RETURN TO THE ARENA: My Appointment to the Ogden City Council

When I left the legislature in 2018, Kim and I determined I would not seek political office again until our kids had graduated high school and were adults.  The opportunity to return to public service was presented on several occasions along the way.  But, we demurred each time.  

In May of this year, our youngest daughter graduated and entered adulthood.  Also around this time there were rumors swirling that our venerated Councilman, Shaun Myers, was considering retiring from office at the end of his term in 2027.  We took casual consideration of the idea of running for the seat at that time.

Then, to our surprise, we learned that the timeline was moved up considerably as Councilman Myers needed to vacate his seat to focus on his duties as a new councilor in the LDS Ogden Temple presidency.  This was both exciting and jolting as we realized decisions would need to be made immediately.  After careful (yet quick) contemplation, we determined to jump in the fray.  

I submitted my application on July 6th and over the next week 18 other applicants threw their hats in the ring.  I made phone calls to members of the city council I thought could support me in my candidacy.  With other good candidates on the list and the twists and turns ever present in politics, I knew anything could happen.  On the 21st of July, we all gathered in the City Council room to offer our 4 minute pitch to the Council.  Again, there was an impressive array of candidates and presentations.  

After presentations were complete, the city council voted.  Jeff Heiner received one vote from Shaun Myers, Arlene Anderson received two votes from Councilman Lundell and Councilwoman Washington, and I received four votes from the remaining members of the council.  My vote count was a majority which meant I had prevailed in the selection.

After the vote, council members thanked Councilman Myers for his service. Ironically, Mr. Lundell offered some kind words to me and then turned to the Council to condemn my selection.  He then advocated for my defeat at the next election.  It was the old hand-shake-punch-in-the-face routine.  As the meeting adjourned, Chair Hyer rebutted Mr. Lundell's off handed remarks.     

After that, the room was quiet for a minute. Rather than camps of supporters and opponents present to celebrate or console each other after the vote, the room was full of momentary rivals.  It was a lonely feeling for a brief second as I am sure it was for everyone else.  Then the room broke out and people began to reach out to each other and talk...sometimes for the first time.  I was impressed with the people I met and there is clearly a good group of future leaders in the wings.

You can watch the meeting, presentation, and the drama here:

KEY MOMENTS TIMELINE:

My Remarks - 1:04:38

Roll Call Vote - 1:34:34

Mr. Lundell's Comments - 1:41:00

Chair Hyer's Final Comments - 1:56:50

But, the drama didn't end with the meeting.  The Standard Examiner interviewed me and Mr. Lundell after to get our perspective on what happened at the meeting.  Here are my remarks to them:

"Following the meeting, Peterson told the Standard-Examiner that he’s not inflammatory, that he’s not a bomb thrower and that he can work with most people.

He said politics is about winning hearts and minds and having a relationship of trust. He said building that relationship of trust and building consensus is how you get things done.

He emphasized finding common ground with people who have different viewpoints.

“What is their core objection?” he said. “And sometimes people are talking past each other, even though they might have a common principle that they’re working toward together, but they may not realize it because they’re talking past each other. Maybe they’re caught up in tribalism. And, so, in the past, I just go get to know them – you know, learn more about them; learn about their history.

“All of us come to our perspectives from our life experience, and I haven’t lived your life experience; you haven’t lived mine, and, so, really just trying to find like a common bridge and then building on that. Even if you might not have the ultimate end goals, you can find… ‘Hey, here’s where we can meet in the middle,’ even if it’s a small amount.”

You can read the whole article to get the full picture.

I am looking forward to being a positive influence on the council and doing good work for the citizens of Ogden.  I am grateful for the vote of confidence!