LEHI — In a rally in one of the most Republican counties in the nation, former GOP presidential candidate Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, urged Utahns Saturday to support former state lawmaker Chris Herrod's bid for Congress.

Cruz, who won 69 percent of Utah Republicans' votes in last year's presidential primary election, received a roaring welcome at the campaign rally held at the Lehi headquarters of Entrata, a property management software company.

Cruz said he took time away from his family this weekend to campaign for Herrod. "We need real conservatives in Washington. Chris Herrod is real conservative," he said.

He urged every supporter to leave the campaign event and call nine people to urge them to likewise back Herrod, who helped lead Cruz's presidential campaign in Utah. "Special elections are all about turnout," he said.

The repeal of Obamacare is one of the most important issues leading the nation, Cruz said, explaining that the election in Utah is of national significance.

"If you want to repeal Obamacare, you need to elect Chris Herrod," he said.

A small group of protestors, who apparently took exception to Cruz's recent vote to repeal Obamacare, interrupted his presentation by repeatedly yelling, "Shame on you." They were swiftly escorted out of the room.

Cruz said one of the things he loves about Utah is that even protesters are polite.

"Elections matter," Cruz said. The evidence of that? "It is July 2017 and Hillary Clinton is not president."

Other evidence? "Neil Gorsuch is on the Supreme Court," he said.

In Republican primaries "you often have a lot of candidates tell the voters they're conservatives. As voters sometimes, it can frustrating to sort the wheat from the chaff, to tell who's telling the truth. I think the best way to tell is to look to whose got a proven record and Chris Herrod has a proven record as a conservative," Cruz said in a brief press conference with reporters prior to the rally.

When asked for his assessment of this week's battle over health care in Congress that did not result in overturning Obamacare as GOP senators have long sought, Cruz said "rumors of Obamacare's repeal death are greatly exaggerated."

He added, "The key to getting it done is focusing on lowering premiums. … The average family's premium have risen over $5,000 a year on Obamacare."

As for White House infighting, Cruz said he "doesn't comment on tweets, or the random comment of the day and the political circus in Washington.

"It will continue to be what it is. Much of the national press will continue to obsess over the latest soap drama 'who's up and who's down and who said what about whom.' I think the people who elect us don't really care. They're not interested in a circus. They're interested in results. So that's my focus. Let's deliver results."

Herrod, addressing supporters, spent much of his time talking about his experiences in the former Soviet Union and the Ukraine, where he met his wife. While living there, his wife Alia experienced an ectopic pregnancy. The experience gave Herrod a glimpse of socialized medicine.

"I turned into this room and I saw nine women on dingy gray sheets. I saw my beautiful bride to the right. I had to go out and sit down on the floor because I was going to pass out," he said.

He recalled the advice of his father, which was if he were injured or sick while living in the former Soviet Union, where Herrod chose to teach after college, that he needed to head west for health care.

"Socialized medicine does not work. What we need is more people who actually have practical experience with it. That's one of the things, if you elect me, I promise I will go back and tell my story. I will tell my wife's story," he said.

Herrod's Republican challengers to succeed Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, include Alpine lawyer Tanner Ainge and Provo Mayor John Curtis. A primary election is set for Aug. 15. Kathie Allen, a family physician, is running as a Democrat.