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Ted Cruz To Stump For Herrod As Gov. Herbert Endorses Curtis In 3rd District Race

Brian Grimmett
Ted Cruz during a Salt Lake visit in March 2016. He'll be returning to Utah to endorse former state lawmaker Chris Herrod for Congress.

Republican Sen. Ted Cruz is coming to Utah to endorse 3rd Congressional District candidate Chris Herrod as Gov. Gary Herbert throws his support behind Herrod’s main challenger.

Cruz will be coming toLehi this Saturday, July 29 to campaign for Herrod, who’s running to replace former Rep. Jason Chaffetz.

Herrod picked up Cruz’s endorsement last month in addition to Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky. Herrod, a former state lawmaker, helped direct the Utah campaign of Sen. Cruz, who won the state's Republican presidential caucus by a large margin.

The visit comes as Herrod’s primary challenger, Provo Mayor John Curtis, picked up a big endorsement Tuesday from Gov. Gary Herbert.

In a statement, Herbert said Curtis would get things done in Washington and is a proven conservative leader.

Curtis is considered the frontrunner in the GOP race over both Herrod and investment adviser Tanner Ainge.

Ainge has also picked up several endorsements from Republican state lawmakers within the district, including longtime Sen. Howard Stephenson, R-Draper.

Endorsements can help candidates bolster their party credentials while increasing media exposure and voter turnout.

The three GOP candidates have been angling for endorsements that spotlight their conservative bonafides.

The winner of next month’s primary will face off against Democrat Kathie Allen on November 7.

Julia joined KUER in 2016 after a year reporting at the NPR member station in Reno, Nev. During her stint, she covered battleground politics, school overcrowding, and any story that would take her to the crystal blue shores of Lake Tahoe. Her work earned her two regional Edward R. Murrow awards. Originally from the mountains of Western North Carolina, Julia graduated from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2008 with a degree in journalism. She’s worked as both a print and radio reporter in several states and several countries — from the 2008 Beijing Olympics to Dakar, Senegal. Her curiosity about the American West led her to take a spontaneous, one-way road trip to the Great Basin, where she intends to continue preaching the gospel of community journalism, public radio and podcasting. In her spare time, you’ll find her hanging with her beagle Bodhi, taking pictures of her food and watching Patrick Swayze movies.
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