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Former Massachusetts governor and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney finished second at the Utah Republican Convention on Saturday behind State Rep. Mike Kennedy (R-Alpine). Romney and Kennedy will now face each other in a primary election, because neither Romney (49.12%) nor Kennedy (50.88%) reached the 60% threshold necessary to secure the party’s nomination automatically.

Mitt Romney did not win the Utah Republican Party's nomination on Saturday, meaning he must compete in a June primary election as he seeks to replace retiring US Sen. Orrin Hatch. After a wild and raucous day of voting at the Utah GOP convention, the former Massachusetts governor and 2012 Republican presidential nominee was unable to win the 60% that he needed to head to the November ballot unopposed. When none of the 12 candidates were able to cross that threshold, the party continued with successive rounds of caucus voting until one candidate reached 40%. On the second round of...

President Donald Trump on Monday endorsed former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney’s run for a U.S. Senate seat in Utah, despite Romney often being critical of Trump.

@MittRomney has announced he is running for the Senate from the wonderful State of Utah. He will make a great Senator and worthy successor to @OrrinHatch, and has my full support and endorsement! 9:21 PM - 19 Feb 2018

Mitt Romney, after announcing his Republican bid for Senate in Utah, called for “action” following the Florida high school shooting that left 17 dead. Romney called the shooting “senseless, debased evil.” “I think we can’t just sit and wait and hope for things to get better,” the former GOP presidential candidate said, according to The Salt Lake Tribune. “It is wrong and unacceptable for children in our schools to fear for their lives.”

As a father and grandfather, my heart aches for the victims of today’s tragic events. My prayers go out to all of the families and loved ones affected by this senseless act of violence. (1/2) Out of respect for the victims and their families, I will not be making an announcement tomorrow about the Senate race. (2/2)

Mitt Romney will launch his Utah Senate campaign Thursday morning with a low key announcement on social media, and will make his first public appearance a day later near Salt Lake City with a keynote address to a gathering of grassroots Republicans.

As Mitt Romney considers whether to run for an open US Senate seat in Utah, the person who can most influence him is encouraging him to get into the race: his wife, Ann. Ann Romney — a confidante for nearly all of Romney’s adult life and frequent catalyst for his political ambitions — is fully supporting a campaign for Senate, another strong indicator he will run, according to four people close to the Romneys. Her own battle with multiple sclerosis is not a major factor, with all signs indicating that her health remains strong, the people said.

The idea that the corporate media is floating about Mitt Romney “assuming” the senate seat of Orin Hatch is disheartening and underscores the short memories of political pundits who have forgotten the cloud of corruption and crimes that surround Unfit Mitt. We are going to remind you of that history and put into perspective the crimes that Unfit Mitt carried out with seeming impunity. Mitt’s true history cannot be told unless the criminal milieu that he worked within is described beforehand. Only when you get the picture of this crime syndicate and their incredible power and political reach, will you...

With Sen. John McCain in the twilight of his career, the 2012 GOP presidential nominee sees a coming void in the Trump era. As he's expressed his desire to join the U.S. Senate, Mitt Romney has privately revealed that a driving purpose of his service would be to emulate a former rival and fellow foiled Republican presidential nominee: Sen. John McCain. "There's got to be somebody who can stand up to the president," Romney told members of the Utah congressional delegation in recent weeks, according to a person with knowledge of his comments. "Who's going to stand up to Trump?"

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Orrin Hatch, who's served in the U.S. Senate representing Utah since 1977, announced Tuesday he would not seek re-election in 2018.

Video at link. Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah), the longest-serving GOP senator in U.S. history, announced Tuesday that he'll retire at the end of his term. Hatch made the announcement in a video posted on Twitter. The announcement is a blow to President Trump, who has publicly encouraged him to run for reelection. The 83-year-old senator appeared to be signaling in recent weeks that he’d run for an eighth term in 2018, even though he previously said he’d retire when his term is up in January 2019. The powerful Senate Finance Committee chairman played a significant role in helping Republicans pass...

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) is not running for re-election, an announcement which immediately renewed rumors that former presidential candidate and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney will run for the open seat. His path would be pretty crystal clear, it seems. Mr. Hatch’s decision clears the way for the political resurrection of Mr. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor and 2012 Republican presidential nominee who is now a Utah resident and is popular in the Mormon-heavy state. Mr. Romney has told associates he would likely run if Mr. Hatch retires.“It would be difficult to defeat Mitt Romney if he were running here,” said...

President Trump’s trip to Utah Monday was ostensibly about eliminating national monument status for two Utah landmarks. But most speculate that the real reason for the trip was a subtle effort to block Mitt Romney from reentering politics. Romney has made noise about a potential run for Senator Orrin Hatch’s seat, should the longtime Utah senator choose not to seek reelection next year. Monday’s presidential visit seemed to turn into a full-on lobbying effort to get Hatch to stay put. Or perhaps more to the point, to get Romney to stay far away from Washington. And Romney was all too...

TRUMP MOVES TO BLOCK ROMNEY FROM SENATE President going all out to persuade 83-year-old Orrin Hatch to seek re-election in Utah Published: 24 mins ago (POLITICO) Donald Trump is going all out to persuade seven-term Utah Sen. Orrin Hatch to seek reelection — a push aimed in no small part at keeping the president’s longtime nemesis, Mitt Romney, out of the Senate. Romney has been preparing to run for Hatch’s seat on the long-held assumption that the 83-year-old would retire. Yet Hatch, the longest-serving Republican senator in history, is now refusing to rule out another campaign — a circumstance Romney’s...

Sources tell UtahPolicy.com that former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney is preparing to run for Senate in 2018 if Sen. Orrin Hatch decides to retire. Sources close to Romney say the two-time presidential candidate will jump into the 2018 Utah Senate scrum if Hatch opts not to. So far, Hatch has not made up his mind as to whether he'll run for an eighth term in 2018. He has previously said he was planning on running as long as his and his wife's health holds up. Dave Hansen, a longtime political advisor to Hatch, told UtahPolicy.com last month that he didn't...

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell says he has reached out to former Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney about possibly running for the Senate — if a vacancy opens in Utah. There has been much speculation about whether Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah will retire instead of running for re-election. The 83-year-old Hatch has fueled some of it. …

Any news story involving Romney running for any office is postworthy by definition for a veteran Romney trollblogger like me. But let’s be real: A freshman senator at age … 71, which is what he’d be on election day 2018? As good as he looks and as healthy as he seems, it’s rare — maybe even unprecedented — for a senator to be popularly elected to a first full term in his 70s. This list notes 12 who were 75 or older when they were first seated, but nine were appointed to fill vacancies and two more were chosen...

Former Governor of Massachusetts Mitt Romney could run for the United States Senate in 2018, according to a Friday interview with Deseret news. The former presidential candidate will not commit to a Senate run, but refuses to rule out the possibility. “I don’t have any predictions on what I might do. I’m not going to open a door and I’m not going to close a door. All doors are open,” Romney said after mentioning the 2018 Senate race.