WASHINGTON, Nov. 10 (UPI) -- U.S. Sen. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, is in line to become the Senate's senior Republican if several likely scenarios play out, analysts say.
Hatch, first elected in 1976, could take the GOP seniority reins if Sen. Ted Stevens, R-Alaska, loses his too-close-to-call election or resigns from the Senate due to his recent felony conviction. And the second-most senior Republican, Sen. Dick Lugar of Indiana, could be appointed U.S. Secretary of State, the Salt Lake Tribune reported.