Become part of the movement for unbiased, accessible election information. Donate today.
Thomas McDermott Jr.
Thomas McDermott Jr. (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. Senate to represent Indiana. He lost in the general election on November 8, 2022.
McDermott began serving as the mayor of Hammond, Indiana in 2004.[1]
Biography
Thomas McDermott Jr. served in the U.S. Navy from 1988 to 1994. McDermott earned an undergraduate degree from Purdue University Northwest and a law degree from the University of Notre Dame Law School. He has been affiliated with the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Indiana Bar Association, The Friendly Sons of Erin, and Indiana Society of Chicago.[1][2]
Elections
2022
See also: United States Senate election in Indiana, 2022
General election
General election for U.S. Senate Indiana
The following candidates ran in the general election for U.S. Senate Indiana on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Todd C. Young (R) | 58.6 | 1,090,390 |
 | Thomas McDermott Jr. (D) | 37.9 | 704,480 | |
 | James Sceniak (L) | 3.4 | 63,823 | |
 | Danny Niederberger (Independent) (Write-in)  | 0.1 | 1,294 | |
 | Haneefah Khaaliq (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 148 | |
 | Phillip Beachy (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 7 | |
| David Storer (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 7 | ||
| Antonio Alvarez (Political Synergy Party) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 3 | ||
| Thomas Baer (Independent) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 2 | ||
| Total votes: 1,860,154 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jason Gabehart (Independent)
- Ellen Kizik (Independent)
- Mark J. Powell (L)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Indiana
Thomas McDermott Jr. advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Indiana on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Thomas McDermott Jr. | 100.0 | 173,466 |
| Total votes: 173,466 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Valerie McCray (D)
- Haneefah Khaaliq (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. Senate Indiana
Incumbent Todd C. Young advanced from the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Indiana on May 3, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Todd C. Young | 100.0 | 372,738 |
| Total votes: 372,738 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Danny Niederberger (R)
- John Piper (R)
- Aleem Young (R)
Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Indiana
James Sceniak defeated William Henry in the Libertarian convention for U.S. Senate Indiana on March 5, 2022.
Candidate | ||
 | William Henry (L) | |
| ✔ | | James Sceniak (L) |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2020
See also: Indiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2020
Indiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2020 (June 2 Democratic primary)
Indiana's 1st Congressional District election, 2020 (June 2 Republican primary)
General election
General election for U.S. House Indiana District 1
Frank Mrvan defeated Mark Leyva and Edward Michael Strauss in the general election for U.S. House Indiana District 1 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Frank Mrvan (D) | 56.6 | 185,180 |
 | Mark Leyva (R) | 40.4 | 132,247 | |
| Edward Michael Strauss (L) | 2.9 | 9,521 | ||
| Total votes: 326,948 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Ryan Lamb (D)
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 1
The following candidates ran in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Indiana District 1 on June 2, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Frank Mrvan | 32.8 | 29,575 |
| Thomas McDermott Jr. | 28.2 | 25,426 | |
 | Jim Harper | 10.1 | 9,133 | |
| Melissa Borom | 8.7 | 7,792 | ||
 | Mara Candelaria Reardon | 7.8 | 6,997 | |
 | Sabrina Haake | 4.8 | 4,365 | |
| Carrie Castro | 1.5 | 1,330 | ||
| John Hall | 1.4 | 1,223 | ||
 | Scott Costello | 1.3 | 1,126 | |
 | Antonio Daggett Sr. | 1.1 | 965 | |
| Wendell Mosby | 1.0 | 893 | ||
| Jayson Reeves | 0.6 | 526 | ||
| Andrew Sylwestrowicz | 0.4 | 396 | ||
 | Ryan Farrar | 0.3 | 297 | |
| Total votes: 90,044 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 1
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Indiana District 1 on June 2, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Mark Leyva | 34.9 | 10,799 |
| William Powers | 22.9 | 7,073 | ||
 | Spencer Lemmons | 15.4 | 4,748 | |
 | Mont Handley | 11.7 | 3,625 | |
 | Dion Bergeron | 10.1 | 3,127 | |
| Delano Scaife | 5.0 | 1,552 | ||
| Total votes: 30,924 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Libertarian convention
Libertarian convention for U.S. House Indiana District 1
Edward Michael Strauss advanced from the Libertarian convention for U.S. House Indiana District 1 on March 7, 2020.
Candidate | ||
| ✔ | Edward Michael Strauss (L) | |
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Thomas McDermott Jr. did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign website
McDermott's campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
SMALL BUSINESSES As mayor, I worked to increase the number of small businesses in Hammond while reducing burdens that hamper growth. We worked to create opportunities for entrepreneurs to thrive and create jobs. In the US Senate, I’ll work to ensure that small businesses and the creative economy have the tools they need to succeed. This includes access to capital and eliminating regulations that impede growth and prosperity. RURAL DEVELOPMENT Rural Indiana is a special place to all Hoosier families and we need to protect and preserve our small towns and rural farmlands. There are over 55,500 farms in Indiana, with nearly 15 million acres of farmland. In the U.S. Senate, I’ll work hard to support our farm economy with a farm bill that strengthens the safety net for farmers and invests in conservation programs. I believe farm communities need a strong and fair safety net to protect against market failure and the ever-increasing extremes in our weather patterns. We need a strong crop insurance program and we need to continue to fully fund the permanent disaster program for livestock producers. In the U.S. Senate, I’ll work to open up markets for Indiana producers, exporting our agriculture products. Having a healthy farm economy is good for small town and rural development, but we can do more – and that starts with dramatically strengthening broadband coverage across every corner of Indiana. It also includes protecting rural hospitals and health care, better housing and a small business economy that works. VOTING RIGHTS We need to protect the rights of every American to vote and in the U.S. Senate I will support the John Lewis Voting Rights Advancement Act to restore and strengthen parts of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. This legislation would restore the requirement that certain states pre-clear certain changes to their voting laws with the federal government to prevent partisan power-grabs and the denial of American citizens right to vote. I also strongly favor campaign finance and election reform to, in part, undue the great damage that the U.S. Supreme Court did when it overturned the McCain-Feingold law in the Citizens United decision. EDUCATION Nothing is more important for Indiana’s economic future than ensuring the next generation of our workforce gets the best quality education possible. We must do more to support public education, including parents, teachers, and students. That starts by keeping schools open and giving parents and local school boards the power, not Washington. But that doesn’t absolve Congress from the duty of providing funding, innovation, and standards to ensure our kids are ready to compete in the global economy of the 21st Century. As a father of a high school English teacher, I know how hard our teachers work and how important it is that they have the up-to-date facilities and good salaries while they are teaching our students to compete and excel. That's why I supported efforts on referendums to fund the construction of a new high school, make improvements to other school buildings, and increase teachers’ pay. One of my proudest achievements is the award-winning College Bound Scholarship program, which has been recognized twice by the U.S. Conference of Mayors for sending over 6,000 students to college and allowing them to graduate with little to no debt. Throughout the past 18 years as Hammond's mayor, I have visited countless classrooms to talk with students during my regularly scheduled Lunch & Learn events. I've also made sure our youth have great facilities like the new Sportsplex, ice rink, and park improvements for baseball, football, and soccer, all so our children have safe and fun places to enjoy and compete. ENVIRONMENT & CLIMATE In the 21st Century, there’s no reason we don’t have cleaner air and water, and more clean energy jobs here in the Midwest. I’ll make protecting our air and water a priority, as well as focusing on ensuring Indiana is set for the clean energy manufacturing jobs in that rapidly growing sector of America’s economy. As mayor, I have made Hammond the "trail capital of Indiana" by pioneering over 25 miles of pedestrian and multi-use trail systems. Because of our work, Hammond has become bike-friendly and walkable, giving everyone a safe alternative to congested roadways. Also under my leadership, Hammond formed an energy conservation program that will reduce the city’s carbon footprint and save over $26 million in the next 15 years, all by upgrading our streetlights, HVAC systems, and outdated city vehicles with more efficient ones. We now have an electric vehicle charging station at City Hall and we created a first-of-its-kind Recycling Summit to teach residents how to recycle more effectively. Our work in the coming years to find solutions to the climate crisis is also an opportunity for our workforce and economy, and a chance for our citizens to lead safer and healthier lives. HEALTH CARE The most important thing our country must do in the coming months is defeat this pandemic and get back to normal. Once we reach the other side, we must do everything we can to build a stronger public health system in America and use the lessons learned from the past few years to be better prepared for future viruses and pandemics, which are surely to going to occur with more frequency in a world disrupted by climate change. We’ve lost too many lives, suffered too much heartbreak and division as a nation in the last few years – it’s truly time to heal. One out of every five dollars in our economy is tied to the $4 trillion American health care industry. We’ve made tremendous progress in recent years in covering more American with health insurance, though we’ve got more work to do, especially on the rising costs of health care. We need to get soaring costs under control for Hoosier families, and in the U.S. Senate, I’ll work to do just that. It is not right that in the greatest country in the world one unexpected trip to the emergency room, or medical diagnosis can leave a family financially devastated for the rest of their lives. I believe in the creation of an affordable public option. Millions of people in the US that have excellent employer-provided health insurance, and they shouldn’t have to give up their private insurance. But for those among us with no insurance, or that are underinsured, a public option would not only provide them with the ability to get the care they need; but would lower costs by creating more competition with insurance companies. And we need to pass a plan to lower the costs of prescription drugs. There’s no reason why Hoosiers pay twice as much for medicine as our neighbors to the north in Canada, or the rest of the world. We’ve seen the power of medicine and what it can do in this pandemic, and the research and innovation that pharmaceutical companies are capable of pursuing to save lives – and we should be grateful. But that doesn’t mean we need to go bankrupt paying for such medicines or find common sense solutions to lower the burden on Hoosier seniors and families. And we need to do more to support our front line workers – our nurses, EMTs, and hospital staff who have been true American heroes over the last few years. We owe them as a nation. REPRODUCTIVE RIGHTS I have friends and neighbors who disagree on this issue, but to me it’s just simple: God gives no one a right to control another person’s body. I’m tired of men telling women what they can do with their own body. Women should have a right to choose, especially when their own lives are on the line. And if the Supreme Court overturns Roe v. Wade, our country will be putting thousands of women’s lives at risk of dying or other harm. That’s why I favor legislation to codify Roe v. Wade as the law of the land. We also must protect resources that go to women’s health in other areas through Planned Parenthood and in the U.S. Senate I will do just that. LEGALIZING CANNABIS Dude, its 2022! Across America, millions of Americans use marijuana to help in the treatment of epilepsy, multiple sclerosis, seizures, Crohn’s disease, Alzheimer’s and cancer. That’s why 31 states, the District of Columbia, and several U.S. territories have legalized it for medical use, including three states that border Indiana (Ohio, Michigan, and Illinois). Furthermore, it’s become very clear that we are on the way to full legalization in most of the country, with 13 states already making marijuana a legal substance and others having decriminalized it. It’s time the federal government recognize that marijuana should be legal and as a U.S. Senator, I will fight to ensure it. VETERANS Politicians like to talk a lot about veterans, but action to reform veterans’ services in this country has been embarrassing slow. As a Navy veteran who spent six years in service, including the Persian Gulf War, I can tell you first hand we’ve got a lot of work to do to ensure our veterans get the care and services they deserve. We need to work to reduce homelessness among veterans, provide better health care and connect veterans to job and educational opportunities. We also should provide better services at the VA, and that bad employees at the VA who mistreat veterans are held accountable.[3] |
” |
| —Thomas McDermott Jr.'s campaign website (2022)[4] | ||
2020
Thomas McDermott Jr. completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by McDermott's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
My proudest achievements of my 16 years as mayor include the College Bound Scholarship program, a city-wide commitment to youth sports, and the creation of the Wolf Lake Pavilion and recreation area. As a young man, I enlisted in the United States Navy and served 6 years as a nuclear submariner aboard the USS Hyman G. Rickover (SSN 709). I was honorably discharged and moved back to Hammond, where I attended Purdue-Calumet, and later earned a law degree from the University of Notre Dame in South Bend. I have been named a Sagamore of the Wabash, the highest honor bestowed upon a civilian by the Governor of Indiana. I have served as Deputy Chairman of the Indiana Democratic Party, and as co-chair of the DNC Veterans and Military Families Council.
I am a family man. I met my wife, Marissa, at Notre Dame Law School. We have raised four children, Lindsey, Chase, Tommy, and Patrick.- I am a tested leader with a proven track record of bringing investments and jobs to NWI
- I support a Medicare for All Who Need It Plan for extending healthcare coverage to all Americans
- I am committed to public education, teachers, and students;
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 19, 2020
- ↑ McDermott for Indiana, "About," accessed March 16, 2022
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ McDermott for Indiana, “Issues,” accessed March 11, 2022
