Romney says he's keeping his options open

About all Mitt Romney could say for certain Tuesday about his future is that he plans to continue working for Republican candidates, at least through next year's mid-term elections.

No, he hasn't decided if he's going to run again for president. No, he's not going to speculate on whether his Mormon faith would be less of an issue in 2012 or what it would be like to face another LDS candidate if Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. gets in the race.

And no, Romney doesn't know where he and his wife, Ann, will call home once they've sold their Boston-area house, or if they'll ever buy another place in Utah to replace their former vacation villa in Deer Valley.

Romney, who was in Salt Lake City on Tuesday to campaign for Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, said what's important to him now are the upcoming congressional elections.

"When you're in the minority, you band together and you work for those races," he told the Deseret News. "That's what I'm doing."

Some would say Romney, the former leader of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City and a former governor of Massachusetts, is also setting himself up for a second try at the White House by building party ties.

"It's too early to say," he told reporters, suggesting they not read too much into his political activities that include high-profile appearances around the country on behalf of GOP candidates and as a speaker at party events.

Romney said he's "keeping the door open, but I'm just not walking through it. Time will tell what the future holds. It may be a decision I make down the road to become involved. I may make the decision not to become involved in another race."

During an interview with the Deseret News, Romney wouldn't venture a guess on how voters would view his membership in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in a second national campaign.

He said he had nothing to say about "what might be easier or harder in another race, because I haven't decided about a future race." But he did downplay the role of religion.

"I believe that religion will not be a factor of a significant nature in selecting our nominee, regardless of who might run," Romney said. "In my own case, I won evangelical votes in Michigan, in places like Florida … I know there's a lot of interest in religion, but I don't think for the great majority of Americans that's the deciding factor."

But in other primary contests, Romney did run into trouble with evangelical voters who don't consider Mormons to be fellow Christians. In Iowa, he lost to Baptist minister and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, despite having a stronger campaign organization and early leads in the polls.