But no one sees Chaffetz as a one-trick immigration pony, which is how voters largely perceived John Jacob, who also self-destructed in the final weeks of the 2006 primary.

Chaffetz is a consummate pro. He helped Huntsman win 531,000 votes in the 2004 election.

"He's not a political novice," BYU political scientist Quin Monson said. "That's the difference between Chaffetz and John Jacob.

Jacob made rookie mistakes. Chaffetz won't."

The question is whether his game, which played well at the conventions, his home turf, will be as effective on what has been Cannon's home court, the GOP primary on June 24.

The other question about Chaffetz is whether he'll have the cash to defeat Cannon. He went into the convention with $10,000 on hand, having spent far less than Cannon and David Leavitt. Meanwhile, Cannon flexed his fundraising muscles, raking in $15,000 in large donations on the day before the convention alone.

Chaffetz claims he can do more with less, but reaching out to 60,000 primary voters in six weeks is a different bird than talking to 1,100 delegates over 16 months.

"He can't shake every primary voter's hand," Monson said. "He has to find a way to communicate to them. If he has the resources, we'll see. If he can't get some publicity and raise some money, then I would expect Cannon to make it through again. If he could raise $100,000 in the next three weeks and could touch every potential voter, he could make it a race.

"I'd still bet on Cannon because it sure is hard to beat an incumbent, and he's going to have the resources."

Chaffetz expressed confidence and said he is modeling his campaign after Salt Lake Mayor Ralph Becker, who won office last year despite finishing third in spending.

Tonight, Chaffetz commercials return to Utah television, and the core leaders of his grass-roots campaign will meet at his home.

"We had a message that resonated," Chaffetz said of the convention. "Now we'll talk about how we make that same magic happen on June 24."

Chaffetz said he won't change his message or who he is. Now we find out if he can translate a well-executed, long-term convention game plan into an equally effective, short-term primary strategy.

---

Utah County Bureau Chief Tad Walch lives with his wife and five children in Provo, their home for the past 21 years. E-mail twalch@desnews.com.