Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr. said Wednesday the upcoming election will likely be his last for the seat.
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“I’m pretty positive,” he said, although he also added that he’s not 100 percent certain.
McDermott is finishing up his third term in office and seeking his fourth term against Republican challenger Humberto Prado. If he wins re-election, he’ll break the city’s record for longest mayor in office, he said, which was previously three terms.
McDermott’s father, Thomas McDermott Sr., served eight years in office.
McDermott Jr. first won election in 2003, when he defeated then-Mayor Duane Dedelow Jr., a Republican. Dedelow had served for 11 years in the position when he took over the role in 1994 after McDermott Sr. resigned to the lead the Northwest Indiana Forum.
McDermott said Wednesday that four terms is a long time and he didn’t want to wear out his welcome. He added that development projects that he planned when he first took over but then were delayed by the economic recession in 2008 are finally starting to get going, such as the Oxbow Landing project on Kennedy Avenue just south of the Borman Expressway where a Buffalo Wild Wings opened and a brewing company began building recently.
He must first win re-election. McDermott said he’ll spend the early fall taking part in normal campaign activities but that he will not debate his opponent, Prado, who could not be reached for comment.