"We wanted relief from the high (energy) prices, but he and some others got together and sued us," Doug Thompson said. "We had to delay it, and it ended up costing us about one and a half million dollars" because of gas contracts the city could not meet.

Eventually, a judge ruled that the city did not properly follow their own zoning guidelines when they approved the plant, a problem easily remedied with an ordinance change. The plant has since been built. Still, the mayor said that while he is an "independent," he will be supporting Bishop.

Fellow Councilwoman Tami Pyfer, who has served with Steve Thompson since 2002, said that his personality can rub people the wrong way, primarily because he often pushes for answers to questions people do not want to answer. He is "the tightest budget person I've ever seen, tighter than most Republicans," which is why she is supporting him, despite being a "proud" member of the GOP.

"He can be confrontational," she said. "But somebody's got to ask the tough questions, and he often volunteers."

Although she was elected to the City Council just after the power plant controversy ended, she was impressed with how well he worked with the local people fighting it. She also supported the lawsuit, and although the city was able to build the plant, she was pleased with the residents' initial success.

"He put himself in an uncomfortable position," she said. "But he really believed that it was the right thing" to sue the city.

Bare-bones campaign

In a campaign season in which Democrats are optimistic about their chances in races for governor, Salt Lake County mayor and some legislative seats — as well as the U.S. presidency and various ballot initiatives and constitutional amendments — donations to a long-shot candidate in Cache County with little name identification have been slim. So far, Thompson has raised about $30,000, barely more than most legislative candidates and a half-million shy of what Democrat Dave Thomas spent when he lost to Bishop two years ago.

Thompson's campaign epitomizes bare bones: His two-room business office doubles as a campaign headquarters, his only full-time employee is his wife, who is his campaign manager, and he is relying almost exclusively on walking door to door to spread his name.

"Political campaigns live and die on donations, and I'm not getting any support from political action money," he said. "I'm scratching and clawing for everything."

To compensate, he has employed some creative solutions. At campaign rallies and on his Web site, he has patriotic pictures for children to color, a tactic he said works surprisingly well because it's often the only thing families will keep after parades or fairs. He also recently completed a short campaign movie contest, in which the winner will have a movie posted on his Web site, and is even sponsoring self-help seminars for families around the district.

"I always wanted to run for Congress, although I wonder about that decision now," he said.

Still, he retains the optimism that he had when he decided to seek the congressional seat, after 2002 Green Party candidate Craig Axford, who joined the Democratic Party in 2003, chose not to do so.

"The fact is, I'm in the game, I'm on the ballot," he said. "There are always races where a candidate catches fire and peaks on election night."

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E-mail: jloftin@desnews.com