Rep. Jim Matheson says he's getting 'ready for November' after defeating Wright

SALT LAKE CITY — He couldn't get 60 percent in the state convention, but he's gotten that much and more Tuesday night.

U.S. Rep. Jim Matheson has survived his first primary challenge and advanced to a general election contest in November.

During the May 8 state Democratic convention, Claudia Wright garnered 45 percent of the delegate vote to Matheson's 55 percent, forcing him into a primary election.

With 87 percent of precincts reporting late Tuesday, Matheson maintained his large lead on Wright, 68 percent to 32 percent. By 10 p.m., the Associated Press had called the race for Matheson.

"We had a real great win tonight," he said to his supporters gathered at the Hilton City Center. "You find out where your supporters are and get them out to vote, and that's how you succeed."

Throughout the night, Matheson had about twice as many votes as Wright.

Matheson said he always runs aggressive campaigns, and he said Tuesday's win validates his record and his service.

"A lot of people agree with us," he said. "Starting tomorrow, we get ready for November."

Matheson had been generally favored to win the primary. He led in every county in the 2nd Congressional District, except Kane and Wayne counties, where he tied with Wright.

Matheson will run for his sixth term in the U.S. House of Representatives in the Nov. 2 general election. Morgan Philpot, a former state legislator, will be his Republican challenger.

Wright, a retired school teacher, was one of 20 Democrats who answered a Craigslist advertisement posted online by a group that wanted to unseat Matheson.

In defeat, Wright attempted to describe the uphill battle she faced in taking on Matheson while also expressing immense gratitude for her unpaid campaign staff.

"I think this campaign went extraordinarily well considering that we started with no money and no name recognition," she said. "We got to a primary for a five-term sitting congressman who has both name recognition and money — a lot of it.

"I think this has been done with all the volunteers, so I want to give them credit for that. They've done an amazing job. … Obviously we're here because of the volunteers, because of the people on the campaign that worked so hard for so long for no money at all, just because they were trying to do what was right. And I appreciate that more than I could say."

She conceded that, by not accepting any corporate donations, she was undeniably at a disadvantage financially.