"Chris will never take anything for granted," Cannon spokeswoman Meghan Riding said. "He's said he will run an aggressive campaign and will work hard to get his message out to 3rd District voters. He's been planning that, and (Babka's speech) doesn't really change his plans."

She said Cannon is leading efforts to consolidate Utah's school trust lands to provide millions of dollars directly to the state's education fund and that Republican tax cuts have helped create 1 million new jobs across the nation and in Utah over the past three months.

"Chris Cannon won renomination with a 16-point victory," Riding said. "That's a pretty clear message voters in the 3rd District like his message and want to send him back to Washington."

Cannon won 59 percent of Republican votes Tuesday in Salt Lake County, which should be Babka's stronghold. Riding hoped that was a sign Cannon is gaining name recognition and acceptance north of the Point of the Mountain, where most of the 3rd District area is new after redistricting a couple of years ago.

Babka told the Deseret Morning News his fusillade was not an indication he would run a negative campaign.

"I'm a positive person," Babka said. "I'm going to take a stand, where I stand on the issues, where I can do better (than Cannon). . . . Once in a while, it's going to get into what hasn't been done, and that's appropriate."

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E-mail: twalch@desnews.com, dbulkeley@desnews.com