State Sen. Curt Bramble, R-Provo, withdrew as a candidate in District 24 Monday, but plans to serve the remainder of his four-year term in the Utah Legislature.
“After careful consideration, having served for 24 years, it’s time to move on,” Bramble told the Deseret News. He said he filed for reelection in January to keep his “options open,” noting this is the first year candidates had to declare before the start of the state’s annual 45-day session of the Utah Legislature.
Bramble, 70, said he and his wife of 46 years, Susan, had been talking about whether he should run again for several months and “felt we ought to look at other challenges.” The couple have six children and 20 grandchildren, including a 20-year-old granddaughter who’s “never known a grandfather who wasn’t a senator. That’s kind of sobering.”
During the 2024 Legislature, Bramble sponsored SB240, seen as spelling out that the schedules of elected officials aren’t available through Utah’s open records law in the future, after a judge ordered Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes to release his work calendar to KSL and the public.
Among the highlights of his state Senate career cited by Bramble was receiving Utah’s GRAMA Watch’s “Shining Light” Award in 2012 for sponsoring a bill seen as improving the Government Records Access and Management Act, known as GRAMA.
He is likely best known for a law passed in 2014 that allowed candidates to bypass Utah’s unique caucus and convention system to get on a primary election ballot by gathering voter signatures. Still referred to as SB54, Bramble’s legislation has been repeatedly targeted by some in his party.
The former Senate majority leader “is an icon and dedicated lawmaker,” Senate President Stuart Adams, R-Layton, said in a statement. “He never backs away from tackling challenging issues and works tirelessly to find solutions to complex issues.”
Adams said the expertise that Bramble, a certified public accountant, brings to the Legislature “has helped our state implement tax policies that have spurred economic success.” The Senate leader added, “I appreciate and commend Sen. Bramble’s commitment and many years of service. The Senate and Legislature will feel his absence.”
Bramble’s decision not to continue his bid for reelection leaves three other Republican candidates in the race, state Rep. Keven Stratton, R-Orem, and two former state lawmakers, Dan Hemmert, who served in the Senate, and Brad Daw, who served in the House. David Hinckley of the Utah Forward Party is also a candidate.
Bramble said he is not endorsing a candidate but is “confident that District 24′s constituents will be well represented in my absence.” He said he is “committed to finishing my term strong and representing my constituents throughout the interim,” calling his time in the state Senate “an extraordinary chapter of my life and one I will always be grateful for.”
His term ends Dec. 31.