A third leading GOP candidate for president is coming to Utah — former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani is scheduled to be in Salt Lake City today for a private fund-raising event.

His visit comes after fund-raisers held in Utah earlier this year by the other top Republicans running for the party's nomination, former Salt Lake City Olympic leader and Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Arizona Sen. John McCain.

Giuliani is expected to collect between $200,000 and $250,000 tonight from a 1 1/2-hour reception being held in a private home, former GOP legislative candidate Thomas Wright said.

Wright said Giuliani should be appealing to Utahns, even though Romney is considered the state's favorite-son candidate because he led the 2002 Winter Games from scandal to success.

Giuliani, a two-term mayor who was still in office during the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York City, is "candid. You get what you get with Rudy," Wright said. "He's not a flip-flopper."

The former mayor will arrive in Utah at midday, Wright said, and although arrangements have been made for Giuliani to stay overnight, he's expected to head to Florida late tonight. No public appearances are scheduled for Giuliani in Utah, nor will he speak to the press.

Fund-raising, not campaign appearances, is the focus for candidates who are scrambling to boost their bottom lines before the end of the month, the cutoff for federal disclosure reports filed in April.

Those reports will show which candidates are the most financially viable in a campaign that is expected to cost more than $100 million. With both the Republican and Democratic nominations up for grabs, there's plenty of competition for money.

Romney raised well over $1 million during a two-day trip to Utah in February that included fund-raisers at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City and in St. George. He called Utah an important source of money for his campaign.

McCain, who is endorsed by Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. and Attorney General Mark Shurtleff, made more than $150,000 from a $1,000-a-plate fund-raiser held in a Federal Heights home.

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