John Curtis arrived in the Senate just 16 months ago. He’s already eyeing a possible move back home.
The Utah Republican’s inner circle is actively canvassing donors and allies in Utah to gauge support for a gubernatorial bid in 2028, according to six people involved with or briefed on the discussions. They were granted anonymity to detail private conversations. His allies have asked donors in recent months to hold off on supporting other gubernatorial candidates until Curtis makes up his mind. And his chief of staff has said his boss is keeping the door open.
“John Curtis is going to serve where the people of Utah want him to serve,” Corey Norman, Curtis’ chief of staff, told POLITICO.
Curtis, who replaced former Sen. Mitt Romney (R-Utah) last year, has a reputation as a pragmatic dealmaker and moderate voice from his three terms in the U.S. House. But after seeing Washington grow increasingly polarized during his decade there, the former mayor and business executive may see the benefits of returning home.
“He doesn’t love being in the Senate,” said a Utah Republican operative who has discussed Curtis’ political future with him. “Trump’s MAGA base sees him as one of the four squishiest Republicans. He’s basically Mitt without the stature.”
The timing of Curtis’ exploration is tethered to former GOP Rep. Jason Chaffetz, who is quietly attempting to clear the 2028 gubernatorial field for himself since Utah Gov. Spencer Cox announced he wouldn’t seek a third term.
A potential Chaffetz-Curtis primary in 2028 would likely mirror the Republican Party’s own ideological battles as it enters its first presidential election without Trump on the ballot in over a decade. Chaffetz is one of the Trump administration’s staunchest defenders on Fox News; Curtis is a self-described “Reagan Republican” and occasional Trump critic more in the mold of his predecessor, Romney.
Earlier this year, as Chaffetz began asking Utah donors and elected officials to back him, Curtis received an influx of inquiries about a run of his own, according to two people close to the senator, granted anonymity to discuss private conversations. Curtis first rebuffed the proddings; now, he is actively exploring it.
“The first time I asked John about this, and the third and fourth and fifth time, his answer was, ‘Have I said hell no lately?’” said one longtime friend. “And now his response has changed dramatically.”
Just in the last few weeks, the friend said, “there has been a very meaningful change in his thinking.”
The ad-hoc team of advisers, friends and longtime allies that are now canvassing donors have a goal of securing $10 million in pledges. Curtis’ current outlook, a second longtime friend said, is, “If there’s a pathway forward and I felt like it was clear to me that citizens wanted me to do it, then I would do it.”
Curtis, an avid outdoorsman and practicing Latter-day Saint, went on a retreat in the mountains recently to pray and meditate about running, according to the first longtime friend. Now Curtis is planning a 250-mile solo walk across the state to honor the U.S.’ 250th anniversary, concluding on July 4 in Provo, Utah, a second person close to the senator said. The walk will give Curtis additional time to meditate on his political future.
Meanwhile, Chaffetz, who Curtis replaced in the U.S. House when the former left Congress for a gig on Fox News, is holding regular meetings with local lawmakers and donors across the state to ask for their support, and he’s begun transferring funds from a federal PAC to a state PAC.
“His pitch is that he is the likely nominee and he invites them to get in early while they still can,” said a second longtime Utah GOP operative who hasn’t chosen sides in the potential primary, granted anonymity to discuss the topic openly. “You can tell from his finance disclosures that he has had limited success on that front.” Chaffetz did not respond to a request for comment.
Keeping the door open now may be an attempt to avoid repeating past mistakes: Curtis initially vowed he wouldn’t run for Romney’s seat, but he changed his mind and made a late entry into the 2024 GOP primary field after being urged to run by Utah donors, politicos and Romney allies. It was a tough fight, as former Utah House Speaker Brad Wilson and others had already locked up supporters across the state. But Curtis rallied and garnered over 50 percent of the vote in a crowded primary.
“He’s not going to cede early ground to Chaffetz like he did to Wilson in the Senate race,” the second Utah GOP political operative said. “It’s now to the point where I would be surprised if Curtis doesn’t run.”
Curtis entered the Senate in 2025 amid much fanfare among Trump-skeptical Republicans who hoped he would fill the role of his predecessor, Romney, as a frequent critic of and check on the president. Curtis had earned a reputation during his time in the House as a China hawk and a rare Republican voice supporting conservation, as founder of the House’s Conservative Climate Caucus. He was one of the most effective House members, passing 27 bills during his three terms.
But the Senate has proved to be a difficult place for a consensus-minded pragmatist like Curtis. He failed to get a seat on the Energy and Natural Resources Committee which his fellow Utahn, Sen. Mike Lee, chairs. Though he bucked the Trump administration on several occasions — he was credited with torpedoing several Trump nominees, and he fought to protect clean energy tax credits in the One Beautiful Bill Act — he voted in line with Trump 100% of the time in 2025, per VoteHub’s tally. (He eventually relented and voted for the reconciliation package — with a gradual rollback of some credits included.)
Curtis often tells allies his favorite job was as mayor of Provo, Utah, where he could enact change as the city’s nonpartisan chief executive, according to two other people close to the senator.
Norman, the senator’s longtime chief of staff, has made the rounds on local media hinting that his boss is open to a run for governor. During an appearance on KSL NewsRadio on April 9, he said his boss “hasn’t said yes, he hasn’t said no.” During an interview with ABC4 that aired Sunday, Norman was more blunt: “He is an executive problem solver at heart, and in my opinion, he would make an exceptional governor.”
Curtis could retain his seat in the U.S. Senate while running for governor. If he wins, he would select his successor from three options provided by the state legislature.
There is a growing contingent of Utah politicos who want him in the governor’s mansion.
“Chaffetz is the only one out there right now and folks are looking for an alternative that has the ability to beat him,” said a third Utah GOP operative, granted anonymity to speak openly. “It just sucks that he’s forcing the field to start so early. A two-plus year run for governor is absurd.”
Curtis’ openness about the possibility of a gubernatorial run — a full two-and-a-half years before November 2028 — is rankling some allies. The topic arose at a wedding for Romney’s grandson last week, where Romney’s allies and former staffers mingled. They acknowledged Curtis would make a good governor but wanted to see him finish out his term in the Senate, according to one individual present, granted anonymity to discuss a private conversation.
But all were frustrated by Curtis’ team signaling at his intentions this early in the cycle. “It’s pretty early to leak it all out,” the person said. “Way too early.”