SALT LAKE CITY — Utah's race for governor may be lukewarm at best right now, but just wait — by fall, it could be red-hot.
Really.
Currently, of course, it's GOP Sen. Bob Bennett's battle to stay in office that's generating political heat in Utah. The fight for the Senate seat will, however, cool down considerably once the Republican nominee is decided.
Not so when it comes to who will fill out the remainder of former Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.'s second term. Unlike the most recent gubernatorial election just two years ago, it's shaping up to be a multimillion-dollar contest that's already attracting national interest.
That's because even though Utah is one of the most Republican states in the nation, GOP Gov. Gary Herbert is facing a serious challenge from Democratic Salt Lake County Mayor Peter Corroon.
"There's a lot of uncertainties there," University of Utah political science professor Matthew Burbank said. The governor, Burbank said, has never run for the office before. "There's some question about how Republicans feel about him," he said.
Corroon, though, represents "the best chance in recent memory of grabbing the governorship" for Democrats, Burbank said. "He's about as well-known as a Democratic elected official is going to be in this state."
The part of the race the public sees, including advertising and candidate debates, isn't expected to get under way until around Labor Day, the traditional start for general election campaigns. The work now is largely behind the scenes.
Both candidates already have opened campaign headquarters in downtown Salt Lake City and are filling them with paid staffers and volunteers, yard signs and placards, and, most importantly, telephones and voter lists to reach potential supporters.
Herbert, already elected twice as Huntsman's lieutenant governor, still has to formally secure his party's nomination at next month's state convention over several minor candidates. Corroon has no opposition from within his party.
At Herbert's campaign headquarters in a warehouse-like space tucked under the Wells Fargo office building parking lot on 300 South near Main Street, workers are focused on lining up delegates for the state convention to ensure his nomination goes smoothly.
On a recent weekday morning, two staffers quietly made calls to delegates and donors and a pair of volunteers stacked yard signs while campaign manager Joseph Demma assured a reporter that the governor is taking nothing for granted.
Sitting at a desk covered by papers and a few books, including one by Democratic President Barack Obama's campaign manager, Demma tries to downplay any suggestion the race could spark real friction between the candidates.
"I don't anticipate a lot of heat, but I do anticipate a lot of debate and dialogue," Demma said. "I don't think the race for governor is the place for playing back-biting politics."
Corroon's campaign manager, Donald Dunn, also prefers to talk about the race only in positive terms.
"Utahns don't like negative campaigning," Dunn said from his crowded office at Corroon's headquarters, located on two floors of a small South Temple office building next to a Thai restaurant. "It'll be a professional, above-the-board gentlemen's campaign."
Of course, just in case they do need to fight it out in front of the electorate, their campaign coffers are filling nicely. The candidates already have raised a combined total of more than $2 million so far — about $1.3 million for Herbert and just under $800,000 for Corroon.
Demma predicts the race will end up costing each candidate some $3 million, close to what Huntsman spent in 2004. While Demma said Herbert isn't expecting any help from outside the state, Utah Democrats are hoping for some national resources.
The Democratic Governors Association in Washington, D.C., is taking a close look at the race. "We definitely think that the mayor is a strong candidate," association spokeswoman Emily DeRose said.
But the governor's race in Utah is just one of 37 nationwide. Unlike most states, Utah elects its governors in presidential election years. But when Huntsman resigned to become U.S. ambassador to China last summer, he triggered a new state constitutional amendment that requires a special election.
DeRose noted other Western states that are traditionally Republican now have Democratic governors, including Montana and Wyoming. "I think there is an opportunity for us," she said, adding it's too early to say what the association's involvement might be.
The governor collected $1 million in just one night during his first annual Governor's Gala fundraiser last fall. Utah doesn't permit sitting governors to raise money during the legislative session or the time afterward to sign or veto bills.
Herbert will soon be spending several days a week in the campaign office, making calls to donors. A tiny closet-like office now used for storage that's not visible from the street will be cleaned up for the governor, Demma said.
Corroon was already busy dialing for dollars at his campaign headquarters on a recent weekday afternoon. The mayor had enough success that Dunn had to hand over a special treat — a piece of beef jerky from a stash inside a cabinet jammed with snacks. "Like a dog," Dunn joked.
Corroon's headquarters bustled with staffers moving around the warren of offices, including a bank of cubicles set up under a sign reading "Days Until the Election" that hadn't been updated for a week.
While Herbert's headquarters was more low key, his staff has kept the governor busy on the campaign trail. He'll have attended 27 of the 29 GOP county conventions, Demma said, making time for anyone who wants to meet the governor.
For Dunn, the race is all about one of his earliest political lessons, learned from an uncle, Democrat Stewart Hansen, who made an unsuccessful bid to become governor. The winner of the 1992 race, Republican Mike Leavitt, didn't spend as much time as Hansen had getting out and meeting voters around the state.
When Hansen asked why, Dunn said he was told that Leavitt instead chose to use the time to raise the money he needed to win.
Burbank said there's no question Corroon has an uphill battle. But it's a race that will fire up voters in a state that struggles to field viable Democratic candidates.
"In lots and lots of statewide races, there's not much competition at all," Burbank said. "That's what I think makes this Utah governor's race more interesting."
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