1987 South Bend, Indiana mayoral election
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The 1987 South Bend, Indiana mayoral election was held on November 3, 1987. Joe Kernan defeated Republican Carl Baxmeyer.[1] This is the closest a Republican came to the mayorality of South Bend since the last Republican victory in 1967.
Background[edit]
Incumbent mayor Roger Parent opted not to seek a third term as mayor.[2][3] Rumors arose that internal polling had shown that, with controversy around the construction of Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium, Parent would not have been able to win a third term.[3] Several allies of Parent on the Common Council with involvement in the stadium construction would ultimately lose their reelection bids in the May primaries.[3]
Primaries[edit]
Primaries were held in May.[3]
Democratic primary[edit]
Joe Kernan prevailed over several candidates in the Democratic primary.[3] Kernan had previously served as City Compttroller from 1980 to 1984.[4]
The primary was ultimately divisive.[1] Kernan won with 51% of the vote.[5]
Republican primary[edit]
Carl Baxmeyer, a city planner,[6] won the Republican nomination, defeating opponent Mike Waite.[3][7][8] Waite was businessman who had never held public office,[8] and had been original opponent of the stadium.[3] Waite had informally withdrawn from the race after his ex-wife was murdered.[8]
General election[edit]
Arguably the most recent truly competitive general election in South Bend mayoral history,[1] and arguably the only truly competitive South Bend mayoral election since 1967 (when a Republican, Lloyd M. Allen, was last elected),[1] the election saw Kernan defeat Baxmeyer by a mere 2,000 vote margin.[1] This has been attributed to the Democratic party having been left fractured after a bitter Democratic mayoral primary.[1]
Baxmeyer made a campaign issue out of city attorney Rich Hill, criticizing the city's decision to hire him, “on a part-time basis at almost twice his former salary”.[9] Incumbent mayor Roger Parent disputed Baxmeyer's criticisms, arguing that it made sense to hire Hill due to the fact that he was already caught up on important issues including the city's stadium efforts.[9]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Joe Kernan | 17,030 | 53% | |
| Republican | Carl Baxmeyer | 15,104 | 47% | |
| Total votes | 32,134 | |||
References[edit]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 "2007 Mayoral" (PDF). Howey Political Report. 14 (7). 27 September 2007. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ↑ Chval, Craig (24 September 2010). "MONOGRAM CLUB CORNER – JOE KERNAN". Notre Dame University. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 Baines, Don (26 July 1987). "CLASS A CONTROVERSY". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ↑ Hayward, Ethan (6 October 1995). "Kernan seeks third term" (PDF). The Observer. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ↑ "Joseph Kernan Honored Warrior/Civic Leader" (PDF). Indiana Business Journal. Retrieved 31 October 2019.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Bednarski, Chtis; Coccia, Regis (4 November 1987). "ND grad is elected mayor of South Bend" (PDF). The Observer.
- ↑ Heisler, Jamie (7 November 1995). "Candidates make last day push" (PDF). The Observer. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 Heisler, Jamie (6 October 1995). "Incumbent runs criticizes incumbent" (PDF). The Observer. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Larsen, Jonathan (16 September 2019). "Documents: Police Used Buttigieg Donors to Get Him to Fire Black Chief". The Young Turks. Retrieved 22 September 2019.
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