New council in Westfield might curtail spending
A dramatic shakeup of the Westfield City Council could result in more scrutiny of development proposals that are part of Mayor Andy Cook’s vision for the growing city.
A dramatic shakeup of the Westfield City Council could result in more scrutiny of development proposals that are part of Mayor Andy Cook’s vision for the growing city.
Incumbent Joe Hogsett and Republican Jim Merritt are expected to easily win their primaries in the Indianapolis mayor’s race. In Hamilton County, the races could be more interesting.
Incumbent Indy Mayor Joe Hogsett and GOP challenger Jim Merritt are expected to win their parties’ nominations easily. Meanwhile in Fishers and Carmel, incumbents are fending off primary challenges.
State Sen. Jim Merritt will be able to campaign for mayor full time after the legislative session ends this month, representatives say. In the meantime, Merritt is “very pleased” with his fundraising.
A Carmel mayoral debate Tuesday night mostly focused on the city’s debt load and the administration’s spending, with Mayor Jim Brainard at one point handing his opponent a $10 bill in an attempt to prove a point.
Mayor Hogsett and Council President Vop Osili have decided to pool resources and launch what Democrats say is the first true citywide coordinated campaign in Marion County to re-elect the mayor and expand the party’s majority on the 25-member council.
The mayor and his backers see the city’s transformation as a resounding success. But some residents say it’s been too much, too fast, and has left parts of their community almost unrecognizable.
As the mayor seeks a seventh term, the city owes $1.3 billion, according to the Indiana Department of Local Government Finance.
Republican Fred Glynn, who recently was re-elected to the Hamilton County Council, will run against six-term Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard in May's primary.
Jose Evans has decided to not to run for mayor and has thrown his support behind State Sen. Jim Merritt. And City-County Council member Jefferson Shreve, who replaced Jeff Miller last year, won’t seek a return to the council after his current term ends.
Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett has a huge fundraising advantage over his Republican challengers, who are starting their campaigns with bank accounts in the four-figure range.
Messer will co-lead the firm’s federal advocacy team with FaegreBD principal Ted Bristol, who served as legislative advisor to senior Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate.
Jim Merritt, who will formally announce his campaign Thursday afternoon, told IBJ he was running for mayor because he “loves my city,” and is concerned about the city’s high number of murders and “rampant homelessness.”
State Sen. Jim Merritt told IBJ on Monday morning that he’s doing his due diligence on a potential campaign for mayor, leaving the Marion County GOP temporarily without a leader.
Marion County voters will be able to cast their vote at any polling place in the county starting next year as Indianapolis becomes what is known as a “vote center” county.
Trump is said to have warmed to Nick Ayers in part by watching the effectiveness of Pence’s largely independent political operation.
Host Mason King talks with IBJ reporters Lindsey Erdody and Hayleigh Colombo as well as Andy Downs, director of the Mike Downs Center for Politics in Fort Wayne, about what the 2018 elections mean for the mayoral races in 2019 and governor’s race in 2020.
Republicans won 66 of the chamber’s 100 seats on Tuesday, one short of the two-thirds majority that has rendered Democrats totally without power. But the results of one race remain unknown.
Dozens of state and local races are on the ballot as are proposals to amend the Indiana Constitution to restrict state spending and to let IPS spend more. But thousands of voters have already cast ballots.
Danielle Coulter is a senior government affairs associate at Indiana governmental affairs firm Dant Advocacy Inc. She is also a precinct committee member in Franklin Township.