The Indianapolis mayoral race heated up on the Dr. King Holiday, January 19th.
That morning, Deputy Mayor Olgen Williams announced that he’s running to succeed his boss, incumbent Mayor Greg Ballard. Williams is the first sitting deputy mayor in UniGov history to run to succeed the mayor which appointed him.
As deputy mayor for neighborhoods, the longtime Haughville and Westside community leader, ordained minister and former executive director of Christamore House has been behind many of Mayor Ballard’s neighborhood, faith based, re-entry, anti-crime and community initiatives.
In his only election experience, Williams ran for an at large IPS Board seat in 2006 and defeated seven candidates receiving 21 percent of the vote.
Several hours after Williams’ announcement, Rev. Charles Harrison, who created an exploratory committee for mayor in December, told the Indianapolis Star Newspaper’s Tim Swarens that he “will not run for mayor of Indianapolis as long as his ‘good friend’ Olgen Williams is in the race.”
Then a couple of hours after Harrison’s Dr. King Day pronouncement, Marion County Republican leaders “leaked” to the Star and other media, while pointedly excluding the Indianapolis Recorder Newspaper and other Black media, that party leaders’ mayoral choice is a Marine Lt. Colonel and former corporate executive named Chuck Brewer.
Brewer owns the Potbelly Sandwich Shop and Soupremacy restaurants on Monument Circle in downtown Indy.
I found little information available online about Brewer except he wrote a book a few years ago “How to Win ROTC Scholarships”; served in a number of executive positions, including vice-president, at Sears Holdings in Chicago. A graduate of the University of North Carolina, Harvard and Northwestern, Brewer has only been an Indianapolis resident for a couple of years.
If, as expected, Marion County Republicans formally endorse newcomer Brewer for mayor at their slating (endorsement) convention this Saturday Jan. 31, it’d be a serious blow to Williams’ mayoral bid.
To prevail in a Republican primary, Williams needs the strong support of party loyalists and campaign workers. Williams enjoys a reservoir of support in the Black community.
But, while many Blacks vote for Republican candidates in general elections, they’re reluctant, particularly in Democratic-majority precincts, to openly declare they’re voting for a Republican in a primary.
Harrison faces a different problem. By suspending his campaign in favor of that of Williams, Harrison faces a loss of momentum and fundraising for an independent campaign if Williams doesn’t win in May.
Also, the delay means Harrison loses precious time to gather the thousands of petition signatures he needs to get on the November ballot as an independent candidate.
Brewer faces the even more difficult task of introducing himself, not just to Republican voters in a primary, but to the some 600,000 potential city/county voters of all political persuasions.
Another problem is, as the newcomer, how much of Mayor Ballard’s agenda does Brewer endorse? For Olgen Williams, how much of Ballard’s positions does he endorse; and how many does he back away from?
Finally, what does the mayor do? His loyal deputy mayor wants to succeed him. Does Ballard endorse Williams and risk alienating GOP leaders or endorse Brewer and risk alienating Williams’ supporters?
Watching all of this are two other declared Republican candidates, Jocelyn Tandy-Adande and newcomer Terry Michael. However, the Indianapolis Business Journal’s Kathleen McLaughlin last week reported Michael may be dropping out in favor of Williams.
And on the Democratic side community activist Larry Vaughn and the well funded former US Attorney Joe Hogsett await the results of the Republican fracas.
Getting to be a wild race.
