Democratic City-County councilor Jesse Brown in Indianapolis says he has been expelled from his party’s caucus and is no longer allowed to participate in private meetings with fellow Democrats.
Brown announced Monday that 13 of his Democratic colleagues voted to remove him from the City-County Council’s Democratic Caucus. While Brown will continue serving as the elected representative for District 13, he will no longer have access to closed-door discussions with other Democrats.
“Public business should be conducted in public, rather than behind closed doors,” Brown wrote. “My commitment to this principle has often put me at odds with my colleagues, including this last week.”
“My constituents deserve a city that works for them, not just the capitalists and developers,” Brown wrote. “My constituents deserve fully funded, fully public education, not a scammy grab bag of charter school ‘choices’.”
The fallout appears to stem from Brown’s criticism of three fellow councilors—Maggie Lewis, Carlos Perkins, and Leroy Robinson—whom he labeled “so-called Democrats” for supporting a measure that would allow Indianapolis Public Schools to share public funding with charter schools. Brown claims this was “the straw that finally broke the camel’s back” and led to his expulsion.
“Public business should be conducted in public, rather than behind closed doors. My commitment to this principle has often put me at odds with my colleagues, including this last week, when I called for fully-funded, fully-public education, against the wishes of my Council colleagues and their Republican conspirators,” Brown said. “My call-out of so-called Democrats Maggie Lewis, Carlos Perkins, and Leroy Robinson’s subterfuge was the straw that finally broke the camel’s back.”
“Unlike some of my colleagues, I don’t hide my politics—not because of who I am, but because of who you are. Politics behind closed doors only works for those who can afford entry,” he continued.
Despite the move, Brown has vowed to push back against what he sees as political retaliation, signaling ongoing division within the Democratic ranks in Indianapolis.
