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SALT LAKE CITY -- Sen. Curtis Bramble, R-Provo, says he is withdrawing from the internal contest for Senate majority leader.
That means Sen. Scott Jenkins, R-Plain City, and the current majority whip, will likely assume the majority leader position. The decision will come at a special Senate Republican caucus meeting Wednesday.
The majority leader position was formally held by Sheldon Killpack, who resigned his Senate seat last weekend following his arrest for driving while impaired.
Bramble says the reason he's withdrawing is that, in light of the dramatic events over the past week, "now is the time to come together."
"To have a full-blown leadership race is competitive by its nature," Bramble told KSL.
"That brings with it inevitable divisiveness as people align themselves with their candidate. Because of all the heartaches, discontent and sadness following [Killpack's] arrest, I just feel that now is the time to come together," he said.
Sen. Jenkins was initially unaware and said he was somewhat surprised about Bramble's decision early Tuesday.
E-mail: rpiatt@ksl.com
