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SALT LAKE CITY — Gov. Gary Herbert had no advice Wednesday for Utahns who aren't ready to follow his lead and vote for Donald Trump for president despite the state's reputation as reliably Republican.
"People have a difficult decision to make. I wish them well in that decision," the GOP governor told reporters during the taping of his monthly news conference on KUED, calling this year's race for the White House "unique."
Herbert described himself as "a practical guy in how I'm going to vote. I really do believe in (Trump's running mate, Indiana Gov.) Mike Pence. I believe he can bring some stability and vision, and he certainly lines up well with Utah."
Neither Trump nor the Democratic nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, are popular with Utah voters, even though the billionaire businessman does lead her in recent polls.
Both lagged far behind the winners of the state's Republican and Democratic presidential preference elections in March and have few significant political endorsements in Utah.
That's sparked speculation that Utah, a state that hasn't voted for a Democrat for president since 1964, could be up for grabs in November, leading both campaigns as well as third-party candidates to make a play to win over voters.
The efforts include stops in Utah by Pence, Clinton's husband, former President Bill Clinton, and Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Johnson, as well as at least three anti-Trump mailers from the Democratic National Committee.
And Utah native Evan McMullin, a Republican who got in the race just weeks ago as an independent candidate, opened his national campaign headquarters Wednesday in Salt Lake City.
Even though the governor has said he's voting for the GOP ticket, he declined to sign a letter from other state Republican leaders backing Trump and Pence as reflecting "the goals of the overwhelming majority of Utahns."
His campaign manager, Marty Carpenter, said Herbert has made it clear his own re-relection in November is his priority, so he has stopped short of endorsing his party's presidential nominee.
"He has never said endorsement. All he has said is that he is going to vote for the ticket," Carpenter said. "He was asked who he was voting for. Endorsement implies actively working to get other people to vote for someone."
Pressed Wednesday about not endorsing Trump, the governor said he was done discussing the race.
"You know how I'm going to vote. I don't need to talk about this anymore," he said.
Although the governor endorsed Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, the winner of the state GOP's caucus vote in March, as well as Mitt Romney in 2008 and 2012, he said Utahns want him to focus on governing, not the presidential election.
"What the people of Utah want me to concentrate on is not the presidential race. I'm not an advocate for anybody. I'm not an apologist for anybody," he said. "It doesn't matter who I vote for. It doesn't matter who my opponent votes for."
Related:
Evan McMullin campaign hitting, missing presidential ballot deadlines
Utah native and anti-Trump presidential candidate Evan McMullin continues to hit and miss deadlines as his campaign furiously tries to get on election ballots across the country.The governor questioned why there hasn't been more discussion about the difficulties Clinton faces with voters in a state that handed her husband a third-place finish in 1992's presidential race.
"More people in Utah support Donald Trump than support Hillary Clinton," Herbert said. "But we all recognize there are certainly things that are causing us concern on both sides of the aisle."
His own running mate, Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox, has said he is not voting for Trump. On Wednesday, Cox said he is considering McMullin, but has "not yet" decided who he'll support for president.
The lieutenant governor has plenty of company among Utah Republicans.
Romney has been one of Trump's harshest critics and has said he won't vote for Trump or Clinton. Two members of Utah's all-Republican congressional delegation, Sen. Mike Lee and Rep. Mia Love, have yet to endorse in the presidential race.
"When you look at Republicans in Utah right now, they are in a state of confusion," University of Utah political science professor Tim Chambless said, describing Herbert's lack of endorsement as "something between a tango and a twist and shout."
Chambless, affiliated with the U.'s Hinckley Institute of Politics, said the governor knows and is comfortable with Pence but clearly is uncomfortable with the top of the ticket.
As a result, Chambless said, "the governor is adding to the confusion" many Utah voters feel about their choices in November.
In addition to the presidential races, other issues Herbert addressed Wednesday included the proposed Bear Ears National Monument in southeastern Utah. Herbert suggested he may present his own plan to the Obama administration.
The governor said he expects to meet with Interior Secretary Sally Jewell and Bureau of Land Management Director Neil Kornze in Washington, D.C., in the next few weeks.
"I think there are better ways to approach this," he said, that could "ameliorate the confrontational aspects" associated with the presidential designation of a national monument.
Herbert backs the congressional Public Lands Initiative pushed by Reps. Rob Bishop and Jason Chaffetz, both R-Utah, but said if that doesn't pass by the end of year, it's time to look for another proposal.
The governor declined to confirm whether he intended to present a proposal himself, saying he didn't want to "scoop" himself.
The Center for Western Priorities released a statement from executive director Jennifer Rokala expressing confidence that Jewell will take the governor's "input seriously alongside that of tribal governments and other stakeholders."
Rokala said the organization was "happy to see Gov. Herbert acknowledge that Congressman Rob Bishop's Public Lands Initiative is effectively dead."
And the governor weighed in on the U.-BYU football rivalry, saying that while he has "divided loyalties," he wants the Cougars to win Saturday's much-anticipated game.
