INDIANAPOLIS — Tuesday night was a big win for Democrats in Marion County, including incumbent Mayor Joe Hogsett who secured a third term.
As for Indianapolis City-County Council, Democrats will continue to hold on to their supermajority.
But a big change this year is the age of the councilors. Democrat Nick Roberts won District 4 in the Castleton and Geist area. He is just 23 years old.
“When we started off on this journey, it was almost two years ago. I thought I wanted to do this. I was 21 years old at the time. It was a long-shot by every measure possible. I mean, it was just an idea I had, building up support,” Roberts said during a speech at the Marion County Democratic watch party Tuesday night.
13News caught up with Roberts Wednesday after his first political win.
“Genuinely the best day of my entire life. It’s such a culmination of not just the last year of campaigning but years of hard work,” Roberts said.
The young leader won by 7% against Republican Natalie Goodwin.
Back in September, we interviewed both of the candidates ahead of the election as they were still campaigning.
Now, Roberts is one of the youngest councilors ever elected in the city, but he admits it wasn’t easy.
“It was the hardest thing I have ever done in my entire life. I am not trying to brag when I say this, but I am 23 years old. I raised more money than any council candidate in history. I knocked on more doors than any council candidate,” Roberts said.
Roberts said his team knocked on 20,000 doors and more than half of those, Roberts did by himself.
He utilized another strategy to help pull off the big win, and that is social media.
“I made a very intentional effort to post whatever I was doing and be very engaged with whatever I was doing,” Roberts said.
It worked, and it even grabbed the attention of actor Mark Hamill, who played Luke Skywalker in the "Star Wars" films.
However, Roberts said his win really came down to hard work, which is something he plans to continue in his new role.
“I am really excited to hopefully have some results for the district soon and get to work,” Roberts said.
You can learn more about Roberts' priorities here.
When it comes to the council, Democrats lost one seat in the election, but they still hold on to a supermajority. Republicans picked up the extra seat in District 23 on the south side.