Bennett says Utah vote may not be a trend

WASHINGTON, May 16 (UPI) -- Sen. Bob Bennett, R-Utah, said not to over-estimate the anti-incumbent sentiment that led to his stunning ouster as the Republican candidate in his state.

Bennett, rejected by GOP members in his bid for re-election, Sunday blamed his state's primary system for his defeat as much as voter disdain for Washington.

"We should be very careful not to take the Utah result and try to extrapolate it across the country as a whole, because the Utah system is unique," Bennett told CNN's "State of the Union" news program.

Republican candidates in Utah must first pass muster at a party convention before moving on to the primary. Convention delegates, Bennett said, are elected themselves and tend to be a different breed than average voters.

Bennett said he had not made any decisions about running as an independent, and added he would continue to work with Democrats in the Senate.