I am at a bit of a loss in writing this week's column as I am not a resident of Bountiful, and only know what I have read in the paper about the Coalition of Ethics and Accountability in Government (“CEAG”). With that said, however, I am more than willing to offer my perspective.

Running a campaign for municipal office is not an easy task. I ought to know since I have been involved in a few.

When I was only 16, I knocked on the door of a man who was running against the incumbent mayor of the town I grew up in and offered my services to his campaign. He was flabbergasted. I told him that I had been following the stories in the paper, read his campaign literature, and believed that our city needed a new direction. With that background, it should come as little surprise that after graduating law school and purchasing a home in Woods Cross, I ran for city council two years later.

The hardest part, I think, is getting people’s attention. Municipal races are run during the “off year.” meaning there are no partisan races for county, state or federal positions. Even though “all politics are local,” people seem to get more excited about the big-ticket campaigns like governor, senate or president.

To create some excitement, much less some free publicity, a proven tactic year after year is to create a little controversy. Stir the pot a bit, if you know what I mean. Get some folks riled up.

And it would appear that Jeff Novak and his CEAG friends are doing just that. I do not know any of the candidates challenging the incumbents in Bountiful this year. I have no doubt that they are honorable people who are sincerely interested in ethics and reform. But sincere interest is not enough to defeat a popular incumbent. You need name recognition and a message that resonates.

And I don’t buy into the conspiracy theory that everyone in power is corrupt. I have had a “behind the scenes” tour of local and state government in Utah, and have mostly found honest (albeit imperfect) people striving to do what is right.

I did not know Mayor Joe before he was elected. But now I do and I like him. A lot. He is hard-working, smart and makes people feel good about themselves. He provides leadership not only throughout Davis County, but the entire state. He represents Bountiful very well. I saw him smiling and shaking hands at the Taste of the Town event on Main Street last week.

Despite my affinity for Joe, I have to admit that one of my core beliefs is that city hall ought to have a revolving door. I believe that on the local level, citizens should get into office, work hard, do their best, and get out. Tom Dolan may be the best mayor in the history of Sandy, but he's been in office too darn long. I hope that Mayor Johnson will not follow his example.

My advice would be to define some specific goals for his third and final term, and then step aside in four years to let someone else serve. With that said, I think Joe would make a great county commissioner or state legislator someday.