Stuart Adams, who will replace now-Lt. Gov. Greg Bell in the state Senate on Wednesday, can expect a warm welcome from his fellow conservatives.

After all, Senate President Michael Waddoups and other conservatives pushed not only for Adams' appointment, but also for Bell, a moderate, to be named lieutenant governor.

"I'm not going to say it was a good thing to lose him," Waddoups said of Bell. The Taylorsville Republican said he wanted to see Bell become Gov. Gary Herbert's No. 2 "because he would be a benefit to the state, not to get rid of him."

Bell, elected late last year to the Senate's leadership team as the assistant majority whip, "turned out to be more conservative than a lot of us expected him to be," Waddoups said.

Still, there's little question Adams, a former House member, is more conservative. No one expects him, for example, to carry legislation that would have extended benefits to gay couples, as Bell had done.

"I think he'll fit in well," Waddoups said of Adams. "I think you'll find he'll be a leader in the future."

Adams said he had the support of Senate leaders because of his political skills. "When you get things done, you have people come to you," Adams said. "I think that is a blessing I have."

Davis County Republicans chose Adams to represent Senate District 22 from among eight candidates. All were conservative enough for the Senate, Adams said. "Anyone in that field would have fit the political mold they were looking for," he said.

Adams now has to be nominated by the governor. That will come Wednesday morning, Herbert spokeswoman Angie Welling said. The Senate is expected to swear in Adams midday Wednesday.

Welling said she didn't think the governor took into account how Adams' politics would fit into the Senate in making his decision.

"Obviously he has a lot of respect for Adams. He was on his short list to be lieutenant governor," Welling said. "Knowing the governor and knowing how he operates … he looks at people first and politics second."

University of Utah political science professor Matthew Burbank said the Senate GOP likely saw Bell as someone who never really fit in.

"They looked at this as, 'Here's an opportunity. Herbert is considering him for lieutenant governor, so let's get him out and get someone we like better,' " Burbank said.

By winning a leadership position, Bell also posed a threat, Burbank said. "That may have been something conservatives worried even more about, that he might become Senate president someday."

Kirk Jowers, head of the U.'s Hinckley Institute of Politics, also said it appeared Senate conservatives saw a chance to make a change and took it.

"It's definitely not just coincidence," said Jowers, who had considered running against Herbert in next year's special gubernatorial election primary. "To be able to get someone friendly in the lieutenant governor's office but then kind of strengthen the conservative cause was probably seen as a great deal."

Adams will have to step down as chairman of the Utah Transportation Commission once he is sworn in as a senator, said Adan Carrillo, a Utah Department of Transportation spokesman. Herbert will name Adams' replacement.

The Senate GOP caucus is expected to choose a new assistant majority whip on Wednesday. Waddoups said the candidates are Sen. Allen Christensen, R- North Ogden; Sen. Wayne Niederhauser, R-Sandy; and Sen. Kevin Van Tassell, R-Vernal.

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