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Maybe Walmart wasn't an albatross after all.
Charlie Luke, the lone Salt Lake City planning commissioner to vote for a controversial east-bench rezone for the mega-retailer, finished on top Tuesday in a hotly contested City Council primary.
Luke outpaced incumbent J.T. Martin, 46 percent to 29 percent, according to final unofficial returns. They will now square off in the Nov. 8 general election.
Tracey Harty, with 26 percent, was eliminated in the District 6 race.
In west-side District 2, newcomer Kyle LaMalfa (40 percent) bested Councilman Van Turner (34 percent) as both advanced to the fall finale. Frequent challenger Michael Clara (26 percent) placed third.
The incumbents in both contests finished second.
"I live for another day," a relieved Martin quipped. "I feel very good about it. Being second is not a bad thing. We'll go out and tell our story, and I think I'll prevail."
Luke said the results show residents on the east bench "are looking for a change in direction. I imagine [the general election] to be a very hard-fought campaign. It's going to be a very exciting and energetic two months."
And what about that Walmart controversy? "It was definitely overblown," Luke said.
Turnout for both contests was meager, with 19 percent of registered voters going to the polls in District 6 and 17 percent voting in District 2.
LaMalfa celebrated in a new west-side tapas restaurant that he says is symbolic of the new energy in the district. Can he harness it for November?
"We're confident," he said. "We have an army of volunteers ready to work. We knew we were up against a challenge. This campaign has not rested since we declared."
LaMalfa said his focus on education "really resonated," and he shrugged off the impact of an anonymous postcard, blasting Turner and Clara as "Mormon Republicans."
"Clearly the voters of District 2 saw through that political gamesmanship, those shenanigans," he added. "They deserve a lot more credit than they're given."
Turner, a three-term incumbent, is not especially sweating his second-place finish. "We have 55 days left. That's plenty of time to get out, meet people and continue doing what we're doing."
In District 6, Martin's temperament was on trial as was the Walmart verdict and the hung jury over whether to designate Yalecrest a historic district.
Opponents Luke and Harty both questioned whether Martin's sometimes-emotional outbursts are appropriate for public office.
"Temperament certainly came into play," Luke said.
Martin conceded he could be more measured, but was quick to add that he says what others are afraid to, making him a "different brand of politician" who fights for the underdog.
Even so, Luke maintained Martin hasn't done enough to fix the area's failing streets and pipes.
Luke, a lobbyist running a government-relations firm, said the district's police coverage is lackluster — a problem he hopes to fix by adding an east-side precinct. But he was dogged by his vote for Walmart's rezone request — a decision exploited by his competitors on the stump.
Harty jumped into the race based on her frustration over the Yalecrest stalemate and the one-year state-imposed moratorium on creating a historic district. The marketing professional insisted Martin and the city "dropped the ball when it got tough." The "flawed process," she argued, demonstrates a deficiency in engaging residents. She pledged to fix that by including every neighborhood in long-term planning.
Martin bristled at suggestions he quit the Yalecrest debate. Just the contrary, he said.
Martin, the former Emigration Market owner, trumpeted his ability to corral cash for District 6, especially funding for street upgrades and the Foothill Drive Corridor Study. He argued he deserves a second term for securing east-bench open space — and more money than his past two predecessors — along with his pledge to restore Miller Park with Chevron's oil spill dollars.
In District 2, Turner faced activist Clara for the third consecutive time, along with LaMalfa.
LaMalfa easily outraised and outspent his seasoned opponents — especially Turner, who didn't solicit a penny. But his campaign was marred by an anonymous postcard — using LaMalfa letterhead — that attacked Turner and Clara as "Mormon Republicans."
"ENOUGH SAID," the mailer screamed.
All three camps denied involvement, though LaMalfa blamed Clara and vice versa. The fallout was hard to measure, but LaMalfa worries the "dirty politics" will scare off future west-side candidates.
For his part, Turner emphasized crime is down on his watch. And he pointed to city records showing he had secured more money for improvements than Districts 1, 3, 6 and 7 "combined." The folksy businessman — he runs a burger joint and a flower shop — wants to promote small-business growth on 900 West and help shepherd North Temple's makeover.
LaMalfa, a statistician, argued "it's time to get tough" on hardened gang members. But he said the key is to promote education, prop up after-school programs, and push for more west-siders on the out-of-balance school board. The People's Market founder also championed a new, neighborhood newspaper, advocated adopting portions of the Jordan River Parkway for cleanliness and knocked on 4,000 doors hoping to crack the Turner-Clara lock.
Clara repeated his claims that Turner has not fought hard enough to give District 2 its "fair share." He lamented the lack of sound walls on Interstate 80, the shabby freeway exit at 400 South and the lack of safe, pedestrian crosswalks along 900 West. The transit planner called the infrastructure neglect "insulting" and said it takes "some leadership" to usher the west side forward.