New Calumet Township Trustee Tai Adkins, left, is congratulated by Lake County Councilman Ron Brewer
Adkins wins Democrats caucus to fill Calumet Township Trustee vacancy
Contributed By: The 411 News
Democrats in Gary will caucus again in 30 days to fill city council vacancy
In 2 rounds of voting Thursday night, Democratic precinct captains from Gary and unincorporated areas of Calumet Township selected Tai Adkins to fill the vacancy in the Office of Calumet Township Trustee.
Adkins takes over the office after Calumet Township Trustee Kim Robinson was forced to resign in late December.
A standing room only crowd packed the community room at the Township MultiPurpose Center, but Adkins and each of the 6 other contenders only needed a majority approval from the 47 precinct captains who were eligible to vote.
Jim Wieser, Chairman of the Lake County Democratic Central Committee presided over the caucus and Michelle Fajman, Director of the Lake County Board of Elections and Registration tallied the votes.
Adkins captured 22 yea votes in round 1, but it was not a majority. The field was narrowed down to 4 candidates when three of the round 1 contenders did not meet the threshold to continue into the next round.
Wieser said a candidate had to receive 10% of the available votes to go into the next round. McKenya Dilworth-Smith, Linda Collins-Brown and Sherita Starks were eliminated.
The four remaining candidates were Adkins, Glenn Johnson, Sharita Smith, and Carol Ann Seaton.
Wieser declared Adkins the winner when she received 25 yea votes in round 2, a majority of the available votes.
Adkins’ win means there will be a vacancy on the Gary Common Council. Adkins is the 4th District Councilwoman and she is the council’s president.
Mike Brown, Vice President of the Gary Democratic Precinct Organization said the organization will hold another caucus within the next 30 days to fill the vacancy in the 4th District.
When Robinson resigned, she also resigned from the presidency of the Gary Democratic Precinct Organization. “After things are settled, we will also elect a new precinct organization head,” Brown said. “But first, the organization needs to audit the books before we turn it over to a new leader.”
Calumet Township Trustee contenders (front row, l-r) Linda Collins-Brown, Glenn Johnson, Tai Adkins, and Sharita Smith; (2nd row, l-r) Carol Ann Seaton, Sharita Starks, and McKenya Dilworth-Smith
Story Posted:01/17/2025
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