Archie Archuleta, who worked for Anderson for four years as a minority affairs adviser, said the mayor has two personalities — one devoted to "quixotic" causes and the other firmly rooted in reality. The two blend to create a passionate leader who has an eye for implementing his initiatives, Archuleta said.

"If there were 25 hours in a day, he would work them," Archuleta said. "He has chosen to speak out when things are important that other politicians wouldn't talk about."

Anderson has made a few enemies during his six years as mayor. The Republican-controlled Legislature has shown him little love, and he has consistently fought with the City Council over his initiatives and their timing.

Anderson took several shots at the council, first regarding YouthCity, moving through budget talks with the council about the Justice Court and ending with a dig about the redevelopment agency, which the council reorganized. He also took aim at unnamed elected officials who, he said, rely on polls for political expediency, and at his community's "dangerous culture of obedience" where "hypocrisy so often prevails."

Soren Simonsen, the city councilman who represents Sugar House, said after hearing Anderson's speech that he wasn't surprised to hear of the mayor's decision.

"I was under the impression that he's very engaged with grass-roots advocacy," Simonsen said. "I noticed a shift in his priorities to international affairs, so this is not at all unexpected."

House Minority Leader Ralph Becker, a Democrat who also is considering running for mayor in 2007, said that Anderson won't easily be replaced.

"He'll leave — in some respects — a void just because of the power of his persona," Becker said. "There just aren't many politicians or people like him in that regard."

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Contributing: Josh Loftin

E-mail: kswinyard@desnews.com