MORE: State and local elections coverage
As the candidate-filing period closed for this year’s 89 legislative races, eight incumbents — two Democrats and six Republicans — emerged with no challengers.
Two more House races are nearly over, with Republican incumbents facing challengers only from long-shot third parties.
And in three other contests, Republicans are sure to win — as only Republicans are running.
The lack of interparty competition in so many races is concerning to some observers at the same time it provides a boost to several lawmakers who now don’t have to lift a finger to keep their seats, although they say they’ll campaign anyway to stay in touch with constituents.
Jim Dabakis, who resigned as Utah Democratic Party chairman on Monday, acknowledges that his party is "way down from where we were in 2012" in attracting candidates. Democrats did not field candidates in 12 of the 89 legislative races this year (all 75 House seats are up for election, as are about half the 29 state Senate seats).
