Utah state Sen. Dan Hemmert, who was by far the best-funded Republican in the race to take on Democratic Rep. Ben McAdams in the state’s competitive 4th Congressional District, announced Monday that he was dropping out of the race. Hemmert, who is now seeking re-election to his current post, said that he was leaving the congressional contest for reasons related to his business.
Hemmert began his campaign back in August by describing how the Trump administration’s tariffs had hurt his chain of dry cleaners, which was certainly a weird way to enter a race for the GOP nomination. However, Hemmert quickly stood out in the crowded field, and he was the one contender listed on the NRCC’s Young Guns page by the time he dropped out. (The NRCC even took a while to remove his name on Monday.)
The only GOP candidate besides Hemmert who had six figures to spend at the end of September was former state GOP communications director Kathleen Anderson, who had $100,000 in the bank thanks mostly to self-funding. However, the GOP has a large bench in the Salt Lake City suburbs, and other local politicians may take a new look at this race now that Hemmert is out.
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