Our "Political Insiders" expect Ralph Becker to face off against Jackie Biskupski in November's election for Salt Lake City Mayor.
We asked our panel to predict how the field of five candidates will finish in this week's primary election. 64% of our respondents expect Becker to finish first while 61% say Biskupski will finish second. Those were the only candidates who were predicted by our respondents to finish in the top two.
Luke Garrott was the overwhelming choice finish in third-place, with 77% predicting he will finish out of the money as only the top-two candidates will advance to November's general election.
Half of those in our survey said George Chapman will finish fourth while Dave Robinson was expected to finish fifth.
Selected anonymous comments:
"Who cares? Regardless of who wins, the citizens are the losers. I don't think SLC has elected a decent mayor in my lifetime."
"People often complain about money influencing political elections, but history shows that the candidate with the most cash usually wins. This is why the incumbent often has a 90% chance of getting re-elected. Money and low voter participation favors the incumbent."
"Becker has done just enough that he squeaks by for the win."
"As long as Jackie keeps giving signals to the powers that be that she is in their pocket she will win. It won't be a win for us, but she will win."
"Biskupski's star is rising, while Becker's is falling, even with a couple of missteps by Biskupski. Otherwise, the primary be similar to what the polls have predicted, with Garrott in third and so on."
"Becker was a significant improvement over his predecessor, but at the end of his second term is showing obvious signs of arrogance and disconnect."
"Ralph isn't perfect, but he isn't strident or shrill. As much as some Salt Lake City voters liked Rocky's anger, there is a much larger segment of the voting public who will reward Ralph's very real accomplishments and gracious demeanor with a win in the primary and ultimate victory in the general."
"Two terms is enough for any executive politician."
