In 1978, Goldsmith began his political career by defeating Judge Andrew Jacobs Sr., a Democrat, in the race for Marion County Prosecutor. Goldsmith continued to serve in this capacity for 12 years, when the opportunity to run for Mayor of Indianapolis presented itself.
In 1991, Goldsmith ran under the Republican banner for mayor, defeating his Democratic opponent Louis Mahern by a clear majority. Goldsmith served as mayor of Indianapolis for two terms from 1992 to 2000, being reelected in 1995.
1996 gubernatorial election
Goldsmith was the Republican nominee for Governor of Indiana in 1996 against Lt. Gov. Frank O'Bannon. O'Bannon defeated Goldsmith 52% to 47%. Despite being mayor of Indianapolis, Goldsmith failed to win Marion County, which includes Indianapolis. O'Bannon overcame an early deficit in the polls by focusing on his long history of public service, his true Indiana roots, and the alleged mismanagement of the city of Indianapolis while Goldsmith was mayor. The Goldsmith campaign was unable to successfully rebut "allegations of influence peddling" and accusations that cuts in spending had undermined the city's ability to process sewage. "Polls also showed that his negative campaign ads were unpopular with voters."
On April 30, 2010, Mayor Michael Bloomberg of New York City announced he would appoint Goldsmith to become Deputy Mayor for Operations, a position he held until August 4, 2011. He had responsibility for the city's police, fire, sanitation, and buildings departments, among others, in his 14-month period of service. Goldsmith was tasked by Bloomberg with advancing an innovation agenda in the city and his work led to enhancements to the city's use of technology, improvements in restaurant licensing, and faster processing of building permits. Goldsmith oversaw the launch of the 311 Service Request Map, the NYC Simplicity Idea Market employee crowdsourcing platform, and the Change By Us NYC community collaboration portal. Goldsmith supervised the repair of the troubled CityTime employee timekeeping system and initiated several public-private partnerships in the areas of energy, wastewater management, and parking. The New York Times suggested that his "short tenure was complicated by controversies, most notably after the city's slow response to a crippling snowstorm in December". Just days before his resignation, Goldsmith was arrested after a domestic altercation with his wife and spent two nights in a Washington jail due to a mandatory arrest law. Charges were not filed and the Goldsmiths contested the police report. Mayor Bloomberg came under criticism for not disclosing the reason for the resignation. On January 4, 2012, a Washington Superior Court judge found that Goldsmith was, as a matter of law, "actually innocent", and that there was no assault during the argument between him and his wife. A ruling of "actual innocence" requires the defendant to appear before a judge and demonstrate proof that the offense did not occur - a higher standard than showing a lack of evidence of crime.
Private sector
Goldsmith was a partner of Knowledge Universe, which invests in Internet-oriented education companies, day care, and childhood learning companies, and B2B companies, principally in business and human resources consulting and online training. He also was the chairman emeritus of the Manhattan Institute's Center for Civic Innovation.
Electoral history
Publications
In addition to contributing to publications such as the New York Times, Washington Times, Wall Street Journal, and Governing, Goldsmith has written several books on government including:
The Responsive City, Jossey Bass, 2014.
The Power of Social Innovation, Jossey Bass, 2010.
Governing By Network: The New Shape of the Public Sector: Brookings Institution. 2004.
Putting Faith In Neighborhoods: Making Cities Work Through Grassroots Citizenship: Hudson Institute. 2002.
The Entrepreneurial City: A How-To Handbook for Urban Innovators. Editor, Manhattan Institute. 1999.
