It isn't just great that nearly anyone can run for public office in America, it's totally awesome.

Dell "SUPERDELL" Schanze is setting his sights on the governor's mansion. The former head of the now-defunct Totally Awesome Computers had previously filed as a Republican in the race for Salt Lake County mayor but on Monday changed his mind and will be running as a Libertarian against Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr.

Schanze is best known for his over-the-top computer commercials and brushes with the law, including pulling a pistol on neighbors angry with his driving and later buzzing Interstate 15 in his paraglider. On a more buttoned-down note, the state Senate lost its third member since the close of the 2008 session when Dan Eastman decided not to refile.

The Bountiful Republican and majority whip won't be coming back to the Utah Senate next year, following Sens. Bill Hickman, R-St. George, and Mike Dmitrich, D-Price, who announced shortly after the session that they were leaving.

"I didn't make the announcement but figured when the filing season came through they'd know," Eastman said from his ranch near St. George.

The filing deadline for elected office was Monday at 5 p.m.

The loss of Eastman, 62, means the loss of a "steady hand" in a volatile environment, said Senate President John Valentine, R-Orem.

"Dan is a natural born leader," Valentine said. "People don't look to him like he's trying to jerk around the system."

Eastman pushed hard on several issues during the session, including school district equalization. Eastman says the effort was a good first move and expects to keep working on it until Dec. 31. His previous sessions included work on the bank/credit-union battle and "keeping government small and keeping businessmen in business."

"Local governments continue to want to grow their little operations, and I think we ought to shrink that," he said of municipalities.

Eastman, a former banker and car salesman, has ruled out running for other offices and on Monday was focused on gathering up his horses and "going to do some farm work."

There are plenty of others still interested in politics, however, especially in Utah County, as Democrats have stepped up their efforts to dethrone Republicans for the first time in more than a decade.

Win or lose (and odds are in favor of the latter) Democrats are nevertheless making strides, said Kelly Patterson, director of BYU's Center for the Study of Elections and Democracy.

"There's a short-term element to this, but there's also a long-term element," he said, adding that by stocking races with relatively well-known candidates, the party will begin to brand itself.

That said, he expects the Republican convention and primaries to be the place where most races are hammered out. Only a handful of races don't include two or more Republicans.