Four days after news that former Democratic candidate for president and Governor of Vermont Howard Dean will come to Bloomington on Wednesday to endorse John Hamilton, Neher spoke out against Washington influence in ?Bloomington politics.
“I am proud to be running a local campaign to serve the city of Bloomington,” Neher said in a prepared statement. “I’m not raising Washington, D.C., dollars or inviting D.C. personalities to endorse me. I’m running to earn your trust as your next mayor of our community.”
In addition to Hamilton, John Linnemeier is a Democratic candidate running for mayor in the May 5 primary. Neher has several endorsements from prominent Bloomington politicians, including current Bloomington mayor Mark Kruzan, former candidate for congress and current Monroe County Councilmember Shelli Yoder, and Indiana state Rep. Matt Pierce, D-61st District.
Neher said the timing of his press conference was unrelated to Dean’s pending arrival in Bloomington, though he admitted his remarks about personalities from Washington were.
“This press conference is about the timing of the support from Charlotte,” Neher said. “I am excited to have Charlotte Zietlow and Vi Taliaferro and Pat Williams on my committee. They represent so much of Bloomington political history. It’s meaningful to me to let people know that they’re there to support me.”
Neher, who is a senior lecturer at the Kelley School of Business, also represents District 5 on the Bloomington City Council. He announced his candidacy for mayor in January at the ?Buskirk-Chumley Theatre.
The three endorsers said they were proud to support Neher’s campaign.
Zietlow, who said she withheld her endorsement until reviewing all three Democratic candidates, said she decided to support Neher because of his humility, ability to collaborate, knowledge of Bloomington, ?openness and flexibility.
“I know Bloomington and Indiana well, and want to see our town continue to flourish and improve,” Zietlow said in a prepared statement. “I have studied and listened and researched the claims of the candidates for mayor and have come to support Darryl Neher as the best candidate to run ?our city.”
Taliaferro, a former Monroe County Circuit Judge, said she has not known Neher long. She said she relates to the candidate because of his humble background.
Williams was the last of the three to speak and said Neher’s work on the council gives him necessary knowledge and experience to manage all city departments and employees.
“I’m running for One Bloomington,” Neher said in his statement. “And I deeply appreciate the local and influential Democratic leaders who have followed this election closely, observing all three candidates, and who decided to endorse my campaign. Their priorities and knowledge reflect our shared concern for the ?future of Bloomington.”
