Reps. Burgess Owens and Celeste Maloy campaign for Republican candidates in swing districts

Utah Reps. Burgess Owens and Celeste Maloy kept busy last week as they embarked on separate campaign blitzes to help their Republican colleagues in other states win vulnerable seats in the upcoming election — less than 19 days away — and secure Republican majorities in Congress.
Owens, who represents Utah’s 4th District, told the Deseret News the upcoming election is “the most important election in our lifetime,” and advocated for everyone to get involved in the electoral process. “We need everybody on the field,” he said.
He said he has been doing his part. In July, he carved out time to join GOP candidates on the East Coast to help them fundraise, as previously reported. Since the House is in recess, he is back on the road again.
“It’s been a crazy fast week, but it’s been a good week,” he said.
Owens bumped into the Deseret News in Phoenix, Arizona, where vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance gave remarks at a town hall hosted by the Conservative Political Action Conference last Wednesday.
Two days later, the Utah congressman made an appearance at former President Donald Trump’s rally in Reno, Nevada.
Finally, over the weekend, he traveled to California to help GOP House candidate Matt Gunderson try to flip a critical seat and joined House Speaker Mike Johnson at a fundraising event. Polls show Gunderson in a tight race with Democratic incumbent Rep. Mike Levin.
On Sunday, Owens attended a virtual call with several prominent Latter-day Saint conservatives and Republican lawmakers supporting Trump.
Maloy, who represents Utah’s 2nd District, also took part in that call. She was also with Trump at a rally in Prescott, Arizona, that day, the final stop in her schedule after visiting four other states.
Last week began with Maloy taking a flight to Redmond, Oregon, to attend a House Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries hearing, focused on the state’s water supply.
While in Oregon, the Utah congresswoman joined Rep. Lori Chavez-DeRemer at a campaign event. “She’s in a really tough reelection in Oregon, in a swing state,” Maloy noted. She then drove a state over to Washington to support Rep. Dan Newhouse.
Wisconsin’s Rep. Derrick Van Orden and Iowa’s Rep. Zach Nunn and Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks also had visits from Maloy.
She ended the week at the Arizona Trump rally. Many of the House races Maloy engaged with are toss-ups, according to the Cook Political Report.
“Being able to be there for my colleagues who are in tough races meant a lot to me because I just came through a really tough primary, and I know how much it matters when someone’s willing to show up,” Maloy said.
“I got back early, early Monday morning and had a debate Monday night,” she said, adding that many days on the road “wears a body out,” but she said the cost is worth it.
In her time spent with voters, Maloy said she noticed several things: Swing state residents are “keenly” aware of what’s at stake with the presidential and congressional races.
“Every commercial I saw was a campaign ad. We just don’t get that kind of pressure here in Utah and that was eye opening for me,” the Utah congresswoman said. “In Iowa, they’ve gotten a lot of attention from both parties, from all the candidates.” Whether that’s through mailers, text messages or commercials on radio and television, voters receive “a lot of attention from both parties, from all the candidates. … and they’re worn out.”
Following her travels, where she heard complaints from voters about badly run campaigns, absent elected officials, and misinformation, Maloy said she had a greater appreciation for her home state.
“It would be good for most Utah voters to take a road trip like I did,” she said. “We have it pretty good here in Utah. We have tough primaries, but we tend to be pretty cordial.”
Owens noted that all his colleagues in the state are doing their part, but acknowledged that everyone has different time commitments. “I know (Rep. John Curtis) is focused on the Senate right now. But … what I’m finding out is that we all have the same mindset.”
Owens’ busy schedule reminds him of his time as a football player during the final stretch of the game.
“You want to make sure you have nothing left on the field, and that’s kind of what I see right now across the board,” Owens said. His travel blitz will continue as he makes his way to Texas later this week.
Owens is also using his travels to highlight Utah’s education policy successes — including school of choice and a high level of collaboration among higher education institutions — and learn from other states as he aims to become chairman of the Education Workforce Committee, a position currently held by Rep. Virginia Foxx, R-N.C.