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2020 Ushers In Plethora Of New City Council Faces

By Tyler Lake

Posted December 27, 2019

City Council UDO meeting

Council members discuss a proposal earlier this year. (Joe Hren, WFIU/WTIU News)

This year’s Bloomington City Council primary race saw a number of new contenders enter the field. All but one incumbent faced challengers, with five members keeping their seats and four members losing them. We talked to each outgoing member about their time on council and their plans going forward.

CHOPRA

District 3 City Council representative Allison Chopra didn’t run for reelection after serving just one term on the council.

Chopra said an ad by an Indianapolis City Council candidate expressed her frustration with the Bloomington council perfectly.

“She described being on city council as being on a bus full of children and I think that she’s correct,” Chopra says.

Longtime Bloomington resident Ron Smith won the Democratic Primary for the District 3 seat. 

RUFF

Five term at large City Council member Andy Ruff lost his bid to return in 2020. In his years on council Ruff supported controversial deer culls at Griffey Lake, which he says made him enemies on the council, but it’s a stance he doesn’t regret.

Ruff announced earlier this month that he isn’t ready to get out of politics just yet.

“I am hoping to be able to represent Bloomington as part of the larger 9th Congressional district of Indiana. I am running for congress,” Ruff says.

He says he’ll bring the same attitude he has toward municipal policy to the District 9 seat.

Ruff says those policies – like his living wage initiative – protect civil rights, empower workers and promote a fair economy.

Candidates can officially file declarations starting Jan. 8. The deadline to file for candidacy in a 2020 race is Feb. 20.

STURBAUM

Four term District 1 City Council Representative Chris Sturbaum was defeated in his bid to return to his seat in the Democratic primary in May by Kate Rosenbarger.

Sturbaum is a lifelong Bloomington resident who has fought for decades to preserve the individual charm of Bloomington’s old core neighborhoods.

 “We now have a great number of historic neighborhoods protected and I was particularly proud when we got the downtown locally designated it means it’s under protection, people will enjoy it as an old town in 100 years,” Sturbaum says.

His work on the city’s recently passed Unified Development Ordinance will prevent duplexes and triplexes from being built in core residential areas.

GRANGER

Dorothy Granger lost her bid for the District 2 City Council seat to newcomer Sue Sgambelluri in the Democratic primary in May. Granger served two terms as the council member for District 2.

She says her involvement in the community won’t end with her time on the city council.

“I am pretty engaged in the community, and I doubt that’s going to change, I will just do it in a different way,” Granger says.

Sgambelluri went on to beat Republican Andrew Guenther in the general election in November.

Read Next

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