Utah's senior senator has announced that he will not be seeking reelection in the 2018 cycle, and will be retiring at the end of the year. Senator Orrin Hatch has served as one of Utah's two senators since his first election in 1976, and currently heads the Senate Finance Committee, seen by many as one of the most important and powerful positions within the legislative body. In an online video he made detailing the announcement he says that while he's always been a fighter, "every good fighter knows when to hang up the gloves."
The announcement puts an end to months of speculation regarding whether he would be running again or not, and will now trigger a primary phase for the Utah Republican Party to find a new nominee for the 2018 election cycle.