If the voters of Massachusetts had the chance, they would join Utah and 10 other states and vote for an anti-gay marriage amendment, Gov. Mitt Romney said Friday.

The former Salt Lake Olympic Committee chief was in town as the keynote speaker at the Salt Lake County Republican Party's Lincoln Day Dinner.

His visit to Salt Lake City is one of many stops around the country for the Republican leader, who some say has presidential intentions for 2008. In recent weeks, he traveled to Missouri and South Carolina. Next, he's scheduled for a trip to Washington, D.C.

Romney didn't mention any presidential hopes, but that didn't stop Utah's congressional delegation from chiming in.

"There is a rumor circulating in Washington that Mitt is going there in 2008," said U.S. Sen. Bob Bennett. "I would be delighted to welcome him."

In his keynote address to a large crowd that paid $100 a plate to hear him speak, Romney spoke of maintaining a strong economy, stem-cell research and gay marriage.

In Massachusetts, legal, same-sex couples are now having children. Those couples are now asking state officials to remove the words "mother and father" from the birth certificates and replace the terms with "parent A and parent B," Romney said.

"It is not right on paper and it is not right in fact," Romney said as cheers filled the Little America conference room. "We lost on marriage in court and we lost on civil unions in the Legislature. But I'm convinced that when finally we hear the voice of the people in my state, we will win at the ballot box."

While introducing Romney, Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. said he understood why so many people are speculating about a possible Romney run for the White House in 2008.

"I see a leader in Mitt Romney," Huntsman said. "He is one of the truly great leaders of the Republican Party today."

Huntsman said he had just one problem with the Massachusetts leader.

"In fact, the only fault I can find is he went to (Brigham Young University)," said Huntsman, a University of Utah supporter.

Romney responded by saying how proud he was to have married a beautiful BYU co-ed.

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E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com