Tony Henry endorses Austin Knox (VIDEO)
He’s the first Henry sibling to publicly back a candidate in the upcoming caucus
Inside a conference room packed with supporters this morning, Tony Henry gave a strong endorsement to Wayne Township Trustee Austin Knox in the caucus to replace his brother as mayor of Fort Wayne.
Henry is the younger sibling of the late Mayor Tom Henry and the owner of Deer Park Irish Pub. He’s also an elected official himself, serving as the chairman of the Wayne Township Board Knox works under.
After the trustee concluded his brief remarks, Henry stood up unexpectedly and addressed the room. He told of Knox stopping by Deer Park Pub on Easter Sunday morning to express his condolences on the loss of his brother.
“It’s little gestures like that that mean so much,” Henry shared. “That’s the sign of a leader. I’m so proud of you, Trustee, for stepping up [to run in the caucus].”
“It’s going to be tough,” Henry acknowledged. “It’s going to be challenging. There’s some really talented candidates out there.”
Knox is the fourth elected Democrat to declare in the race. He joins City Councilwoman Michelle Chambers, State Representative Phil GiaQuinta, and City Councilwoman Sharon Tucker.
“I will bring nearly a decade [of] government management experience to the City of Fort Wayne,” Knox explained to the crowd prior to Henry’s impromptu address. “Upon becoming your next mayor, I will lean on the knowledge, efficiency, and experience of the exceptional team that Mayor Henry put in place.”
After the event, Tony Henry confirmed that he was officially endorsing Knox, the first of the Henry siblings to publicly back a caucus candidate. “He’s coming into this arena as a young man and I see the potential he has. I just want to support him and that’s why I’m here.”
One reason he gave: the approximately $10,000 Knox has saved the Township thus far by installing solar panels on the office roof to reduce their energy bills.
“Every month when we meet for our meetings, he shows us that utility bill and how much money he has saved the township and where that money is channeled out to the poor, to the needy,” Henry said.
“I think he could carry a lot of what my brother carried in that he’s a people person. Austin’s constantly out in the community. And that’s what my brother Tom was really famous for,” Henry noted. “I think Austin has that charisma.”
Henry said he would be reaching out to precinct chairs on Knox’s behalf starting today.
He also revealed the Henry brothers had planned a trip to a horse race in Kentucky to discuss who Tom Henry thought should succeed him, but “unfortunately he slipped away before we could get to that conversation.”
That trip, however, is still on, and will take place before the April 20th caucus.
On his way to Knox’s event, Henry said he was on the phone with one of his brothers who had concerns about Knox’s youth compared to the other candidates. “Yeah, he’s young, but Tom’s got a good cabinet and he can learn a lot from that cabinet. So already we’re dialoguing.”
With fourteen other siblings, it seems unlikely the Henry family will formally endorse a candidate as a group.
“I’ve got one brother saying he thinks Chambers would be strong,” Henry shared. “Another one says he thinks Phil GiaQuinta. So we’re going to have our own issues in our own family.”