That certainly doesn't hurt the party, Hartley said. "He actually may open doors to people who aren't accustomed to giving politically, who will now," he said. "That may help all of us down the road. Nobody begrudges him pulling all that money out."

Although Romney's membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has already generated national attention, that connection alone is not enough to win backing from Utahns, Patterson said.

"People think that just because he's LDS, there's this natural affinity and there will be this kind of monolithic movement toward Gov. Romney," Patterson said. "I'd caution people that as much as there's this religious affinity, there's also this ideological one."

Romney, widely seen as rescuing the scandal-scarred Salt Lake Olympics, "has a great record here in the state of Utah. He saved the Olympics. He brought a great deal of positive attention to the state, and I think there's some affection for that."

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