Republican Kathleen Anderson preparing to challenge Rep. Ben McAdams in 4th Congressional District

Republican Kathleen Anderson is preparing to launch a campaign challenging freshman Rep. Ben McAdams in Utah’s 4th Congressional District.

UtahPolicy.com has learned Anderson is currently reaching out to potential campaign donors to build support ahead of a planned campaign launch later this year. In an email provided to UtahPolicy.com, Anderson says she will formally launch her candidacy “shortly.”

UtahPolicy.com is told Anderson was recently in Washington, D.C. meeting with Republican officials to discuss a possible run against McAdams in 2020.

Anderson declined to comment for this story.

The race for the Utah GOP nomination to face McAdams is expected to be one of the hottest races in the state next year. There are nearly a dozen Republicans who have been mentioned as possible challengers to McAdams in 2020. Along with Anderson, they include State Senators Dan McCay and Daniel Hemmert, State Representatives Kim Coleman and Jefferson Moss and Utah County Commissioner Nathan Ivie.

McAdams bested former Rep. Mia Love by 694 votes in 2018. Utah’s 4th District has a partisan lean of R+13, meaning the district is 13 points more Republican than the national average. That built-in advantage makes McAdams one of the most vulnerable Democrats heading into the 2020 election. The district is one of 31 that President Donald Trump won in 2016 but is held by a Democrat.

Anderson lives in Bountiful, which is outside of the district boundaries. McAdams also does not live within the 4th District.

Anderson is the wife of former Utah GOP chairman Rob Anderson. She was the communications director for the Utah Republican Party and served as the President of the Utah Federation of Republican Women.