The general election was won by Mitt Romney, who had been the Republican nominee for president in 2012 and previously was the 70th governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007.

Romney became only the third person in American history to be elected governor and U.S. senator in different states, and the first former major party presidential nominee to run for a new office since Walter Mondale in 2002.

[2] Utah's 2018 U.S. Senate candidates had dual routes toward placement on the primary election ballot: (1) eligibility via win or second-place showings at a convention of delegates selected from party local caucuses; and/or (2) eligibility via obtaining sufficient petition signatures.

Taking the traditional route, the top two candidates for the U.S. Senate at any of the party state conventions (to be held in the latter part of April, 2018) would be placed on the June 26 primary election ballot.

Hatch initially announced a re-election campaign on March 9, 2017,[5][6][7][8] though he also said at that time that he might withdraw from the race if Mitt Romney decided to run.