SALT LAKE CITY (Legal Newsline) -- More than a handful of Republicans have submitted their names to fill the office left behind by Attorney General John Swallow.
Swallow, a Republican, resigned effective Monday. The attorney general had been fighting allegations of ethics and election law violations since he took office earlier this year.
According to the Utah Republican Party, as of Wednesday morning, six individuals have filed to fill the vacancy created by Swallow's resignation.
They are: Bret Rawson, Sean Reyes, Brent Ward, Michael J. Wilkins, Scott Burns and Michelle Mumford.
Rawson, according to his website, specializes in the legal representation of police officers.
Reyes ran against Swallow last year, losing to him in the primary.
Ward is a former federal district attorney for the state.
Burns, a former Iron County attorney, ran for attorney general twice, in 1992 and 1996. He also was former President George W. Bush's "drug czar."
Wilkins is a retired state Supreme Court justice.
Mumford is the Utah GOP secretary.
According to the GOP's website, the deadline to register is 5 p.m. Friday.
Last month, Gov. Gary Herbert called on the Republican State Central Committee to convene "as soon as is practical" and send him three names to consider for appointment.
Herbert will pick one of the three candidates to fill the office until a special election can be held -- most likely, next November.
Until he makes that appointment, the governor has asked Major General Brian Tarbet, one of his cabinet members, to "ensure the duties of the office of the attorney general are performed."
State Democrats have said they may challenge the process because they want a full election to be held sooner.
From Legal Newsline: Reach Jessica Karmasek by email at jessica@legalnewsline.com.
Six Republicans file to replace Utah AG; deadline to register is Friday
