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Mitt Romney Will Headline Two Conferences This Week, But Will He Announce?

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Former Vice President Joe Biden talks with Mitt Romney at his annual leadership summit in June 2017.

Mitt Romney will be making two public appearances in Utah this week — as speculation over his political future reaches a fever pitch. 

Romney will be a keynote speaker at the Salt Lake Chamber's annual Utah Economic Outlook and Policy Summit on Tuesday at 11 a.m. at the Salt Lake City Marriott.

Later in the week, on Friday, he will speak at the annual tech summit hosted by Silicon Slopes alongside other big names like Sen. Jeff Flake of Arizona and Gov. Gary Herbert. That event begins at 9 a.m. and is open only to registered members of the conference. 

The former GOP presidential nominee has kept mostly mum on the topic of his political plans after Utah's longtime Sen. Orrin Hatch announced his retirement at the beginning of the month. 

But in a New York Times article published Sunday, Romney has reportedly begun telling friends he plans to run for the open Senate seat later this year. 

Kem Gardner, a Utah real estate developer, told the Times that he'd received a text message from Romney that simply said: "I'm running." 

The report also said many Utah Republicans have mixed feelings about how a possible Senator Romney should handle his relationship with President Trump — if elected. In the past, Romney has been more critical of Trump's character. 

The article quotes House Speaker Greg Hughes saying Romney should be an ally to the president. But Lt. Gov. Spencer Cox is quoted saying Romney could be more of a check to the executive branch, considering Trump's lukewarm popularity in Utah.

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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