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SALT LAKE CITY -- Sen. Bob Bennett is expected to endorse fellow Republican Tim Bridgewater in the primary race for his U.S. Senate seat. It'll be the second key endorsement for Bridgewater in his race against Mike Lee.
The conventional wisdom is that a Bennett endorsement helps Bridgewater, even in a year when the political establishment is under siege.
Of course there are still 12 days until the primary and, especially if there's a low turnout race, anything could happen.
Bob Bennett may have been knocked out in his quest for reelection, but he still looms large with reports he'll endorse the top vote getter at the GOP convention, Tim Bridgewater.
"Question: Does it help? I'm looking for 50 percent plus one votes of Utahns. I'd like to get more than that in the primary, but I'm after all the support I can get, and I hope to win the primary with the majority of the support of Utah voters," Bridgewater said.
Bridgewater is probably thinking about this in the sense that this helps him with a broader GOP base, of reaching people who are more chamber of commerce-type Republicans.
–Thad Hall, associate professor of political science at the University of Utah
"I'm happy for my opponent and whatever endorsements he's able to get," said Mike Lee, also running for U.S. Senate. "I'm grateful for mine, and I'm getting my message out there."
The news comes on the heels of the endorsement of Bridgewater by fellow conservative candidate Cherilyn Eagar.
Political observers say it could help in a race where both candidates have less name recognition than the man they ousted.
Thad Hall, associate professor of political science at the University of Utah, said, "Bridgewater is probably thinking about this in the sense that this helps him with a broader GOP base, of reaching people who are more chamber of commerce-type Republicans -- especially Republicans who are outside of the 3rd Congressional District."
"The bottom line here is that the primary election voters are not the same as the convention delegates," said Quin Monson, an assistant professor of political science at Brigham Young University. "To be sure, they're conservative, but it's a different crowd."
Both candidates are trying to ride the anti-incumbent, anti-Washington wave.Lee is hoping the Bennett endorsement of Bridgewater backfires and actually helps him.
"The main message is I'm the candidate with the momentum," Lee said. "I'm the candidate with the right message. The right message to reign in Washington, D.C., to convince the federal government that it can't be all things to all people."
"I feel pretty good. We've got good momentum, great support," Bridgewater said. "We've sent out 6,000 signs, have been taken out of our offices and sent around the state, so we've got a lot of grassroots support."
The primary is June 22.
This race will share the spotlight that day with the race between Democrats Jim Matheson and Claudia Wright for the 2nd Congressional District.
E-mail: jdaley@ksl.com
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*The video clip in the lower-right portion of this story is from The Sutherland Institute's June 10, 2010 debate
