 After incumbent Senator Tom Wiens announced in April 2008 that he would not run for a second term, Scheffel announced his candidacy for the seat; he had briefly sought the seat in 2004 before Wiens declared his candidacy.Scheffel defeated three other contenders — Ed Brewer, Mark Vanderbilt, and Randy Reed — to take 65 percent of the vote at the Republican district assembly in May, the only candidate to qualify for the ballot by the assembly process.Financial advisor and Air Force veteran Bob Denny petitioned onto the Republican primary ballot.