List of mayors of Indianapolis

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Mayor of the City of Indianapolis
Seal of the Office of the Mayor of the City of Indianapolis.png
Seal of the Office of the Mayor of the City of Indianapolis
IndyGo Red Line opening 56 (cropped).jpg
Incumbent
Joe Hogsett
since January 1, 2016
Term length Four years
Inaugural holder Samuel Henderson
Formation1847
Salary$95,317.60 annually [1]
Website Office of the Mayor

The Mayor of Indianapolis is the head of the executive branch of the consolidated city-county government of Indianapolis and Marion County. As the chief executive, the mayor has the duty to oversee city-county government's various departments, agencies, and municipal corporations. They also have the power to either approve or veto bills passed by the Indianapolis City-County Council, the legislative branch. The mayor serves a four-year term and has no limit to the number of terms they may serve. [2]

Contents

As of 2016, the mayor was paid an annual salary of $95,317.60. [1] The Mayor's Office is on the twenty-fifth floor of the City-County Building. [3]

Elections

The mayor of Indianapolis is elected every four years; elections take place one year before United States presidential elections on election day in November. The mayor is usually sworn in at noon on January 1 following the election. The next election for the mayor will be in 2027.

Indianapolis city elections are partisan, with party affiliations listed alongside candidates' names on the ballot. [4] Primary elections are held on the first Tuesday of May in a mayoral election year. Candidates for mayor secure their party's nominations to campaign in the general election, held on Election Day the following November.

Lists

To date, 43 individuals have served as mayor. There have been 49 mayoralties due to six individuals who served nonconsecutive terms. John Caven, Caleb S. Denny, Charles A. Bookwalter, Samuel L. Shank, Reginald H. Sullivan, and Philip L. Bayt served two nonconsecutive terms each. The longest term was that of William "Bill" Hudnut, who served four consecutive terms for 16 years. [5] The shortest term was that of Claude E. Negley, who served 13 days.

Pre-Unigov

Old Indianapolis City Hall housed the Mayor's Office from 1910 until completion of the City-County Building in 1962. Old Indianapolis City Hall.jpg
Old Indianapolis City Hall housed the Mayor's Office from 1910 until completion of the City-County Building in 1962.
No.PortraitNameTerm startTerm end Party
1 Samuel Henderson
(1800–1883; aged 83)
May 1, 18471849 Whig
2 Horatio C. Newcomb
(1821–1882; aged 61)
1849November 7, 1851 [6] Whig
3 Caleb Scudder
(1795–1866; aged 71)
November 18511854Whig
4 James McCready
(1816–1909; aged 93)
18541856 Democratic
5 Henry F. West
(1796–1856; aged 60)
1856November 8, 1856 [7] Democratic
6 Charles G. Coulon
(1825–1881; aged 56)
November 8, 1856November 22, 1856Democratic
7 William J. Wallace
(1814–1894; aged 80)
1856May 5, 1858 [6] Republican
8 Samuel D. Maxwell
(1803–1873; aged 70)
May 5, 1858January 1, 1863Republican
9 John Caven, 1899.jpg John Caven (1st)
(1824–1905; aged 81)
18631867Republican
10 Colonel Daniel Macauley.jpg Daniel McCauley
(1839–1894; aged 55)
18671873Republican
11 James L. Mitchell
(1834–1894; aged 60)
18731875Democratic
12 John Caven, 1899.jpg John Caven (2nd)18751881Republican
13 Daniel W. Grubbs
(1835–1917; aged 82)
May 12, 1881January 1, 1884Republican
14 John L. McMaster
(1843–1914; aged 71)
January 1, 1884January 1, 1886Republican
15 Caleb S. Denny (1st)
(1850–1926; aged 76)
January 1, 1886January 1, 1890Republican
16 Thomas L. Sullivan
(1846–1936; aged 90)
18901893Democratic
17 Caleb S. Denny (2nd)October 12, 1893October 10, 1895Republican
18 Thomas Taggart, LCCN2006677840 (cropped 3x4).jpg Thomas Taggart
(1856–1929; aged 73)
January 1, 1895December 31, 1901Democratic
19 Charles A. Bookwalter (1st)
(1860–1926; aged 66)
1901November 1903Republican
20 John W. Holtzman
(1858–1942; aged 84)
November 19031906Democratic
21 Charles A. Bookwalter (2nd)19061910Republican
22 Mayor Lew Shank LCCN2014686592.jpg Samuel L. Shank (1st)
(1872–1927; aged 55)
1910November 28, 1913 [6] Republican
23 Henry R. Wallace
(1869–1915; aged 46)
November 28, 1913January 5, 1914Republican
24 Joseph E. Bell
(1865–1923; aged 58)
19141918 [6] Democratic
25 Charles W. Jewett
(1884–1961; aged 77)
19181922Republican
26 Mayor Lew Shank LCCN2014686592.jpg Samuel L. Shank (2nd)19221926Republican
27 John L. Duvall (1) (a).jpg John L. Duvall
(1874–1962; aged 88)
January 4, 1926October 27, 1927 [6] Republican
28 Claude E. Negley
(1873–1943; aged 70)
October 27, 1927 [8] November 9, 1927Republican
29 Lemuel Ertus Slack.png Lemuel Ertus Slack
(1874–1952; aged 78)
November 9, 19271930Democratic
30 Reginald H. Sullivan.png Reginald H. Sullivan (1st)
(1876–1980; aged 103)
19301935Democratic
31 John W. Kern
(1900–1971; aged 71)
1935September 2, 1937 [6] Democratic
32 Walter C. Boetcher
(1881–1951; aged 70)
19371939Democratic
33 Reginald H. Sullivan.png Reginald H. Sullivan (2nd)19391943Democratic
34 Robert Henry Tyndall in Indianapolis Men of Affairs, 1923.jpg Robert Tyndall
(1877–1947; aged 70)
1943July 9, 1947 [7] Republican
35 George L. Denny
(1878–1958; aged 80)
July 9, 1947January 1, 1948Republican
36 Albert G. Feeney
(1892–1950; aged 58)
January 1, 1948November 12, 1950 [7] Democratic
37 Philip L. Bayt (1st)
(1910–1989; aged 79)
November 12, 1950November 24, 1951 [6] Democratic
38 Christian J. Emhardt
(1883–1971; aged 88)
November 24, 1951January 1, 1952Democratic
39 AlexClark.jpg Alex M. Clark
(1916–1991; aged 75)
January 1, 1952January 1, 1956Republican
40 Philip L. Bayt (2nd)January 1, 1956January 1, 1960 [6] Democratic
41 Charles H. Boswell
(1909–2006; aged 97)
January 1, 1960August 6, 1962 [6] Democratic
42 Albert H. Losche
(1891–1966; aged 75)
August 6, 1962January 1, 1964Democratic
43 John J. Barton
(1906–2004; aged 98)
January 1, 1964January 1, 1968Democratic

Unigov

Richard Lugar was the 44th mayor of Indianapolis, and the first under Unigov. Dick Lugar official photo 2010.JPG
Richard Lugar was the 44th mayor of Indianapolis, and the first under Unigov.

Unigov, the city-county consolidation of Indianapolis and Marion County governments, was enacted on January 1, 1970, exactly two years into Richard Lugar's first term as mayor. [2] The new governance structure, codified in Indiana Code, mandates that the Mayor of Indianapolis is the chief executive of both the city and Marion County. Due to this structure, all Marion County residents are permitted to vote for the Mayor of Indianapolis, regardless if they live within the city or an excluded city or town. [9] For example, residents of Beech Grove, which is an entirely independent municipality in Marion County, have the ability to vote for the Mayor of Indianapolis as well as their own mayor. [2]

No.PortraitNameTerm startTerm end Party
44 Richard Lugar 1977 congressional photo.jpg Richard Lugar
(1932–2019; aged 87)
January 1, 1968January 1, 1976Republican
45 WmHudnutIII.png William H. Hudnut
(1932–2016; aged 84)
January 1, 1976January 1, 1992Republican
46 Stephen Goldsmith (1).jpg Stephen Goldsmith
(born in 1946; age 77)
January 1, 1992January 1, 2000Republican
47 Mayor Bart Peterson of Indianapolis (2006) (1).jpg Bart Peterson
(born in 1958; age 65)
January 1, 2000January 1, 2008Democratic
48 GregBallard (1).jpg Greg Ballard
(born in 1954; age 69)
January 1, 2008January 1, 2016Republican
49 IndyGo Red Line opening 56 (cropped).jpg Joe Hogsett
(born in 1956; age 67)
January 1, 2016incumbentDemocratic

See also

Notes

  1. 1 2 "Report Builder: Employee Compensation Report". Indiana Gateway for Government Units. State of Indiana. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "Unigov Handbook: A Citizen's Guide to Local Government" (PDF). League of Women Voters of Indianapolis. Retrieved November 7, 2017.
  3. Price, Nelson (2004). Indianapolis Then & Now. San Diego, California: Thunder Bay Press. p. 38. ISBN   1-59223-208-6.
  4. "Partisan vs. Nonpartisan Elections". National League of Cities. Retrieved November 10, 2017.
  5. Mack, Justin; Higgins, Will (December 18, 2016). "Former Indianapolis Mayor Bill Hudnut dies at 84". The Indianapolis Star. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Resigned.
  7. 1 2 3 Died in office.
  8. Appointed by Council.
  9. "IC 36-3-3-2". iga.in.gov. Retrieved November 8, 2017.

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