It's not clear whether Mitt Romney is headed to Park City next month
Republicans expect he would get warm reception, but a stop is not planned yet
Posted: 05/08/2012 04:27:28 PM MDT
Mitt Romney, the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, is headed to Utah next month on a fundraising trip, but it is not clear whether he will visit Park City.
Romney is believed to have widespread support among Republicans in Park City and surrounding Summit County, and there could be a contingent of people from the area at the event in Salt Lake City.
The former Massachusetts governor once owned a home in Park City and he was widely praised locally for his leadership of the 2002 Winter Olympics, when upward of 50 percent of the events were held in or around Park City.
Henry Glasheen, the chairman of the Summit County Republican Party, said on Monday he had not been informed that Romney would be making a stop in the Park City area. He said he planned to contact the state party as early as Tuesday about the prospects of an event featuring Romney being held locally, saying he "would absolutely love" to host Romney in the county.
"I think he would actually get a warm reception, would raise money here easily," Glasheen said.
He said any event held in Summit County would be private. Glasheen said there have been a few fundraisers for Romney in the Park City area during this year's election cycle. He said they have been "very successful."
"He's going to be the next president. I think it would be great for Park City," Glasheen said of a visit to the city next month.
A Republican National Committeeman who lives in Park City, Bruce Hough, said on Monday he suspects Romney will not stop in Park City during the visit to Utah. He has not heard talk of a local visit.
"Coming into the state is just fine," Hough said, adding, "It's a privilege to just have him in the state."
Hough said Romney has the ability to raise a significant amount of money in the state given his popularity among Utahns.
Romney was a Park City homeowner in the years before the Olympics and later sold the Rising Star Lane mansion. Some Parkites likely recall random encounters with Romney or his wife, Ann, in Park City in that era.
Romney is expected to carry Utah by a wide margin on Election Day. The results in Summit County, though, are anticipated to be closer than the statewide tally given the Democratic leanings in the area.
The Park City area has been a popular place for fundraisers by presidential campaigns in the 2008 and 2012 election cycles. Some of the top names to visit have been Barack Obama, Michelle Obama, Jon Huntsman, Rudy Giuliani and George W. Bush. The visit by Barack Obama, which took place months before he secured the Democratic nomination in 2008, was especially notable as he held a well-attended rally in a parking lot off S.R. 224 alongside a fundraiser at a private residence.
Summit County Sheriff Dave Edmunds and Park City Police Chief Wade Carpenter said Tuesday their respective agencies have not been contacted about a Romney visit. Both agencies would be expected to have a role in protecting the candidate if he visits Park City.
Derrik Carlson
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