Brian Olsen and Brigham Morgan advanced in the Utah County city's mayoral primary this week and will now square off in the Nov. 8 general election.

With the 34-year-old Lofgren's ouster from the race - he netted 44 votes - a threatened legal battle over his qualifications likely won't be waged.

Lofgren was convicted in 1991, at age 19, of third-degree felony theft for stealing jewelry. State election officials argued the computer programmer's felony rap disqualified him from running for or holding office, while Lofgren insisted otherwise and was prepared to go to court if he was elected to challenge that interpretation of state law.

Eagle Mountain leaders had a plan in place if Lofgren had prevailed.

"We wouldn't have let him take office, we wouldn't swear him in," City Recorder Gina Peterson said Wednesday. "Our attorney [Jerry Kinghorn] consulted with the Utah Attorney General's Office and was told we legally couldn't swear him in. . . . If we had, the Attorney General's Office would have sued us."

Lofgren could not be reached Wednesday for comment.

Utah law bars felons from holding state, county or municipal office "until the right to vote or hold office is restored." Since his right to vote was restored, Lofgren argued so was his right to hold office.

But state officials countered that the law contains no provision to restore felons' rights to hold elective office.

With 44 votes to Olsen's 446 and Morgan's 223 on Tuesday, according to unofficial returns, Lofgren's legal arguments are moot.

meddington@sltrib.com