Election 2009: Dairyman Winder wins West Valley mayor's post by landslide

Local businessman Mike Winder won the West Valley City mayoral seat by a landslide Tuesday, raking in 76 percent of the vote, according to unofficial results published by Salt Lake County.

Winder, 36, will replace two-term mayor Dennis Nordfelt. The young and energetic politician hopes to clean up the city's image during his tenure.

"I am very excited to serve the people of West Valley, and it's very heartwarming and humbling to have such a vote of confidence," Winder said late Tuesday. "West Valley is full of terrific people and I'm honored to serve and rearing to go in January."

Once he takes office, dairyman Winder promises to deliver the first-ever state of the city address. He also hopes to decrease crime in the city.

During his campaign, Winder focused on preserving city neighborhoods, preparing the area for a light-rail line and pushing economic development.

The author of the book "Presidents and Prophets," Winder has served on the City Council four years.

Mayoral contestant and political newcomer Kevin Fayles acknowledged from the beginning that he was an "underdog" but said the 2009 campaign was a great experience for him. The Envision Utah spokesman wanted to put planning before politics, he said.

"I commend Mr. Winder for running a clean campaign. I hope he'll lose himself in serving West Valley residents," Fayles said. "Frankly, we agree on an awful lot of the challenges facing the city and ways to deal with them."

Fayles, 45, campaigned hard on the idea that he wouldn't use the seat as a stepping stone for higher office. In contrast, Winder says he only plans to fill the seat for a term or two.

Though West Valley is Utah's second-largest city, the mayoral position there is only part-time. As mayor, Winder will vote with the City Council.

Winder's at-large City Council seat will be filled by Don Christensen, who ran away with 56 percent of the vote Tuesday night.

Steve Vincent successfully defended his District 4 seat with 55 percent of the tally. Vincent said he wants to focus on economic development.

Working with Vincent and Christensen will be Steve Buhler, who beat out David Musselman with just 51 percent of the vote for City Council District 2.

All of the City Council winners said during their campaigns that they hope to personalize code enforcement.

e-mail: rpalmer@desnews.com