Conservatives Oust Bob Bennett in Utah

There is a price to pay in 2010 for Republicans who spend too much time trying to compromise with Democrats:

Sen. Bob Bennett (R-UT) has lost the battle for a fourth term in office after delegates to the UT GOP convention refused to renominate him on Saturday, a highly-placed source with knowledge of the vote count tells Hotline OnCall.

Instead, GOPers will choose between attorney Mike Lee (R) and business consultant Tim Bridgewater (R), who will advance to a third ballot. If neither candidate receives 60% of the vote, they will face off in a June 22 primary.

On the first ballot, Lee led with 28.75%, followed by Bridgewater's 26.84%. Bennett finished third, with 25.91%. The remaining vote split among candidates who have openly opposed Bennett, making any comeback attempt a longshot to begin with.

Bennett, the 3-term incumbent with a largely conservative record, is the first victim of an angry GOP primary electorate, which is upset with his votes over TARP legislation and his work with Sen. Ron Wyden (D-OR) to try and forge a health care consensus. He had been targeted by the conservative Club for Growth, which did not back a specific rival but urged delegates to vote against the incumbent.

Though he had support from top GOP leaders -- he is a close ally and personal friend of Senate Min. Leader Mitch McConnell, and ex-MA Gov. Mitt Romney introduced Bennett on Saturday -- some party leaders publicly abandoned him. Bennett did not have a Rule 11 letter, which allows the national party to get involved on an endorsed candidate's behalf. The letter must be signed by the state party chairman and both national committee members.

Because of election rules in Utah Bennett cannot run as an independent, though he could run a write-in candidacy. That would probably be a wasted effort though it could complicate the election a bit.