Romney’s potential rival amasses $2M+ post exploratory committee launch.

Exciting Race Brewing for Utah Senate Seat

Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) hasn’t officially announced whether he will run for a second term, but if he does run, he may have a well-known and well-financed primary opponent in Utah state Rep. Brad Wilson, speaker of the Utah House of Representatives.

In April, Mr. Wilson announced that he is exploring a run for the U.S. Senate in 2024.

On Tuesday, Mr. Wilson’s exploratory committee released a statement touting its fundraising success and the efforts of Mr. Wilson to listen and engage with the people of Utah to help inform him as he considers whether to run.

Mr. Wilson, a successful real estate developer, may be moving closer to committing to taking on Mr. Romney, who has lost support among conservatives, many of whom are angered that he twice voted to remove former President Donald Trump from office.

Mr. Wilson, 54, was elected to the Utah House of Representatives in 2010. He has served as speaker since 2019 and has a record as a prolific and successful fundraiser.

“Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson announced today he raised over two million dollars in his first quarter since launching his exploratory committee to consider a run for the U.S. Senate in 2024,” Mr. Wilson’s committee said in a statement.

“Wilson’s impressive haul sets a new fundraising record in Utah for the first quarter for a GOP U.S. Senate candidate or potential candidate for both total raised from donors and total contributions on the first quarterly report,” the committee said.

Candidate Finances

The statement broke down the fundraising numbers: total money raised ($2,218,586), donations from donors ($1,018,586), percentage from Utah (94 percent), cash on hand (more than $2.1 million), and a personal loan ($1.2 million).

The Wilson committee emphasized that 94 percent of contributions to Mr. Wilson’s nascent campaign are from within the state of Utah.

The Romney campaign has $600,000 on hand. Mr. Romney, 76, is also a capable fundraiser and can call on his immense personal wealth, estimated at $300 million, according to Deseret News.

Deseret News and the Hinckley Institute of Politics released a poll in June showing that Mr. Romney has lost the support of Utah voters in 2023.

The poll showed that 41 percent of voters said they approved of Mr. Romney’s performance; 49 percent said they disapproved, and 10 percent said they didn’t know.

These numbers represent a drop of 11 points since March when another poll from