Ballard upsets incumbent in Indy mayoral contest

Republican Greg Ballard scored a stunning upset Tuesday night, ending a months-long uphill climb to defeat two-term Indianapolis Mayor Bart Peterson and take leadership of the state’s largest city.\nBallard, who trailed in polling as recently as last month, led the Democratic incumbent by more than 5,000 votes with 93 percent of precincts reporting.\n“This is really unbelievable,” Ballard said in his victory speech. “I told everybody for so long that six months ago I was the only one who believed but now everybody believes.”\nAn Indianapolis Star/WTHR-TV poll of likely voters last month found Peterson with a lead of 43 percent to 39 percent for Ballard, a result within the poll’s margin of error despite Peterson having raised about $4 million and Ballard less than $300,000 by mid-October.\n“The Beatles used to say money can’t buy me love, but it doesn’t buy elections either,” Ballard said.\nBallard, a retired Marine Corps lieutenant colonel, capitalized on public discontent over property tax increases, a hike this year in the Marion County income tax and the city’s crime rate.\nIn the Fort Wayne mayor’s race, Democrat Tom Henry defeated Republican Matt Kelty, who was indicted on campaign finance and perjury charges.\nWith 96 percent of precincts reporting, Henry had 31,659 votes to Kelty’s 21,085.\nKelty’s August indictment dominated the mayoral campaign in the state’s second-largest city. Kelty, an architect who has never held public office, denies any wrongdoing in his reporting of $158,000 in loans to his campaign in which he won the GOP primary over a candidate who had the backing of nearly all elected Republican officials in Allen County.\nRepublicans have looked to retake the Fort Wayne mayor’s office after Democratic Mayor Graham Richard decided to not seek a third term.\nHenry, a former city councilman, said he wants to build upon many of Richard’s initiatives, including a $120 million downtown project that includes a new hotel, a privately built condominium and retail building and a new, city-owned baseball stadium.\nIn Muncie, the mayor’s race remained too close to call with all precincts reporting. Democrat James Mansfield Jr., director of the Muncie Visitors Bureau, led Republican Sharon McShurley by a nine-vote margin.\nRepublican Mayor Dan Canan did not seek re-election after three terms.