AP calls Utah Senate race: Curtis to replace Romney

The race to replace Utah Sen. Mitt Romney was called for 3rd District Congressman John Curtis by The Associated Press shortly after polls closed on Tuesday.
Curtis won Utah’s open Senate seat showdown by nearly 25 percentage points against his Democratic contender Caroline Gleich, with only some precincts reporting. As of 10:40 p.m. on Tuesday night, vote totals showed Curtis with 59.7%% of the vote, Gleich with 35.7% and Independent American candidate Carlton Bowen with 4.6%.
Curtis celebrated the victory with a rowdy party in the Provo Recreation Center with a few hundred supporters. Attendees, which included family, former constituents and state lawmakers, were treated to a live concert and children’s activities before Curtis took the stage around 8:10 p.m. to deliver his remarks. Minutes earlier, Gleich had called to concede
“Don’t bother telling me that we can’t fix immigration or the budget. I believe we can,” Curtis said on a stage surrounded by his family. “Together we will make Washington more like Utah and America more like what our kids need it to be.”
It was fitting for Curtis’ victory celebration to take place in Provo — his district’s largest population center, and the site of his first experience in elected office. Curtis served as mayor of Utah’s fourth most populous city from 2010 to his election to Congress in a 2017 special election to fill a vacancy left by former Rep. Jason Chaffetz.
Romney, who announced he would not be seeking reeleciton in September 2023, congratulated his successor in a post on X an hour after the race was called for Curtis.
“John Curtis has admirably represented the interests of Utahns in the House, and I have no doubt he will continue to do so in the Senate,” Romney said. “Our country needs more leaders like him — a man of honor and integrity who puts others before himself.”
During his time in Congress, Curtis has passed 20 bills into law, making him one of the most productive lawmakers in the country. Laws sponsored by Curtis include the Emery County Public Land Management Act — which established new public recreation spaces and transferred thousands of acres of federal land to Utah — and the Advanced Nuclear Reactor Prize Act — which award grants to cover regulatory fees to incentivize new nuclear projects.
Former Green River Mayor Travis Bacon, who was in attendance, said he appreciated Curtis’ consistent principles and openness to collaboration.
“John is a core conservative. There’s no doubt about that. But the thing about John Curtis is he knows how to compromise,” said Bacon, who voted for former President Donald Trump this year. “I think John is a consensus builder. I think he’ll work great with President Trump. I don’t expect him to be in lockstep with President Trump. But John is his own man and he does what’s right no matter party pressure.”
Curtis has made a name for himself among the 435 members of the U.S. House of Representatives by creating the Conservative Climate Caucus in 2021, which has quickly grown to be one of the largest groups in the House, with the goal of giving Republicans a seat at the table in environmental discussions that don’t demonize fossil fuels, but rather focus on energy innovation.
Draper resident Phil Goold, who wrote in Nikki Haley for president, appreciates how Curtis has brought Republicans to the table on climate discussions.
“John’s led out on climate change so that we’re we have a voice in what laws get passed,” Goold said. “There’s the show horses and the work horses. He’s a work horse. He gets stuff done.”
Gleich, an outdoors influencer and environmental activist, has criticized Curtis for not supporting massive green energy bills, like the Inflation Reduction Act, and for receiving campaign contributions from oil and electric companies. During a televised debate, Gleich made her pitch that the youngest state in the nation needs to send a new generation of leaders to Congress that will take the “climate crisis” seriously.
In a prepared statement, Gleich said running for U.S. Senate was the “most challenging” thing she had ever done. She expressed disappointment in the outcome while thanking campaign volunteers for their hard work.
“While the result was not what we had hoped, we focused on critical issues: climate action, public lands and reproductive freedom,” Gleich said. “Congratulations, Rep. Curtis. Throughout the campaign, Rep. Curtis promised to take action on climate, and I look forward to working with him and other legislators on protecting our environment and supporting policies for our families, freedom and future.”
Curtis told the Deseret News during an extended interview while hiking the Lake Mary Trail that approaching climate change as a crisis pushes consensus solutions out of reach. But Curtis thinks the word “crisis” does apply to the nation’s ballooning debt, which now approaches $36 trillion, and foreign relations, with conflicts looming or growing in Eastern Europe, the Middle East and China.
If elected to the Senate, Curtis said he would prioritize reforming the budget process to incentivize a return to regular order spending bills instead of last minute omnibus packages, and making sure the country’s defense is better equipped to handle cyberattacks and the potential invasion of Taiwan.
Curtis will enter a likely Republican majority in the Senate, along with Beehive State senior Sen. Mike Lee, in search of a new majority leader. Curtis previously told the Deseret News he is in “constant contact” with candidates for the position and that he is looking for a figure who can unite different factions within the GOP and avoid the dysfunction that has plagued the chamber Curtis has been a member of.
Curtis emerged from an extremely expensive and occasionally contentious primary race with a near majority of support in June. Curtis’ opponents, some of whom had spent millions of their own dollars in the race, accused Curtis of benefiting from large amounts of outside spending.
In his bid to replace Utah’s junior senator, Curtis has framed himself as a conservative with little loyalty to partisan labels. He has laid out a rubric of conditional support for Trump depending on whether he acts in favor of “Utah values.” Curtis defines these values as those of the state’s founding pioneers, including faith, hard work, self-reliance and a pragmatic approach to addressing poverty.
“Thank you, Utah. This journey has been about getting things done and ensuring that Utah values are represented in our nation’s Capital,” Curtis said in a prepared statement on Tuesday. “Your support shows we can address the major challenges ahead: managing public lands, holding China accountable, advancing our energy dominance, and always standing up for the principles that make Utah strong.”