Marion County prosecutor Mears races to easy win against Foust

Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears won a second full term Tuesday night, cruising to an easy victory over Republican challenger Philip Foust.

Mears, a Democrat, had captured more than 65% of the vote with 91% of vote centers reporting as of late Tuesday. Mears collected nearly twice as many votes as Foust, outpacing his challenger 90,627 to 47,639, according to unofficial results from indy.gov.

The win means Mears will continue in a role he has filled since 2019, when he took over after his predecessor, Terry Curry, resigned due to health issues.

Mears thanked Marion County voters for reelecting him. He said in a post on Facebook that he looked forward to continuing to serve the community.

“Our community partnerships have been instrumental in helping our office achieve record-high trial conviction rates while expanding our footprint and connecting residents with programs and resources that make a meaningful difference in their lives,” he said.

In a post on X, Foust thanked supporters and congratulated Mears, saying he would be praying for his success.

“While tonight’s results were not what our campaign hoped for, I am grateful to the voters who supported this campaign and to my family, friends, and volunteers who dedicated their time and energy to sharing our vision for a safer Marion County,” he wrote.

This election season, Mears ran on many of the same campaign priorities he pushed during his first term as prosecutor, addressing violent crime and maintaining a promise to not prosecute marijuana cases involving one ounce or less of the drug.

Mears told The Indiana Lawyer in August that, if reelected, he would continue seeking high conviction rates for violent crimes.

In 2025, the Prosecutor’s Office had a 90% murder trial conviction rate, a 100% conviction rate for child molestation cases and a 77% conviction rate for gun-related crimes, a campaign spokesperson told the Indianapolis Business Journal earlier this year.

Mears also told The Lawyer that in his next term, he wants to address the underlying causes of certain social issues such as homelessness. He emphasized that homelessness often drives crime and exacerbates other issues like addiction and mental health problems.

Despite success at the polls, Mears has been less popular among leaders throughout Indianapolis and the state. The Indianapolis Fraternal Order of Police endorsed Foust last month.

Foust, who previously worked as a deputy prosecutor under Mears and Curry, had said the prosecutor’s office has lost sight of its main mission of enforcing the law and protecting the public.

Throughout his run for a second term, Mears has remained coy about the possibility of running for mayor in 2027. While announcing his bid for re-election in January, Mears told reporters that he’s committed to the prosecutor’s office but didn’t completely rule out a mayoral run.

“I don’t think my wife is going to let me,” Mears told reporters. When asked whether that means he explicitly ruled out a run, he responded, “you know, it’s like any conversation. Yes, no, maybe.”

Mears’ second term as prosecutor runs through 2030.