What you need to know about the Nov. 7 Indianapolis City-County Council election
On Nov. 7, Indianapolis voters will decide who will serve on the City-County Council for the next four years. Early voting is already underway.
All 25 seats on the City-County Council are up for grabs this year with opportunities for Republicans to gain seats and make a dent in the 20-5 Democratic supermajority.
Indiana Citizen, a non-partisan nonprofit organization, created a virtual ballot tool to help voters see who's on their ballots as well as profiles of each candidate.
Here's what you need to know about the Indianapolis City-County Council races.
Indianapolis election 2023: Early voting is underway. Here's where you can cast a ballot in Central Indiana.
Ten City-County Council seats are uncontested
As it stands, two Republicans and eight Democrats are basically guaranteed four-year terms on the council starting in 2024 because they are uncontested in the general election.
Two of those are newcomers, Rev. Dr. Carlos Perkins and Ron Gibson, who both won their Democratic primaries. Perkins won in District 6 on the northeast side in Pike Township and Gibson in District 8 encompassing the Fairgrounds and Martindale-Brightwood neighborhoods.
Gibson isn't entirely new to the Council, having served before for two terms from 2000 to 2007.
Republicans could gain seats
Voters will be casting ballots in new council districts for the first time this year. Councilors passed a new district map in May last year as part of the decennial redistricting process that was seen as favorable to Republicans, especially on the south side.
Republicans will likely get five seats under the new map, according to experts, maintaining their current number on the council.
That's because five of the new districts are strongly Republican, according to a 2022 statistical analysis of Council districts by PlanScore conducted by Common Cause Indiana. PlanScore bases its predictions on past election results and U.S. Census data.
Two areas could swing from Democratic control to Republican: District 17 and District 19, which lean Republican, according to PlanScore.
Incumbent Democratic councilor Jared Evans is running against Republican Lisa G. Schmitz in District 17 on the southern side of Wayne Township.
Incumbent Democratic councilor Frank Mascari is running against Republican Terry L. Trent in District 19, which includes the near southeast and western Beech Grove.
District 20 on the southeast side, which leans Democratic according to the PlanScore analysis, could swing from Republican to Democratic control.
Incumbent Republican councilor Michael-Paul Hart is running against Democrat William Jackson in that district.
Four councilors are not seeking reelection
Democratic Councilors Ethan Evans, Jason Larrison, Keith Potts and William 'Duke' Oliver are not seeking reelection.
One of the more progressive councilors, Evans announced he was leaving the Democratic party last year and would not seek a second term after feeling shut out by the party.
The area he represents has been redrawn into the new District 4 around Castleton and Geist, where Democratic candidate Nick Roberts is facing Republican Natalie Goodwin, and District 10 encompassing Lawrence, where Democratic Councilor Ali Brown is running uncontested.
Potts is running in the Democratic primary to replace US. Sen. Mike Braun in 2024, a Republican candidate for Indiana governor. The area Potts represented is now in the new District 2, where Democrat Brienne Delaney will face Republican Matt Hills.
Oliver, a 20-year council veteran, withdrew from the Democratic primary race in February to retire at the end of this year. The district he was running in, District 8, now has only an uncontested newcomer, Gibson.
Larrison was elected to his seat amid controversy through a process involving party insiders known as precinct committee persons in 2020. He also came under fire for comments he made in old blog posts about women and immigrants. He later apologized for the comments. His seat had been vacated by State Rep. Blake Johnson.
In 2021, Larrison's role as a paid outside consultant on renovating old City Hall raised ethical concerns.
The area Larrison represented is now in District 14, where Democrat Andy Nielsen will face Republican Brenda Bishop-Kyle.
Three incumbent councilors were ousted in the May primary
Three incumbent Democrats, Council Vice President Zach Adamson, 30-year veteran councilor Monroe Gray, and councilor David Ray, were ousted by Indianapolis voters in the May primary, largely due to newly drawn council districts, the end of party-backed slating and voter angst over the handling of some key issues.
Delaney beat Gray for the north side District 2 seat.
Nielsen beat Ray in District 14 in Irvington and the east side.
Self-identified socialist Jesse Brown beat Adamson in District 13, which encompasses parts of downtown and the near east side. Brown now faces Libertarian candidate Elizabeth J. Glass.
Indianapolis City-County Council races: Why 3 Democratic incumbents lost their Indianapolis council races
Two of the three winners were significantly out funded by the incumbents, showing how grassroots power can lead to change in the relatively low voter turnout council district races.
Contact IndyStar reporter Ko Lyn Cheang at kcheang@indystar.com or 317-903-7071. Follow her on Twitter: @kolyn_cheang.
This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Indianapolis municipal City-County Council election 2023: What to know
