Election 2026

Mary Allen — ‘I wish we were part of ‘the wave’’

WNIN | By Tim Jagielo

Published November 4, 2026 at 4:14 PM CST

Congressional Candidate Mary Allen and husband Greg (far left) are comforted by supporters following her concession speech on Election Night, Tuesday Nov. 3 at the Vanderburgh County Democrats watch party. Nearly all local challenging Democrats were unable to upset long-seated Republicans, while otherwise, Democratic victories were widespread.

While Democrats across the nation are celebrating victories that are historic in some cases, Democrats in Southwest Indiana were mostly unable to unseat incumbent Republicans

At the Nov. 3 Election Night watch party, Vanderburgh County Democratic Party Chair Cheryl Schultz reacts to the news on large TV monitors, of a significant Democratic victory in South Carolina. She's standing beside Nick Iaccarino, District 3 County Council member, and James Powell (right) Party Vice Chair. National and state victories mainly didn't apply at the local level for Democrats. — At the Nov. 3 Election Night watch party, Vanderburgh County Democratic Party Chair Cheryl Schultz reacts to the news on large TV monitors, of a significant Democratic victory in South Carolina. She's standing beside Nick Iaccorino, District 3 County Council member, and James Powell (right) Party Vice Chair. National and state victories mainly didn't apply at the local level for Democrats.

On Tuesday night, US Congressional Candidate Mary Allen conceded her loss to incumbent Republican Mark Messmer, after a hard-fought, uphill, grassroots campaign.

“We will keep building,” she said, flanked by blue lights at the election watch party. “We will keep growing. We will keep inviting others to join us every step of the way, because there's a lot of work to do.”

Allen stood before the large crowd at City View in Evansville, thanking her supporters and family.

She remains affected by the stories of struggling families she heard on the campaign trail.

“I can't un-know those things,” she said. “And I just want to continue to do the work to build community and build relationships, and hopefully, ideally, work on solutions, build solutions, and keep building on that.”

Allen still took 43-percent of the vote, which is about 10-percent higher than previous Democrats, gaining 26 points over previous elections.

The Vanderburgh County Democrats were gathered to watch results roll in which included major victories across the US and even Indiana — but not in that room. Neither General Assembly candidates, nor Mary Allen were able to beat long-seated Republicans, or seats only occupied by a Republican for decades.

In the large gathering, feelings ranged from jubilation at historic victories for Democrats in surprising races, to despondency at losing hard-fought campaigns.

“It is complex feelings for sure,” Allen said. “We're happy to see what's happening on a nationwide level,” Allen said. “I wish we were a part of that wave, but I'm really excited to see the direction that our country is taking.”

Mary Allen of Evansville speaks to supporters at the Election Night watch party for Vanderburgh County Democrats. Allen had just conceded to Republican Incumbent Mark Messmer. "(I) congratulated him on this race, and I told him we were going to be holding him accountable over the next two years," Allen said. "When we got into this race. We knew it was an uphill climb, and we knew the chances. But we also knew what was at stake."

All General Assembly incumbents — all Republicans — held onto their seats. In the case of Tim O’Brien versus challenger Sally Busby, it was by 58 votes.

The only Democrat upset at the County level or higher was Jason Jett winning a seat on the County Council.

But Democratic Party Chair Cheryl Schultz said her party is already looking ahead, starting with the municipal election for 2027.

"I've already started looking at candidates for 2028," she said via email. "We want to continue the momentum from last night's election into our next several elections and continue to build our base in Vanderburgh County."

At the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation (EVSC) — first term At-Large Trustee Melissa Moore lost to Republican Steve Ary.

In District 2, incumbent Mike Duckworth kept his seat, while incumbent Dave Hollingsworth lost to challenger Lindsey Patterson.

WNIN will have more on EVSC race results soon.

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