Matt Kelty
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| Matt Kelty | |
 Matt Kelty |
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| Political party | Republican |
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| Spouse | Tami |
| Children | Four |
| Residence | Fort Wayne, Indiana |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
| Website | http://www.mattkelty.com/ |
Matt Kelty, is an Indiana politician, an architect and founder of Kelty Tappy Design. He was the 2007 Republican candidate for Mayor of Fort Wayne, Indiana[1] and the 2002 candidate for the 81st District Indiana House of Representatives.
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[edit] Public service
He was selected by Congressman Dan Coats for the Congressional Student Program. He later served as the Regional Political Director for the Dan Coats for Indiana Campaign, went on to become the Joint Staff Regional Director for both Indiana U.S. Senators Richard Lugar and Dan Coats. Kelty was appointed Chairman of the Young Republicans (YR) for the 4th District of Indiana organizing YR chapters in eight counties in northeastern Indiana. In 1994 he worked for Senator Dick Lugar's successful re-election campaign, and later worked in the grass roots organizing campaign in Iowa during Lugar's unsuccessful presidential bid in 1995.
In 2003, hours into the U.S. invasion of Iraq, Matt Kelty, with the assistance of Cathy Hawks and others, organized the massive "Rally for America" held in Auburn, Indiana, and headlined by conservative TV and Radio personality Glenn Beck. The Fort Wayne Rally for America was attended by over 20,000 people from Indiana, Ohio, and Michigan and was simulcast (via website) around the world.
The next year Kelty again spearheaded and organized an event to support U.S. soldiers in the Middle East. Kelty executed "Operation Recreation" in Fort Wayne, mobilizing hundreds of volunteers to collect over eleven tons of recreational equipment to send to the troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. Kelty also raised over $10,000 in donations to pay for the packing and shipping.
Kelty serves on the boards of the Fort Wayne Chapter of the American Red Cross, the Fort Wayne Drug & Alcohol Consortium, the Fort Wayne Ballet Capital Fundraising Committee, and the Allen County Right to Life Board of Advisors.
[edit] 2002 State Representative campaign
Kelty was the Republican nominee for the 81st District Indiana House of Representatives seat held by incumbent Win Moses in 2002. Kelty very nearly pulled off an upset in this election. Winfield Moses won the election by only 63 votes (verified by a recount).
[edit] 2007 mayoral campaign
Kelty upset Allen County Commissioner Nelson Peters in the May 8, 2007, Republican primary election, setting a matchup against Democrat Tom Henry in the general election.
Kelty took 50.3% of the vote compared with 46.7% for Allen County Commissioner, F. Nelson Peters IV, in the primary, defeating Peters by 658 votes.[2]
On November 6, 2007, Matt Kelty lost in the general elections to Democratic candidate Tom Henry. Matt Kelty conceded his loss with his family in the early evening at Allen County Republican Party headquarters. The final results showed Tom Henry with 60% of the vote, compared to Kelty's 40%.
[edit] Legal Issues
On August 14, 2007, Kelty was indicted on 9 charges relating to his campaign. Five of the nine charges are felonies for filing fraudulent campaign reports, two of the felony charges are for perjury, and the 2 misedemeanor charges are for co-mingling of funds.[3][4]
Kelty's lawyers filed a motion to dismiss all charges on October 22, 2007.
On February 8, 2008, Kelty's motion to dismiss all charges was denied. An August 2008 trial date has been set and Kelty will go before a Fort Wayne jury trial. His lawyers have stated their plans to appeal the decision of the dismissal of charges.
[edit] Education degrees and awards
- 1988 graduate of the University of Notre Dame College of Architecture
