Indeed, those counted among the mayor's constituency are remaining loyal. Jackie Biskupski, an Anderson supporter and the only lesbian in the Utah House of Representatives, still considers Anderson highly ethical.

"I find it hard to believe that he's somebody who would do something that wasn't ethical, at least intentionally," she said. Before rushing to judgment she wants to see the outcome of various audits and investigations.

"I'm one of those people who wants to wait and see what happens," she said. "I don't really feel that Rocky's in a place of piling up sins."

That said, the "drip, drip" of new allegations and controversy can take a toll and much may depend on whether District Attorney David Yocom decides to investigate Anderson or prosecute him, Jowers said.

At least one conservative political analyst says Anderson's popularity has declined some in recent weeks.

"I do think that the aggregate combination of all these things on top of each other does eventually erode support," said LaVarr Webb, who runs utahpolicy.com and writes a weekly political column for the Morning News. He added that "I do think there has been some slippage among Democrats in the city."

But despite a possible erosion of support, Webb and Jowers say Anderson remains a favorite for re-election in 2007 if he decides to run. The mayor hasn't said whether he is going to run again, and he hasn't been making any moves indicating that he will seek a third term.

If Anderson did decide not to run, Webb said he doesn't think the mayor's legacy would be affected much by the recent string of controversies.

"Among those that don't like him, all these things further tarnished his image, but those people didn't like him anyway," Webb said. "But to those who like him, they're still going to look fondly at him."

Still, even those who are clued into the Salt Lake political scene have a hard time really judging what the cumulative effect might ultimately be.

"Salt Lake's just really hard to figure out," said County Councilwoman Jenny Wilson, who lives in the city. "My gut doesn't really work in the city."

Wilson hypothesized the recent controversies might even rally Anderson's base, if supporters feel the mayor is being unfairly targeted.

Still, even Wilson, a Democrat whose family has a long friendship with Anderson, notes, "I don't want it to sound like I'm Rocky's greatest ally or defender in all of this."

And even though Anderson has survived controversy before, there may not have been a time when so much was piled on in such a short time.