(UnitedVoice.com) – In 2018, Republican Mitt Romney won the Utah Senate race with 63% of the vote after then-President Donald Trump endorsed him. The good relationship between the senator and POTUS didn’t last long, and eventually, the GOP started turning against Romney. After just one term, the lawmaker is retiring.
On September 13, Romney announced he would not be running for reelection. The announcement first came in an interview published by The Washington Post. He told the newspaper that he feels his party is attracted to a “populist demagogue message.” In other words, he accused Republican voters of casting ballots for people who don’t have any real desire to solve issues but want to cause problems.
In his official statement to Utah voters, Romney said he was pleased with the work he accomplished during his first term, including helping to pass the bipartisan infrastructure bill, gun safety, and the Electoral Count Act reform. He also praised himself for the funding to modernize nuclear deterrents with a program implemented at Utah’s Hill Air Force Base. The senator pointed out that he’d helped get more funding for research into the Great Salt Lake, wildfire prevention, and other issues residents of the state believe are important.
Romney slammed President Joe Biden and former President Trump, saying neither one is leading their parties to confront issues such as Russia, China, and the ever-increasing national debt. Ultimately, he explained that he believes younger people need to fill the leadership roles in Congress because they should “make the decisions that will shape the world they will be living in.”
The senator’s remarks about age are a concern for many Americans. Romney is currently 76 years old and would be in his 80s when he leaves office after a second term if he ran again. Biden is in his early 80s, Trump is in his late 70s, and the Senate’s average age is 64 years. Romney will serve the rest of his term and leave in January 2025.
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