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SALT LAKE CITY — With Election Day less than two weeks away, many voters are researching candidates on their ballots in order to make the right decision.
KSL.com researched Facebook and Twitter accounts of candidates in Utah’s major political races to see what the candidates have posted regarding five major issues — health care, immigration, climate change, trade and taxes.
The races examined here are between candidates for U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives in all four of Utah’s congressional districts.
You can find more details about the candidates in these races by clicking this link. Here’s a look at the candidates and their social media accounts.
U.S. Senate
Mitt Romney, the Republican candidate, has been on Twitter since June 2009, well before his presidential run in 2012. He has just under 2 million followers and about 1,700 tweets.
Other candidates in the race have been more active on Twitter, despite not using the platform quite as long as Romney.
Democrat challenger Jenny Wilson joined in February 2014 and has about 2,100 tweets, along with about 33,000 followers. Libertarian Senate candidate Craig Bowden joined Twitter in May 2012 and has 55,000 tweets to go with just under 6,500 followers.
Constitution Party candidate Tim Aalders isn’t as active on Twitter as the other candidates, but he does post to Facebook frequently. Independent American Party candidate Reed McCandless hasn’t updated his Twitter since March.
Here are some sample posts from the candidates on some key issues.
Tim Aalders
Twitter: @Aalders_Senate
Facebook: Tim Aalders for US Senate
Craig Bowden
Twitter: @Bowden4Senate
Facebook: Craig Bowden, Libertarian for Senate
Mitt Romney
Twitter: @MittRomney
Facebook: Mitt Romney
Jenny Wilson
Twitter: @JennyWilsonUT
Facebook: Jenny Wilson for Senate
House of Representatives District 1
In northern Utah, incumbent Republican Rob Bishop faces challenges from Democrat Lee Castillo, United Utah Party candidate Eric Eliason and Green Party candidate Adam Davis.
Bishop has had a Twitter account since 2010 but hasn’t posted on it. He posts more regularly on Facebook. Castillo joined Twitter in March and has a few hundred tweets and a few hundred followers. He also posts regularly on Facebook.
Eliason joined Twitter in February and has just under 500 tweets and about 730 followers. Davis joined Twitter in May 2017.
Here are some sample posts from the candidates on some key issues.
Twitter: @RepRobBishop
Facebook: Rep. Rob Bishop
Lee Castillo
Twitter: @Lee4USCongress
Facebook: J Lee Castillo for Congress
Adam Davis
Twitter: @davisforutah
Facebook: Adam Davis For Utah’s 1st District
Eric Eliason
Twitter: @EliasonCongress
Facebook: Eric Eliason for Congress
House of Representatives District 2
Incumbent Republican Rep. Chris Stewart has been on Twitter since January 2013. In that time, he’s amassed just under 3,000 tweets and attracted more than 17,000 followers.
Democrat challenger Shireen Ghorbani joined in November 2011 and has just over 7,000 Twitter followers, along with about 4,500 tweets.
Libertarian candidate Jeff Whipple only has 34 tweets, but posts more regularly on Facebook.
Here’s a sampling of the three candidates’ social media activity.
Shireen Ghorbani
Twitter: @ShireenGhorbani
Facebook: Shireen for Congress
Chris Stewart
Twitter: @RepChrisStewart
Facebook: Congressman Chris Stewart
Jeff Whipple
Twitter: @jeffreywhipple
Facebook: Jeffrey Whipple: Libertarian for Utah
House of Representatives District 3
Republican incumbent John Curtis tweets from two different accounts with a combined following of just over 7,500 people. He joined Twitter in 2009.
Democrat challenger James Courage Singer joined Twitter in 2014 and has just over 5,000 followers.
Independent American Party candidate Gregory C. Duerden has a very limited presence on both Facebook and Twitter. United Utah Party candidate Tim Zeidner doesn’t have a Twitter or Facebook account for his campaign.
Here’s a look at the social media posts from these three candidates.
John Curtis
Twitter: @CurtisUT, @RepJohnCurtis
Facebook: John Curtis
Gregory C. Duerden
Twitter: @BYHi67
Facebook: Gregory C Duerden
James Courage Singer
Twitter: @urbannavajo
Facebook: James Singer for U.S. Congress
Immigration policy isn’t just a set of things we do to keep people out -- it is a complex, interrelated system that is also a reflection of our values. Right now we’re not living up to them. In Congress, I want to move us towards those values and realize the promise of democracy.
— James Courage Singer (@urbannavajo) September 3, 2018
House of Representatives District 4
Utah’s most competitive political race sees incumbent Republican Rep. Mia Love up against Democrat and Salt Lake County Mayor Ben McAdams.
Love tweets from two different accounts with a combined following of about 147,000 people. She joined the platform in July 2011.
McAdams also has two accounts — one reserved for things related to his job as Salt Lake County mayor and another account for everything else. He has a combined following of about 18,000 people.
Here’s a look at the social media activity from these two candidates.
Mia Love
Twitter: @MiaBLove, @RepMiaLove
Facebook: Mia Love, Rep. Mia B. Love
Ben McAdams
Twitter: @BenMcAdams, @MayorBenMcAdams
Facebook: Ben McAdams
Separating families at the border is inhumane, immoral. Our country is better than that. The answer is immigration reform that protects the border, keeps families together, not empty words #utdebates
— Ben McAdams (@BenMcAdams) October 16, 2018
I have a ten year track record of accomplishments working on these issues. I don’t just have policy positions, I have accomplishments to show for it. It’s no secret where I stand. Climate change is real and we’ve got to take action locally, nationally and globally to respond.
— Ben McAdams (@BenMcAdams) May 4, 2018








