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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowBefore Greg Ballard won election for mayor of Indianapolis in 2007, he was a little-known former Marine who ran his own business.
Local Republicans are hoping history repeats itself with their new candidate to replace Ballard. Chuck Brewer, a decorated Iraq War veteran and the owner of two downtown restaurants, announced his candidacy Monday as the choice of the Marion County Republican Party.
Brewer may be best-known locally for owning the Potbelly Sandwich Shop where singer Josh Kaufman regularly performed before winning TV competition "The Voice" in May 2014, but he has a much deeper resume.
He was one of the first franchisees of Chicago-based Potbelly when he opened the restaurant on Monument Circle in 2011. He followed that up by opening his own concept eatery, Soupremacy, just off the Circle a year ago.
A New York native, Brewer has an undergraduate degree from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, a master's in history from Harvard University and an MBA from Northwestern University's Kellogg Business School.
He served two combat tours in the Iraq War and worked at the Pentagon before spending 10 years as an executive at Sears Holding Corp. in Chicago. He left Sears as a division president to move to Indianapolis and open Potbelly. Brewer remains active in the military as a Lt. Colonel in the Marine Corps Reserves.
Ballard’s decision last fall not to seek a third term prompted several high-profile Republicans to consider running against Democrat Joe Hogsett, but only a few lesser known candidates have thrown their het in the ring.
Earlier Monday, Deputy Mayor Olgen Williams said he was running. Terry Michael, a precinct committeeman, filed as a candidate last week, but said he might withdraw his name. Another GOP candidate to file was Jocelyn-Tandy Adande.
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