Who knows, replacing Evansville mayor-to-be on County Council could be the start of something
EVANSVILLE — It's no one's idea of a springboard to political stardom, but maybe that's what local Democrats' caucus to replace Mayor-Elect Stephanie Terry on the Vanderburgh County Council will end up being.
After all, Evansville's most recent two mayors got started that way.
Democrats will meet at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Dec. 16 in Central Library's Browning Room to choose someone to serve the remainder of Terry's unexpired term on the council, county government's budget-writing body. But not just any Democrats — they must be party precinct committee chairs or designated vice chairs in precincts within County Council District 3 in Downtown and Southeast Evansville.
Whoever is chosen to succeed Terry should have a years-long run on the County Council. Terry was re-elected to the seat without opposition in 2022, and her four-year term doesn't expire until inauguration day in January 2027.
Terry and current Mayor Lloyd Winnecke, a Republican, got their starts in local politics not in general elections before the voters, but by winning party precinct caucuses for County Council vacancies.
Terry's council district had been held by Democrat Royce Sutton for almost 18 years until Sutton departed in May 2010 to take an executive position in Fifth Third Bank's St. Louis corporate office. Terry was selected to fill the remainder of Sutton's term, which wasn't long — she had to successfully stand for the seat in a general election held just six months later. She did, defeating Republican Bill Kramer.
Winnecke's political career began on Dec. 4, 1999, in a Saturday morning caucus of Republican precinct committeemen in County Council District 4 at GOP headquarters. The party workers were looking for someone to serve the rest of newly elected Mayor Russ Lloyd Jr.'s term on the council, county government's fiscal body. They picked Winnecke.
If potential successors to Terry on the County Council are interested in no personal gain other than serving their community, the part-time job does at least offer supplemental income: It pays $23,950 annually.
"You also participate in public employee retirement (PERF, or Public Employees Retirement Fund), which is very small. It's very, very small," said Republican Jim Raben, the council's finance chairman and its longest-serving member at 32 years.
Cheryl Schultz, chair of the Vanderburgh County Democratic Party, said Friday she has received no formal notifications of candidacy from anyone interested in succeeding Terry on the County Council.
Informal notifications? There have been a few from Democrats sniffing around the opening.
"They just had questions, like, 'Do you have to reside in the district?' and just eligibility questions," Schultz said. "Yes, you do have to be a resident in the District 3, County Council."
The district spans parts of the Evansville City Council's 2nd, 3rd and 4th wards. Schultz cautioned Democratic precinct committee chairs in those wards not to assume they are eligible to participate in choosing Terry's successor.
"It's not all of the precincts in those wards; just some of them," she said.
Schultz has formally notified those who are eligible to select Terry's successor in the County Council caucus.
Raben said Terry will be missed on the County Council.
"I think she's going to probably be good in her new role, but she's been great to work with," the veteran Republican councilman said.
The Dec. 16 County Council caucus may be the same political stage that led Terry and Winnecke ultimately to the mayor's office, but it's a small stage.
"It's about 31, 32 people," Schultz said.
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Who will replace Stephanie Terry on the Vanderburgh County Council?
