Rep. Mike Kennedy, a Republican, is running for Utah's 4th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. The general election is Nov. 3, 2026.

Kennedy faces three opponents: Jonny Larsen (Democratic), Steven Burt (Independent) and Taylor Wright (Libertarian).

Candidate information

  • Party: Republican
  • Office sought: U.S. House of Representatives, Utah 4th Congressional District
  • Residence background: Raised by a single mother alongside six siblings in Michigan, according to his congressional biography
  • Family: Married to his wife, Katrina, for 35 years, according to his congressional biography. Eight children and 12 grandchildren.
  • Religion: Served a two-year mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, according to his congressional biography
  • Education: Bachelor's degree from Brigham Young University; juris doctor from Brigham Young University; doctor of medicine from Michigan State University, according to BallotReady

Experience and public service

Kennedy has served as a U.S. representative for Utah's 3rd Congressional District since Jan. 3, 2025, according to his congressional website. He sits on the House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology and the House Committee on Natural Resources, where he serves as vice chair of the Subcommittee on Federal Lands.

Before Congress, Kennedy served in the Utah House of Representatives from 2013 to 2019 and in the Utah State Senate from 2021 to 2025, according to BallotReady. He has also worked as a family physician, according to BallotReady, and as an attorney, according to his campaign website.

On the issues

The following positions are drawn from Kennedy's campaign issue pages and reflect the candidate's own stated views.

Economy and taxes: Kennedy says he supports a balanced budget amendment to prevent the federal government from spending more than it takes in. He says he wants to cut taxes and lower the cost of living. He also says he would work to reduce regulations on businesses.

Healthcare: Kennedy says he would expand health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, qualified small employer health reimbursement arrangements and other pre-tax tools to give families more control over healthcare spending. He says he supports increasing generic drug availability and allowing patients to purchase prescriptions from other countries when it is more affordable.

Immigration and border security: Kennedy says he supports securing the border and equipping law enforcement with the staffing, technology and funding they need. He says he would work to streamline the legal immigration process for law-abiding individuals.

Energy: Kennedy says he supports an "all-of-the-above" energy approach and would prioritize eliminating reliance on foreign oil. He says he would focus on energy affordability, reliability and domestic production.

Education: Kennedy says he is dedicated to shifting educational authority away from the Department of Education and back to states and Utah's own communities.

Candidate issue responses were collected through BallotReady and the candidate's campaign website. The Sandy Herald did not interview the candidate for this profile. Voters can learn more at mikekennedyforutah.com.