Longtime Sen. Orrin Hatch is a step closer to winning re-election as he easily defeated his first primary challenger since being elected to the Senate in 1976.

The Utah Republican had been bracing for a tough re-election battle against former State Sen. Dan Liljenquist, who had Tea Party support.

"My main beef with Sen. Hatch and a whole generation of politicians back there in Washington is they've spent the last 40 years centralizing power, increasing the size and scope of government, getting us into uncontrollable debt that we can't handle, and expanding entitlement programs that really, a whole new generation of Americans are going to have to clean up,"  Liljenquist said in a recent interview with CBN News. 

Hatch is now expected to win re-election in the general election. He has told The Associated Press this would be his last term.

"This is my last term," he said. "I'm ready to bite the bullet."