Sadly, We Seem to Have a Legally Unqualified Candidate Running For the Emerald City "B" Seat in November

Further probing questions concerning David Phipps's purported one-year Ogden residency

It's it's been reported in the last night's post-debate comments that several debate attendees submitted the pointed question to At Large Seat "B" council candidate David Phipps, as to the specific date he established his Ogden City residency, for purposes of complying with the Ogden City elections ordinance, which requires a prerequisite residence period prior to filing for Ogden City elective office. In the expectation that some of our readers may have not been closely following developments regarding this issue, we've decided to put up this article, to focus on the factual uncertainties which have led some lumpencitizens to apply closer scrutiny to this issue at last night's debate. Hopefully with this post, we'll be able to bring all our readers up to speed regarding this.

Specifically, here's the applicable Ogden City ordinance which among other things, specifies a threshold one-year period of residency for city council candidates:

2-3-2: COUNCIL MEMBER QUALIFICATIONS:
Each member of the city council shall be a registered voter and shall have resided within the city for a period of twelve (12) consecutive months immediately preceding the date of election and remain a resident during the term of office. The members elected from each of the municipal wards shall have been an actual and bona fide resident of the ward from which the council member is elected at least sixty (60) days prior to the election and shall continue as such resident during the term of office. If a council member shall cease to possess any of these qualifications, his office shall immediately become vacant. Council members while in office shall hold no other compensated employment with the city. [Emphasis added.]

In the instant case, we'll now inform our readers that there are two circumstances which have led many of us to question whether Mr. Phipps has complied with the above threshold residency requirement:

1) In an earlier comments thread, one of our gentle readers revealed that she'd stumbled upon Mr. Phipps' personal family blog, which contained the four eye-opening entries, described below, concerning candidate Phipps's Ogden residency:

Zippy, I am so glad you asked! The Candidate Guide to Elections for 2009 on page 9 states the following:
"Qualifications for Candidacy
Anyone wishing to file for candidacy must meet the following qualifications:
• Be a United States citizen at the time of filing;
• Be at least 18 years old;
• Be a registered voter of Ogden City;
• Be a resident of Ogden City or resident of a recently annexed area for a period of 12 consecutive months immediately preceding the date of election."
So, in answer to your last question: 12 consecutive months months immediately preceding the date of election = either September 15 or November 3, 2009.
From the Phipps Family blogsite:
10/12/2008, in the 4th paragraph is stated: "still don't know when moving."
10/30/2008, in the 2nd paragraph is stated: "currently staying at David's parents house in Ogden valley while we do some work on our new home"
11/23/2008, in the 2nd paragraph is stated: "We are still staying at David's parents, hoping to move into our house the first week of December"
And, finally, on 12/8/2008, in the 1st paragraph is stated: "the furniture is in, the toilets work, the kitchen is stocked and unpacked, the floors swept and mopped ... tomorrow we'll be in"

Quite predictably, this information caused quite a stir amongst our gentle readers. And the fact that Mr. Phipps subsequently closed down his family's blog to general internet traffic didn't help quell the outrage. Some of us even speculated that this latter move could be interpreted as "consciousness of guilt," an act which could be reasonably construed as "hiding the damning evidence."

2) And then, earlier this week, a number of us in Emerald City received additional data of a "political dynamite" nature, information which has remained unpublicised... until now. According to documents obtained from the Salt Lake County Elections Office by Rep. Neil Hansen, through an October 12, 2009 GRAMA request, we've learned that candidate Phipps cast a vote on November 4, 2008 in his former Salt Lake voting precinct during the 2008 General Election (thereby affirming his Salt Lake County residency as of that date):

• Salt Lake County Election Division GRAMA Response In Re David Phipps

Do the math, people. According to our calculations, the last day immediately preceding the date of the upcoming November 3, 2009 election (November 2, 2009) by which Mr. Phipps could have perfected the requisite one-year residency requirement, would have required starting the clock running on his Ogden residency by no later than November 3, 2008. Having however voted as a Salt Lake County resident on November 4, 2008 in his old Salt Lake precinct, many of us believe Mr. Phipps has failed to meet (and cannot meet) the residency requirement specified in the above-referenced Ogden City Code section. In other words, it seems obvious that Mr. Phipps is therefore unqualified as a matter of law to have his name placed on the November 3, 2009 Ogden City ballot. If Phipps had an ounce of decency -- which we doubt -- he'd remove his own name from the November ballot. Of course he won't, even though he's now been caught red-handed, a day late and a dollar short.

These are the reasons, gentle readers, that conscientious Emerald City citizens are in an uproar; and that's why the focus is now on the details concerning Mr. Phipps's residency. What a difference a day makes, no?

And what say our gentle readers about all that?

Update 10/16/09 8:00 a.m.: The Standard-Examiner picked up on this story late last evening, and carries Scott Schwebke's writeup on its Live! website:

• Hansen challenges Ogden City Council candidate's eligibility

Sadly, even when the reported facts are viewed in a light most favorable to candidate Phipps, they nevertheless require a direct admission of an act of wilful and deliberate voter fraud on Phipps's part in Salt Lake County, which tellingly reflects upon his honesty and integrity. The poor kid's digging himself in deeper and deeper. If he had a lick of integrity or common sense at all, he'd do "what's right," and quietly drop out of the race. Of course he probably doesn't... and he likely won't.