A number of city and town council members will not be coming back next year, after losing Tuesday's Democratic Party primaries.
In Gary, Council President William Godwin came up short in his bid for an at-large seat, with Mark Spencer joining incumbents Ron Brewer and Darren Washington on the November ballot. They'll vie with Republican Ivan Ursery II for the three available at-large seats.
East Chicago City Council member Debra Bolaños also failed to hold on to her at-large seat, losing to school board member and parks director Vanessa Hernandez-Orange. Hernandez-Orange has drawn criticism for a public giveaway of sanitizing wipes that were donated to the school corporation — a move that others called a political stunt and led to the suspension of the school's chief financial officer.
In Hammond, District 2 council member Pete Torres was unseated by Al Salinas in Tuesday's primary. Merrillville Town Council members Richard Hardaway, Jeff Minchuk and Leonard White all failed to advance to November's General Election.