FORT WAYNE, Ind. — Allen County Republicans chose John McGauley on Saturday to take over as Fort Wayne City Clerk, filling the seat left empty by Lana Keesling’s sudden resignation two weeks ago.
The caucus lasted less than 20 minutes. McGauley was the only name on the ballot, and he won unanimously.
Keesling herself hand-picked her successor. Before the vote, she told the room full of precinct leaders that McGauley has “the energy, the drive, and the passion” to keep the office moving forward.
From Council Chambers to the Clerk’s Office
Most Fort Wayne voters already know John McGauley.
He served eight years on the city council as an at-large Republican, leaving in 2019 after choosing not to run again. During his time on council, he chaired the finance committee and pushed hard for better street lighting and neighborhood grants.
Friends and former colleagues describe him as a details guy who actually reads the budget books cover to cover.
One longtime GOP precinct chair said after the caucus, “John already knows how city government works inside out. This isn’t a learning curve for him; it’s a homecoming.”
McGauley told 21Alive Saturday afternoon he is ready to start Monday morning.
“This office touches every single resident,” he said. “Birth certificates, marriage licenses, election records, council minutes; if local government puts it on paper, it comes through here. I want people to feel proud when they walk in these doors.”
Why Keesling Stepped Down
Lana Keesling resigned January 6, just days after the Indiana Republican Party named her state chair.
She is the first woman to ever hold that statewide party post.
Keesling won the clerk’s office in 2023 by beating a Democratic incumbent, promising to modernize records and make city documents easier to find online. In two years she delivered: death records now go digital within hours, and residents can pull council packets on their phones.
In her resignation letter she wrote, “Serving Fort Wayne has been the honor of my life, but the chance to help Republicans win statewide in 2026 is a call I cannot ignore.”
The Quiet Caucus That Wasn’t Supposed to Be Quiet
Saturday’s meeting was originally expected to draw multiple candidates.
At least three other Republicans had taken out paperwork, including a former deputy clerk and a precinct committeewoman. All dropped out in the last week after Keesling made clear she wanted McGauley.
Some party insiders called it “continuity over competition.” Others quietly grumbled that the fix was in.
Either way, when the gavel fell at the Allen County GOP headquarters on Leesburg Road, the vote was 100-0.
What Happens Next
McGauley will be sworn in early this week at the Rousseau Centre.
He will serve the remaining three years of Keesling’s term, facing voters again in the 2027 municipal election.
The clerk’s office has 12 full-time employees and a $1.1 million budget. Biggest tasks in 2025: running the municipal primary in May and the general election in November, plus finishing the digitization of all records back to 1920.
McGauley says his first goal is simple: “Keep everything running so smoothly that nobody notices anything changed.”
For a city that has seen its share of political drama lately, that might be exactly what residents want to hear.
