The first Democrat mayoral candidate has officially filed her paperwork with the county election office.
On Tuesday afternoon, candidate Stephanie Terry watched along with her husband and sons as Elections Supervisor Kenneth Grant stamps her paperwork, officially making her a mayoral candidate for the city of Evansville.
Dozens of supporters were crammed into the elections office including family, friends and elected officials such as Missy Mosby and Ben Trockman from City Council.
Terry is the only Democrat to file so far — which she’s fine with.
“That way I can begin having an opportunity to talk with as many citizens as I possibly can about the issues and things that are important to them, and really continue to get my name out there in the community.”
After filing, she said a few words from a podium outside the Vanderburgh County Election Office.
“I would like us to build upon the progress made, much by former Mayor Weinzapfel, and also Lloyd Winnecke,” she said, adding that it would be an exciting time to be mayor of Evansville.
“There's a lot of development going on. I mean, we have access to ready dollars that are gonna be invested in our region. And so there's just really some, I think, some exciting projects on the horizon that are really going to transform this community. But then also, there's an opportunity to really do some more neighborhood development …”
Terry could be the first woman elected to mayor — and so could GOP candidates Cheryl Musgrave or Natalie Rascher.
“This race is unique for several reasons,” said Cheryl Schultz, chair of the Vanderburgh County Democratic Party. “First and foremost we are going to have a woman as the mayor of Evansville and probably an African American woman. So this is historic — we've always had men in the mayor's position."
The partisan primaries are May 2 and the general election is November 7.
Incumbent Mayor Lloyd Winnecke opted not to run for a forth term. He was first took office in 2012.
