2003 Fort Wayne mayoral election

The 2003 Fort Wayne mayoral election was held on November 4 to elect the mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana, US. It saw the reelection of Democratic incumbent Graham Richard, who again defeated Republican Linda Buskirk in what was a rematch of the 1999 election.

Fort Wayne mayoral election, 2003

November 4, 2003[1]

Nominee Graham Richard Linda Buskirk Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 27,279 19,717 Percentage 58.00% 41.92%

Mayor before election Graham Richard Democratic Elected Mayor Graham Richard Democratic

Nominations

Primaries were held May 8.[2]

During its primaries, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 11.9%.[2]

Democratic primary

Democratic primary results[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Graham Richard (incumbent)	5,061	88.85
	Democratic	Charles Eberhard	330	5.79
	Democratic	Thomas Allen Schrader	167	2.93
	Democratic	David Christopher "Papa" Roach	138	2.42
Total votes			5,696	100

Republican primary

Republican primary results[2]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Linda Buskirk	8,233	88.26
	Republican	O. "Bro" Blye	1,095	11.74
Total votes			9,328	100

General election

The election was projected as a "tossup".[3] Despite the race having been projected to be close, Richard won a sizable victory over Buskirk.[4]

During the general election, the voter turnout in Allen County, in which Fort Wayne is located, was 30.63%.[1]

2003 was a good year for Democrats in Indiana's mayoral elections, with the party winning control of the mayoralties of all of the state's top seven most populous cities for the first time since 1959.[4] The Democratic Party also won control of the mayoralties in twenty of the state's thirty cities with populations above 25,000.[4] Additionally, in 2003, Democrats won more than 56% of partisan mayoral races in Indiana.[5]

During the general election, Allen County, where Fort Wayne is located, saw voter turnout of 25% in its various elections.[6]

General election results[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Graham Richard (incumbent)	27,279	58.00
	Republican	Linda Buskirk	19,717	41.92
	Write-in	Others	38	0.08
Total votes			47,031	100

References

1. "MUNICIPAL ELECTION ELECTION SUMMARY REPORT" (PDF). Allen County, Indiana. 6 November 2003. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
2. "MUNICIPAL PRIMARY 2003 ELECTION SUMMARY REPORT" (PDF). Allen County, Indiana. 5 May 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2019.
3. "Indiana 2003 Racing Form Indiana 2003 Mayoral Races" (PDF). The Howey Political Report. 9 (26). 27 February 2003. Retrieved 10 September 2019.
4. Howey, Brian A. (5 November 2003). "Democrats control top 7 Hoosier cities" (PDF). The Howey Political Report. 10 (14). Retrieved 11 December 2019.
5. Marschall, Melissa; Lappie, John (May 2016). "Mayoral Elections in Indiana 2003–2015" (PDF). Rice Kinder Institute for Urban Research. Retrieved 5 May 2020.
6. "General Election Turnout and Registration" (PDF). www.in.gov. Indiana Secretary of State. Archived from the original (PDF) on 10 November 2008.