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A new era began Tuesday in Ogden, as 40-year-old Mike Caldwell was elected mayor by a wide margin over Brandon Stephenson, a two-term city councilman. Caldwell will become the city's first new executive in 12 years.
With votes in all precincts counted, Caldwell coasted into office by a comfortable margin.
Caldwell, an outdoor sports enthusiast, will inherit many projects initiated by Matthew Godfrey, who is vacating the mayor's chair in January. Caldwell ran a high-energy campaign that emphasized his talents at community building and his involvement in boosting Ogden's reputation as an outdoor activities center.
"I am overwhelmed with gratitude," he said Tuesday night. "We have a transition group and we'll begin to look at issues. But right now, I just want to thank all the people that put so much into this campaign."
Caldwell wears several hats in Weber County government, including manager of the county's ice sheet facility and administrator of the $3 million annual Recreation, Arts, Museum and Parks (RAMP) fund, among other things.
Caldwell credited Godfrey with putting the city on an exciting track. He said he would continue to build Ogden's reputation as a "high-adventure capital."
But, he noted, he also will look at attracting new people and ideas and added that his leadership style would be somewhat different than the outgoing mayor. Godfrey was sometimes at odds with the city council as he sought to remake the railroad town.
"You give people a reason to get involved and you get a lot of volunteers," Caldwell said. "We'll look to bring in new people and a lot of new, exciting ideas."
Stephenson commended Caldwell for running a successful race and said he believed the mayor-elect will keep Ogden on a positive trajectory. "I'm very optimistic about Ogden's future."
Despite the loss, Stephenson said he felt good about the campaign. "We had a lot of great grass-roots support and a lot of great volunteers," he said.
Stephenson, whose second term on the City Council will expire in January, said that while he will find other ways to be active in the community, he looks forward to spending more time with his family.
Incumbent City Councilwoman Amy Wicks coasted to a third term Tuesday for a council at-large seat over her opponent, Stephen D. Thompson. Wicks, who often differed with Godfrey, said she looks forward to working with Caldwell.
"I know Mike pretty well. I've had the opportunity to work with him in the community," she said. "He has a reputation of being a consensus builder. I'm really looking forward to that.
Wicks said the next four years should be good ones for Ogden.
"I'm excited about the future. Ogden has some great things going for it," she said. "It's nice to see the pieces fall into place."