor may not have to run in a special midterm election. The amendment requires the governor and lieutenant governor to run together in the next election following an appointment.

Rep. Jim Nielson, R-Bountiful, who opposed the bill, said Amendment B makes it possible for an appointed lieutenant governor to fill the governor's office without having been elected.

The amendment will go into effect Jan. 1.

As of press time, Constitutional Amendment A had been trailing with 59.5 percent against and 40.5 percent for the measure. Under the proposal, the governor would have been able to appoint State Tax Commission members solely on the basis of their merits, without taking their political affiliation into consideration.

The constitution says that no more than two of the four State Tax Commission members can be from the same political party. It does not lay out any additional qualifications for State Tax Commission members.

Voters denied Amendment C — with 65.6 percent against the measure and 34.4 percent for — which would have allowed Utah's lieutenant governor, auditor and treasurer to hire their own legal counsel, similar to the governor. As the law stands now, all constitutional officers are required to use the attorney general's office to receive legal advice.

A conflict behind the statute came into light when the lieutenant governor, the state's top elections official, had to investigate then-Attorney General John Swallow for election law violations.

Opponents said the amendment was too broad and risked making "a system of legal advisers who are beholden to individual politicians," Senate President Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy, said in his formal argument against the proposition.

Salt Lake County races

Candidates were selected Tuesday for positions with Salt Lake County, including council members, assessor, auditor, clerk, recorder, surveyor and treasurer.

Republican Micah Bruner conceded to Democrat Jenny Wilson about 11:30 p.m. Tuesday for the County Council's open at-large seat, with Wilson claiming nearly 54 percent of the vote, leaving 46 percent for Bruner.

Wilson said she plans to focus on expanding and conserving open space, and improving air quality. She also plans to support initiatives for accelerated economic development, with a special focus on strengthening communities with low and moderate income levels.

"It's been a really wonderful experience to go back and hear the stories countywide of the challenges we have, of the great things we're doing," Wilson said. "Thank you for your support."

Wilson served as an at-large member of the Salt Lake County Council from 2004 to 2010 and was a candidate for mayor of Salt Lake City in 2007. She attended the University of Utah and Harvard Kennedy School. She is married to Trell Rohovit and has two children.

Bruner, a West Valley attorney, said he was proud of what he was able to accomplish in what was "a tough race to start with."

"I congratulate Jenny on a great race," he said. "She's a fantastic candidate. It's been wonderful having somebody of her caliber to match up with. I'm just grateful for all of her hard work. We're sorry we didn't pull it off, but we're happy to have been in the race as long as we were and have it be as close as it was."

Democrat Arlyn Bradshaw held a staggering lead over Republican opponent Richard Barnes for the District 1 council seat. Bradshaw was elected to the Salt Lake County Council in 2010 at age 29 — the youngest council member ever elected in Utah and the first openly gay person elected at the county level.

Republican Aimee Winder Newton had 54.5 percent of the vote at 11:30 p.m. Tuesday in District 3 over Democrat Daniel Snarr, who had 45.5 percent. Newton was elected as Salt Lake County Council pro tem representing the district in January.

Republican Steven DeBry ran unopposed for most of his campaign in District 5.

In other late results in Salt Lake County:

1. Kevin Jacobs was ahead of Tyler Andrus with 54.2 percent to 45.8 percent of the vote for county assessor.
2. Jeff Hatch had a slight majority over Scott Tingley with 49.7 percent to 50.4 percent of the vote for county auditor.
3. Sherrie Swensen was ahead of Wanda Amann with 64.7 percent to 35.3 percent of the vote for county clerk.
4. Gary Ott led Mary Bishop with 52.9 percent to 47.1 percent of the vote for county recorder.
5. K. Wayne Cushing led Mike Fife with 54.9 percent to 45.1 percent of the vote for county treasurer.
6. Reid Demman ran unopposed for county surveyor. Contributing: Amy Joi O'Donoghue, McKenzie Romero, Whitney Evans and Morgan Jacobsen

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