After Hatch nabs nomination, Lee ready to en..

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2012, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

Sen. Mike Lee sat on his hands during Sen. Orrin Hatch's fight to win the Republican nomination and Lee's Chief of Staff Spencer Stokes even told reporters earlier this year that he thought Hatch would lose.

Turns out Stokes was way off.

Hatch trounced former state Sen. Dan Liljenquist in the primary Tuesday. Early Wednesday, hours after the polls closed, Lee said he's ready to support his Senate colleague, though he couched it as an endorsement for the entire Republican slate.

"Congratulations to all of Utah's Republican nominees," Lee said. "Now that the field is set, I am pleased to endorse and support Sen. Orrin Hatch in the Senate race and Rep. Rob Bishop, Rep. Jason Chaffetz, Mayor Mia Love, and Chris Stewart in their respective House races. I look forward to working with each of them in Congress on issues critical to moving Utah and our great nation forward."

— Matt CanhamTwitter: @mattcanham

After Hatch nabs nomination, Lee ready to endorse