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Rep. John Curtis made his much-rumored intentions to fill Mitt Romney’s Senate seat official Tuesday. He will file paperwork with the state Wednesday morning.

Curtis, who was elected to represent Utah’s 3rd Congressional District in 2017, joins former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs — who both filed their declaration of candidacy Tuesday — conservative activist Carolyn Phippen and Brent Hatch, son of late Sen. Orrin Hatch, as well as several others, in what is gearing up to be a hotly contested Republican primary to replace Romney.

“The voices just kept growing in numbers and in volume. And to be honest one of those voices was my wife and my children,” Curtis said Thursday in an interview with the Deseret News, in anticipation of his planned announcement. “So I eventually started to ask myself the question ‘Did I rush into that decision?’”

Wilson, Staggs make Senate runs official, say their messages won’t change as Curtis enters the race to replace Romney

Former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and Riverton Mayor Trent Staggs said Tuesday that their Senate campaign strategies will remain unchanged as Rep. John Curtis jumps in.

The two Republican candidates formalized their bids for Sen. Mitt Romney’s soon-to-be vacant seat on Tuesday in the board room at Utah’s Capitol Building. Staggs was joined by his wife and two children while Wilson was joined by family, paid staff and volunteers toting signs and matching shirts.

Brad Wilson: "This is about who is going to be the conservative fighter back in D.C., representing Utah’s values of strong families and small government and low taxes."

Trent Staggs: “I believe I’m the only America first, true conservative candidate in this race.”

Read more about what Brad Wilson and Trent Staggs said.

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Join us Jan. 31 for an exciting evening featuring Carlos Boozer. Hear his captivating story and a lively Q&A session, as well as a memorable photo opportunity. Purchase tickets today.

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Big 12 preview: Can surprising BYU become a factor in best college basketball conference in America?

At the Big 12 basketball media days in mid-October, incoming BYU was merely an afterthought in Kansas City, and for good reason.

Coming off a lackluster final season in the West Coast Conference and with only a couple of additions from the transfer portal, BYU was picked to finish 13th in the 14-team league, and many wondered aloud, including reporters at this news outlet, whether coach Mark Pope’s fifth squad in Provo was capable of winning more than a handful of conference contests.

BYU, an astounding No. 2 in the NET rankings, No. 3 in Kenpom.com and No. 12 in The Associated Press Top 25 as of Tuesday afternoon, is easily the biggest surprise in the league after two months of games against lesser competition. Kansas (12-1), Houston (13-0), Texas (11-2), Baylor (11-2) and TCU (11-2) have been as good as advertised after being picked to finish in that order in the preseason coaches poll.

Read more about whether the BYU Cougars are a legitimate contender, or the product of a cupcake-laden nonconference schedule.

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