James W. Merritt Jr. (born July 28, 1959)[1] is an American politician and former Republican member of the Indiana Senate from 1991 to 2020, representing the 31st District. He was first elected to the Indiana Senate in 1990.[2][3][4] He was reelected to the state Senate in the 2010 election, defeating then-Marion County Sheriff Frank J. Anderson by a margin of 52% to 44%.
Biography
Merritt received his Bachelor of Arts in political science from Indiana University in 1981.[5] Professionally, Merritt is vice president of corporate affairs for the Indiana Railroad Company.[4] He previously served as district assistant to representative Elwood Hillis.[6] He is divorced and has two daughters and one son.[4]
Merritt was elected chair of the Marion CountyRepublican Party in March 2017.[7] He replaced Mike McQuillen.[8] He resigned as County Party Chair in December 2018.[9] Bryce Carpenter took over as interim county GOP chair.[10]
On January 10, 2019, Merritt announced that he was running for Mayor of Indianapolis in 2019.[11] He won the primary on May 7, 2019. Merritt was soundly defeated by the incumbent Joe Hogsett.[12][13]
In September 2020, Merritt announced that he would be retiring from the State Senate on November 4.[14][15]
Committees
In the 2014 session, Merritt chaired the Utilities Committee. His was a majority member of these committees: Homeland Security, Transportation and Veterans Affairs; Joint Rules; Public Policy; Rules and Legislative Procedure; and also the Transportation sub-committee.[16]
