Elections for the mayor of Fort Wanye, Indiana
Elections are held in Fort Wayne , Indiana to elect the city's mayor . Currently, such elections are regularly scheduled to be held every four years, in the year immediately preceding that of United States presidential elections .
Elections before 1987 [ ]
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1987 [ ]
1987 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Paul Helmke
Winfield Moses
Party
Republican
Democratic
Popular vote
26,194%
24,179
Percentage
52.00%
48.00%
Mayor before election
Winfield Moses
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Paul Helmke
Republican
The 1987 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 3, 1987, to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the election of Republican Paul Helmke , who unseated Democratic incumbent Winfield Moses .
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1991 [ ]
1991 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Paul Helmke
Charlie Belch
Party
Republican
Democratic
Popular vote
21,415%
14,766
Percentage
59.19%
40.81%
Mayor before election
Paul Helmke
Republican
Elected Mayor
Paul Helmke
Republican
The 1991 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 5, 1991, to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the reelection of Republican incumbent Paul Helmke .
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1995 [ ]
1995 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Paul Helmke
Thomas Essex
Party
Republican
Democratic
Popular vote
21,909
11,033
Percentage
64.49%
32.48%
Mayor before election
Paul Helmke
Republican
Elected Mayor
Paul Helmke
Republican
The 1995 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 7, 1995, to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the reelection of Republican incumbent Paul Helmke . As of 2019 , this is the last time a Republican has won a Fort Wayne mayoral election.
Nominations [ ]
Democratic primary [ ]
Wayne Township Trustee Thomas Essex won the Democratic primary with 4,056 votes.[2]
Republican primary [ ]
Some Republicans speculated that Helmke, who had ties to the Clinton administration , might have been endangered in his primary. However, contrarily, he handily won his primary with 75% of the vote (7,717 votes).[2]
Libertarian nomination [ ]
Libertarians nominated William Kempf.
General election [ ]
The race was projected by Howey Political Report to be "safe Republican", with Helmke anticipated to be easily reelected.[3] [4]
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1999 [ ]
1999 Fort Wayne mayoral election Turnout 34%
Nominee
Graham Richard
Linda Buskirk
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
21,607
21,531
Percentage
50.07%
49.89%
Mayor before election
Paul Helmke
Republican
Elected Mayor
Graham Richard
Democratic
The 1999 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 2, 1999, to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the election of Democrat Graham Richard , who defeated Republican Linda Buskirk by a narrow margin.
Nominations [ ]
Democratic primary [ ]
Running for the Democratic nomination was Graham Richard, Agnes Hopkins, and David Roach.[7]
Republican primary [ ]
Running for the Republican nomination was Linda Buskirk and Allen County Sheriff Joe Squadrito.[7] While he had been seen as a frontrunner,[7] Squadrito ultimately lost the primary to Buskirk.
Independent candidates [ ]
Independent candidates Sherri Emerson and William B. Dinkins also ran.
General election [ ]
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2003 [ ]
2003 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Graham Richard
Linda Buskirk
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
27,279
19,717
Percentage
58.00%
41.92%
Mayor before election
Graham Richard
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Graham Richard
Democratic
The 2003 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 4 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , US. It saw the reelection of Democratic incumbent Graham Richard , who again defeated Republican Linda Buskirk in what was a rematch of the 1999 election.
Nominations [ ]
Primary elections were held May 8.[13]
During its primaries, the voter turnout in Allen County , in which Fort Wayne is located, was 11.9%.[13]
Democratic primary [ ]
Republican primary [ ]
General election [ ]
The election was projected as a "tossup".[14] Despite the race having been projected to be close, Richard won a sizable victory over Buskirk.[15]
During the general election, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 30.63%.[12]
2003 was a good year for Democrats in Indiana's mayoral elections, with the party winning control of the mayoralties of all of the state's top seven most populous cities for the first time since 1959.[15] The Democratic Party also won control of the mayoralties in twenty of the state's thirty cities with populations above 25,000.[15] Additionally, in 2003, Democrats won more than 56% of partisan mayoral races in Indiana.[16]
During the general election, Allen County , where Fort Wayne is located, saw voter turnout of 25% in its various elections.[17]
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2007 [ ]
2007 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Tom Henry
Matt Kelty
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
31,740
21,163
Percentage
60%
40%
Mayor before election
Graham Richard
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Tom Henry
Democratic
The 2007 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 6 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the election of Democrat Tom Henry .
Incumbent mayor Graham Richard did not seek reelection to a third term.
Nominations [ ]
Primary elections were held May 8.[19]
Democratic primary [ ]
Republican primary [ ]
General election [ ]
In August, Kelty was indicted over perjury and campaign finance charges. While he denied wrongdoing, this story dominated the campaign.[20]
During the general election, Allen County , where Fort Wayne is located, saw voter turnout of 21% in its various elections.[21]
Aftermath [ ]
In October 2008, Kelty pleaded guilty to several of the campaign finance charges brought against him.[22]
Henry would go on to be reelected in 2011, 2015 , and 2019 .
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2011 [ ]
2011 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Tom Henry
Paula Hughes
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
23,166
21,520
Percentage
49.85%
46.31%
Mayor before election
Tom Henry
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Tom Henry
Democratic
The 2011 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 8 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the reelection of Democrat Tom Henry .
Nominations [ ]
Primary elections were held May 3.[24]
During the primary elections, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 12.78%.[24]
Democratic primary [ ]
Republican primary [ ]
General election [ ]
During the general election, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 26.21%.[23]
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2015 [ ]
2015 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Tom Henry
Mitch Harper
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
23,769
18,068
Percentage
56.81%
43.19%
Mayor before election
Tom Henry
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Tom Henry
Democratic
The 2015 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 3 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. It saw the reelection of Democrat Tom Henry to a third term.
Nominations [ ]
Primary elections were held May 5.[26]
During the primary elections, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 9.82%.[26]
Democratic primary [ ]
Republican primary [ ]
General election [ ]
During the general election, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 22.49%.[25]
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2019 [ ]
2019 Fort Wayne mayoral election
Nominee
Tom Henry
Tim Smith
Party
Democratic
Republican
Popular vote
32,571
20,643
Percentage
61.74%
38.26%
Mayor before election
Tom Henry
Democratic
Elected Mayor
Tom Henry
Democratic
The 2019 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 5 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana , United States. Incumbent mayor Tom Henry was reelected to a fourth term.
Nominations [ ]
Primary elections were held May 7.[27]
Democratic primary [ ]
Republican primary [ ]
General election [ ]
The election was not close with Henry winning easily. Earlier in the campaign Henry was thought to be vulnerable but the race ended up not being close. In his victory speech Henry announced that it would be his last term as mayor. He was sworn in for his final term on January 1, 2019. His term will expire on January 1, 2023.
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References [ ]
^ a b "Helmke won't press; Bayh ain't talkin' " (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 4 (29). July 9, 1998. Retrieved November 4, 2019 .
^ a b "Upsets, resilience mark mayoral races" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 1 (32). May 4, 1995.
^ "Final look at mayoral races prior to '95 polling" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 2 (9). November 1, 1995.
^ "Indy mayoral race big Democratic blunder?" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 2 (8). October 24, 1995.
^ "Indiana Racing Form Indiana Mayoral Races 1999" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 5 (30). February 15, 1999. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ "Helmke won't press; Bayh ain't talkin' " (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 4 (29). July 9, 1998. Retrieved November 4, 2019 .
^ a b c "Indiana Racing Form INDIANA MAYORAL RACES 1999" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 5 (30). April 15, 1999. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ "Democratic Primary Mayoral Elections Fort Wayne" . www.in.gov . Indiana Secretary of State. July 21, 1999. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009. Retrieved October 12, 2020 .
^ "Republican Primary Mayoral Elections Fort Wayne" . www.in.gov . Indiana Secretary of State. July 21, 1999. Archived from the original on May 19, 2009. Retrieved October 12, 2020 .
^ "INDIANA MAYORAL ELECTIONS 1999 FORT WAYNE" . www.in.gov . Indiana Secretary of State. Archived from the original on June 18, 2009. Retrieved October 12, 2020 .
^ "Indiana 2003 Racing Form Indiana 2003 Mayoral Races" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 9 (26). February 27, 2003. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c "MUNICIPAL ELECTION ELECTION SUMMARY REPORT" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. November 6, 2003. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c d "MUNICIPAL PRIMARY 2003 ELECTION SUMMARY REPORT" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. May 5, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ "Indiana 2003 Racing Form Indiana 2003 Mayoral Races" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 9 (26). February 27, 2003. Retrieved September 10, 2019 .
^ a b c Howey, Brian A. (November 5, 2003). "Democrats control top 7 Hoosier cities" (PDF) . The Howey Political Report . 10 (14). Retrieved December 11, 2019 .
^ Marschall, Melissa; Lappie, John (May 2016). "Mayoral Elections in Indiana 2003–2015" (PDF) . Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research. Retrieved May 5, 2020 .
^ "General Election Turnout and Registration" (PDF) . www.in.gov . Indiana Secretary of State.
^ a b "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. November 19, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c "Election Summary Report" . Allen County, Indiana. May 21, 2007. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ Galer, Sarah (November 6, 2007). "Comeback kid: Ballard upsets Peterson to win Indy mayor's race" . 13 WTHR Indianapolis . WTHR-TV. Retrieved May 5, 2020 .
^ "General Election Turnout and Registration" (PDF) . www.in.gov . Indiana Secretary of State.
^ "Kelty pleads guilty, avoids jail" . KPCNews . October 21, 2008. Retrieved May 5, 2020 .
^ a b c "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. November 18, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c d "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. December 15, 2011. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. November 13, 2013. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c d "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. May 18, 2015. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ a b c "Election Summary Report" (PDF) . Allen County, Indiana. May 17, 2019. Retrieved September 25, 2019 .
^ "2015 Municipal Election Results" . Indy Gov. November 4, 2015. Archived from the original on November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2015 .