2007 Fort Wayne mayoral election

The 2007 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 6 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, United States. It saw the election of Democrat Tom Henry.

Fort Wayne mayoral election, 2007

November 6, 2007[1]

Nominee Tom Henry Matt Kelty Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 31,740 21,163 Percentage 60% 40%

Mayor before election Graham Richard Democratic Elected Mayor Tom Henry Democratic

Incumbent mayor Graham Richard did not seek reelection to a third term.

Nominations

Primaries were held May 8.[2]

Democratic primary

Democratic primary results[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tom Henry	4,921	82.44
	Democratic	Tom Cook	804	13.47
	Democratic	Frederick F. Steinke	244	4.09
Total votes			5,969	100

Republican primary

Republican primary results[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Matt Kelty	9,123	50.29
	Republican	Nelson Peters	8,465	46.66
	Republican	Ivan R. Hood	328	1.81
	Republican	Teresa L. Licari	115	0.63
	Republican	Wilbert "Duke" Brown	111	0.61
Total votes			18,142	100

General election

In August, Kelty was indicted over perjury and campaign finance charges. While he denied wrongdoing, this story dominated the campaign.[3]

During the general election, Allen County, where Fort Wayne is located, saw voter turnout of 21% in its various elections.[4]

General election results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Tom Henry	31,740	60.00
	Republican	Matt Kelty	21,163	40.00
Total votes			52,903	100

Aftermath

In October 2008, Kelty plead guilty to several of the campaign finance charges brought against him.[5]

Henry would go on to be reelected in 2011, 2015, and 2019.

References

1. "Election Summary Report" (PDF). Allen County, Indiana. 19 November 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
2. "Election Summary Report". Allen County, Indiana. 21 May 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
3. Galer, Sarah (6 November 2007). "Comeback kid: Ballard upsets Peterson to win Indy mayor's race". 13 WTHR Indianapolis. WTHR-TV. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
4. "General Election Turnout and Registration" (PDF). www.in.gov. Indiana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 November 2008.
5. "Kelty pleads guilty, avoids jail". KPCNews. 21 October 2008. Retrieved 5 May 2020.