Republican Rep. John Curtis appears poised to become Utah’s next senator after winning Tuesday night’s primary against right-wing candidate Trent Staggs.
After an expected victory in the primaries, Curtis now heads to the general election in November, where he should slide to victory: Former President Donald Trump won the state in 2020 by more than 20 points.
Despite having the weight of Trump behind him, Staggs failed to secure a victory on Tuesday, a blow to the ex-president’s record.
Staggs once headed a company that was shut down after the FDA alleged it had improperly marketed its “natural” Viagra product, DailyMail.com exclusively revealed.
A win for Curtis will make Utah’s Senate seat more like that held by Republican Senator Mitt Romney, rather than a “Trumpy” leader.
Despite having the weight of Trump behind him, Staggs failed to secure a victory on Tuesday, dealing a blow to the ex-president’s record
Romney governed with a seemingly lost focus on trimming the national debt, shrinking government and supporting foreign allies.
Romney, the Republican Party’s 2012 presidential nominee, has long been at odds with Trump.
DailyMail.com previously reported that Staggs, a member of the Mormon church, was once asked to lead a company that was shut down after the FDA alleged it had improperly marketed its “natural” Viagra product.
Staggs called himself a “classic Utah success story” and his website states that he has “more than 20 years of experience leading and managing successful Fortune 500 companies to small and medium-sized enterprises.”
But Staggs took over as president of the soon-to-be-defunct Regeneca company in 2015.
The company had to recall its erectile dysfunction drug, RegenErect, three years earlier after the FDA claimed the so-called “natural” product contained regular Cialis and Viagra, which they had not disclosed. This potentially put users at risk of fatal health problems.
U.S. Rep. John Curtis speaks during the Utah Senate primary debate
Staggs took over as president of the soon-to-be-defunct company Regeneca in 2015
The FDA also claimed that the company’s weight-loss supplement, which was marketed as “all-natural,” was actually just amphetamine — a stimulant drug.
Staggs noted that he was not the leader of the company when it sold the erectile dysfunction drugs, and that he was brought in to turn things around.
“All of these issues, which predate my arrival, are exactly why they brought me into the company as interim president. The owners needed someone to evaluate the business and see if there was a way forward,” he told DailyMail.com in a statement.