Jason Chaffetz has ruled out running for governor of Utah after saying he was a “definite maybe” as a candidate.
“I am not going to be a candidate for governor in the 2020 Utah race,” the former Republican congressman said, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. “I think at some point I may have another run or two in me, but it won’t be for governor in Utah [next year].”
Chaffetz resigned from the House in 2017, months into his fifth term in the lower chamber, and joined Fox News as a contributor. He published a book in 2018 titled The Deep State: How an Army of Bureaucrats Protected Barack Obama and Is Working to Destroy the Trump Agenda. He has another book coming out this year.
Chaffetz said he seriously considered entering the race but his position at Fox News and his books were factors in deciding not to run.
Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox, a Republican, announced in May that he would run for governor. Chaffetz and Cox were considered front-runners in a Republican primary race.
A Salt Lake Tribune and Hinckley Institute of Politics poll showed Republicans were almost evenly divided in their support for the two men. Twenty-eight percent chose Cox while 27% backed Chaffetz.
