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SALT LAKE CITY — Utah Rep. John Curtis handily won Utah's race for U.S. Senate Tuesday evening, according to the Associated Press, which called the race for the congressman 24 minutes after polls closed in the Beehive State.
The race to replace Sen. Mitt Romney is the highest profile of the night and Curtis entered the evening as the frontrunner over Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs, former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and businessman Jason Walton.
Around 100 Curtis supporters gathered at a Provo park in 90-degree plus heat, many donning campaign-branded straw hats and baseball jerseys as they waited for the first round of ballot counts to roll in.
The mood turned celebratory after the first round of results showed up online, showing Curtis with close to 50% of the vote in the four-person race.
Corey Norman, Curtis' chief of staff, read aloud the results about 8:15 p.m. showing Curtis with 53.5% to Staggs' 26.43%. Wilson and Walton trailed with 14.15% and 6.13%.
Here is @CurtisUT's speech after winning the GOP nomination for Utah's U.S. Senate seat. #utpolpic.twitter.com/eHKutJ2QMD
— Bridger Beal-Cvetko (@BealBridger) June 26, 2024
In an emotional victory speech following the race being called, Curtis said there are several stressful and difficult moments in a campaign: Debating, filing to run, and "figuring out how to say thank you is just very difficult."
"You can't say thank you without first saying 'thank you' to my family," he said, flanked by his wife, Sue Snarr, and several children and grandchildren. "In those moments when I was trying to decide if I was going to do this, the loudest voices came from my family, and the loudest voice in my family was Sue. So, thank you, I love you all. I have the best family in the world."
Wilson was quick to concede the race to Curtis, congratulating the congressman in a post on social media. Walton also called the congressman shortly after the race was called.
"I congratulate John Curtis on winning the nomination," Wilson said. "It's been a wonderful experience to campaign across the state and meet so many incredible people along the way. I'd like to thank my family, especially my wife Jeni, for being by my side the entire time. I also extend a heartfelt thanks to all the friends and supporters who worked hard to spread our message. I look forward to supporting our Republican nominee as we work together to protect the Utah Way and defend our values for generations to come."
Staggs did not issue a statement on election night, and his campaign could not be reached for comment Tuesday evening or Wednesday. At his own watch party, he was reportedly not present when the first results were announced, then stood in a hallway without speaking to attendees or press before leaving for the evening.
Staggs issued a statement Thursday morning thanking his family and supporters, while expressing concern about the amount of money spent in support of Curtis in the campaign, though he didn't mention Curtis by name or congratulate the victor.
"It is concerning to me the outsized influence money plays in politics generally, and what we witnessed here in Utah with this election. We were outspent by well over $10 million, with an additional $2 million spent attacking me directly with all manner of falsehoods and dishonesty. We need to reform this system," Staggs said. "My family and I are uncertain what God has in store for us next, but trust in Him. I pray that our nation will return to its founding principles once again, and that the next Senator from Utah will represent me, my family, community and state with honor."
Curtis' win is a blow to the kingmaker status of former Republican President Donald Trump, who endorsed Staggs ahead of the GOP nominating convention in April. Curtis ran a campaign as a more traditional conservative, and his win shows there is still a large constituency of Republicans in Utah who favor that style as opposed to the "Make America Great Again" platform adopted by Staggs.
Romney, whose vacant seat Curtis is running for, described Curtis as "a man of honor and integrity who cares deeply about our fellow citizens and the future of our country."
"We need more leaders like him," the senator posted on X. "Utahns will be very fortunate to have him represent our state in the Senate next year."
Utah Sen. Mike Lee stopped by Curtis' campaign party shortly after dusk to congratulate his likely-to-be new colleague.
"This is going to be fun," Lee could be heard telling Curtis.
Curtis replied: "Teach me everything."
Lee issued a congratulatory social media post Tuesday evening, saying he will "be honored to work with (Curtis) to defend freedom and strengthen America when he becomes our next Senator. He also ensures that Utah has the strongest sock game in the Senate," an apparent reference to Curtis' habit of collecting socks.
After securing the Republican nomination, Curtis will go on to face Caroline Gleich, a professional ski mountaineer, in the November general election. Gleich won the Democratic nomination at convention in April.
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