The Monroe County Democratic Party selected Leon Gordon as the new Perry Township trustee to serve the remainder of longtime trustee Dan Combs’ term on Saturday afternoon.
Combs died in January after serving as Perry Township trustee for 40 years.
Gordon, a New Hope Family housing specialist, will serve as trustee through the end of 2026.
The Monroe County Democratic Party hosted a vacancy caucus to select a new trustee in the Bloomington City Council Chambers.
The precinct chairs from Perry Township voted in the vacancy caucus, as required under Indiana law. Following a ballot vote, Gordon was chosen to fill the position with 15 votes.
The new role will entail governing Perry Township alongside township board members Susie Hamilton, Jack Davis and Barbara Sturbaum. Perry Township offers several programs and services to low-income residents, including an emergency assistance voucher program and Bobby’s food pantry.
The other candidates seeking the position were Eric Petry, carpenter and project manager for Golden Hands Construction, and Levi Combs, the son of the late trustee. Petry received eight votes and Combs received three.
According to Gordon’s candidate statement, his platform is centered on preserving, strengthening, improving and innovating township services.
“Through my years of service, I've lived by the principle that we only get each day to live, one day at time; and in that, I do my best to take each day in stride and ‘Do The Most Good’ with the time I am given,” Gordon said in the statement.
Gordon currently serves on several boards and committees, including as treasurer and secretary for the South Central Housing Network Board, vice chair of the South Central Community Action Program, vice chair of the Indiana Balance of State Continuum of Care Board and a member of the Statewide Capital Projects Initiative Committee for Indiana United Ways.
