Smooth sailing at Dems caucus for county treasurer, Smith picked to fill McClellan’s spot, cascade begins

Cathy (Catherine) Smith addresses Saturday’s Monroe County Democratic caucus. (Jan. 20, 2024)

From left: Monroe County circuit court judge Christine Talley Haseman administers the treasurer’s oath of office to Cathy Smith. Standing next to Smith is Jordan Miller, Monroe County financial coordinator. In the background are Charlotte Zietlow, Pat Williams, Jack Davis and Tree Martin. (Jan. 20, 2024)

Treasurer’s vacancy caucus in the Nat U. Hill Room of the Monroe County courthouse. (Jan. 20, 2024)

Monroe County’s new treasurer is Cathy Smith.

Smith was the easy choice for the roughly five dozen Democratic Party precinct chairs who gathered in the Nat U. Hill room of the Monroe County courthouse on Saturday (Jan. 20).

That’s because she was the only choice to fill the vacancy, which was left when Jessica McClellan resigned the treasurer’s job at the start of the year.

McClellan resigned to accept an appointment as Bloomington’s city controller, in new mayor Kerry Thomson’s administration.

No other caucus candidates filed for the position of county treasurer.

Smith was sworn into office on the spot, by Monroe County circuit court judge Christine Talley Haseman.

That means Smith’s position as elected county auditor is now vacant. And that means the Dems will be holding another caucus in a couple of weeks, to fill the auditor’s vacancy.

The maximum participation in the caucus would have been the 79 Democrats who serve countywide as precinct chairs. Just four seats are vacant, out of the 83 precincts in the county.

The relatively big turnout for an uncontested race on a bitter cold day—the high temperature for the day was 16 F degrees—was something Smith noted in her remarks to the precinct chairs before they voted. “Thank you, everyone, for coming out on a cold day, especially since I didn’t have any competition,” Smith said.

David Henry, who as Monroe County Democratic Party chair presided over the vacancy caucus, entertained motions to streamline the ordinary rules for a vacancy caucus,  which were dispatched with no wrangling.

Part of the streamlined process was a vote by acclamation instead of filling out slips of paper and placing them in a ballot box.

When Henry called for the votes in favor of Smith as treasurer, the Nat U. Hill room was filled with a unified chorus of ayes. When Henry asked for opposing votes, the room was dead silent. At that, Henry declared, “Hearing none, your new treasurer is Cathy Smith.”

Henry announced that the caucus to fill the ensuing auditor’s vacancy is tentatively scheduled for Feb. 10 which is two weeks away. The deadline for filing a declaration with the party chair, and a statement of economic interests with the county election division is 72 hours (3 days) before the caucus is held.

One person has already filed the paperwork to stand as a candidate in the auditor’s vacancy caucus—Brianne Gregory, who is the county’s financial director. Gregory has also declared her candidacy in the regular 2024 election for auditor, which is up for election this year.

McClellan had been expected to run for county auditor, because she was term-limited as treasurer, and Smith was looking to run for treasurer in 2024, anyway. That’s because Smith was term-limited as auditor. Both positions are limited to just two four-year terms in a row.

If Gregory is the choice of the Dems to serve out the end of Smith’s term as auditor, she will still have to win election as auditor in this year’s cycle to continue in the role past the end of this year. The same goes for Smith, if she is to continue as treasurer for a full four-year term after 2024.

Smith is not a newcomer to the role of county treasurer. She was elected Monroe County treasurer in 2008, prevailing in that general election over Republican Barb Clark.

Smith served two terms as county treasurer starting in 2009. When Smith hit the constitutional term limit as treasurer, she ran for auditor in 2016, and prevailed in a three-way race over Republican T. Ann Boehm and independent Therese K. Chambers.

Responding to a question from the caucus floor on Saturday, about any skills that make her suited to the job of treasurer, Smith said she can calculate the actual tax rates “by hand.” She said, “I guess my superpower would be math, and making sure that not a penny gets spent that doesn’t need to be spent.” She added, “I have two sets of eyes on every transaction.”

In her remarks to Saturday’s caucus, Smith also related some stories about her family background, including the fact that she has 11 siblings—she’s between two sets of twins.

She also emphasized her family’s credentials as Democrats. “When I met my husband of 43 years, the first thing I asked him was: Are you a Democrat? I can’t take anybody home who’s not a Democrat.”

Smith continued, “He said: It just so happens, my parents are also militant Democrats.” Smith wrapped up the point: “So that worked out great!”

Why is it only Democrats who chose the successor to someone who left an office vacant? Under Indiana state law, a vacancy in a city office like the county treasurer or auditor has to be filled by a caucus where the eligible voters are required to be precinct chairs, who are members of the same political party as the person who vacated the office to be filled. McClellan and Smith are both Democrats.

When Henry formally calls auditor’s vacancy caucus, he will be following a procedure spelled out in state law.

Henry told The B Square on Saturday that the vacancy caucus for the District 5 Bloomington city council seat, due to Shruti Rana’s resignation, has not yet been dialed in on the calendar.

Photos: Monroe County Dems treasurer’s vacancy caucus (Jan. 20, 2024)
In the captions, the precinct for which a person is chair is indicated inside square brackets.