Mayor Ballard Says He's Not Running for a Third Term

A little less than a decade ago, Indianapolis Mayor Greg Ballard never thought he’d be standing where he was today.

”Eight years ago it hadn’t even crossed my mind to run for Mayor of Indianapolis, let alone finding myself here today talking about the future of our great city,” Ballard said. 

Yet there he was today, as Mayor, discussing what his administration has accomplished and sounding optimistic about the future of the city. But that future won’t include him, at least in his current capacity, after 2015. After stunning two-term Democratic incumbent Mayor Bart Peterson in 2007 and winning close reelection in 2011, Ballard has decided against running for a third term next November.

At a press conference today at the City Market downtown, the mayor said he’s proud of what his administration has done—from renegotiating a deal with the federal government on sewage overflows to reaching just this week  an agreement with City-County Council members to fund pre-k scholarships for disadvantaged children.

“Indy is the city that kept building, despite the recession," Ballard said. "Everywhere you look, you see signs of progress and things getting done.”

Political analyst Ed Feigenbaum said Ballard deserves credit for continuing a tradition established by previous mayors in Indianapolis of fostering cooperation among Indy’s various stakeholders.

“We’ve seen a cooperative atmosphere between the businesses, corporate, civic and political community and Greg Ballard, during his seven years in office to date has continue to facilitate that kind of relationship and has enabled that kind of progress to be made,“ Feigenbaum said. 

He says it’s difficult to determine what a mayor’s legacy will be, especially while that mayor is still in office. But he said both supporters and critics of the mayor alike might be able to agree on one thing.

“That’s that he’s a guy who cares about his city and did his very best to make progress every day for the people of Indianapolis.”

Ballard's term runs through the end of next year. Next year's mayoral election will be the first without an incumbent running since 1999.