Tulsans Re-Elect GT Bynum As City’s Mayor

Tulsa voters had seven candidates to pick for mayor in Tuesday’s city election and have elected GT Bynum to stay in the mayor’s office.

Bynum was followed by Greg Robinson with 28.8% of the votes. Ken Reddick got the third-most votes with 13.6%, followed by Ty Walker with 2.7%. Craig Immel received just under 2%, with Paul Tay, Zackri Whitlow and withdrawn candidate Ricco Wright each receiving under 1% of the vote.

Candidates for Tulsa Mayor included incumbent G.T. Bynum, Craig Immel, Ken Reddick, Greg Robinson II, Paul Tay, Ty Walker and Zackri Whitlow.

Mike Neal, president and CEO of the Tulsa Regional Chamber said in a statement, "we at the Tulsa Regional Chamber look forward to another four years of partnership with Mayor G.T. Bynum."

Click here for election results from all of Tuesday's races.

It was a crowded race, with seven candidates vying to be Tulsa’s next mayor. Before polls closed for the day, we spoke with some of the other candidates and their supporters.

Mayoral candidate Greg Robinson’s supporters are excited with the chance of his election and have shared why they believe in him all Tuesday night.

People speaking on behalf of Robinson and his character said they support him because of his message of inclusivity.They said he would make sure every person has a seat at the table.

Many people talked to the crowd about knowing Robinson as a friend or fellow leader.

We caught up with Ken Reddick at his watch party in Jenks. He told us that regardless of the election results, he's proud of his grassroots campaign.

"A lot has happened this year, and it's very important to always show those who choose to represent us that they are beholden to someone,” Reddick said.

We also spoke to Ty Walker, who said his career in the restaurant industry inspired him to run for mayor on behalf of working-class Tulsans struggling due to the pandemic.

“You have waitresses, waiters, bartenders that don't have jobs now. They want to open up. They want to know the plan to get back on our feet. How are we going to open up? When are we going to open up?" Walker said.

In addition to the mayoral race, Tulsans voted Tuesday for city council members and changes to the city’s charter.

Vanessa Hall-Harper won City Council district 1 with 63.8% of the vote, and Crista Patrick won district 3 with 58.5% of the vote.

In district 4, Kara Joy McKee won with 61.1% and Jayme Fowler won district 9 with 53% of the vote.

District 5, 6 and 7 will go to a runoff in November. In district 5, Cass Fahler will face Mykey Arthrell, in district 6 it will be Connie Dodson and Christian Bengel, and in district 7 Lori Decter Wright will see Justin Van Kirk.

The City of Jenks voted to pass a $20.5 million bond proposition for street improvements.

With 96% of precincts reporting, all five City of Tulsa propositions have passed. For more information about the changes, visit this story here.

Two of the propositions, 1 and 2, are considered routine language adjustments to the city charter. Proposition 1 deleted references to partisan elections while Proposition 2 replaced gender-specific terms with gender-neutral ones.

Proposition 3 will allow members of authorities, boards and commissions to be removed by the Mayor and City Council if such a circumstance warrants it.

Proposition 4 requires city council confirmation of city attorney's appointed by the mayor. Proposition 5 clarifies that the attorney works for the mayor.

For more information on the propositions, visit this website here.

The President and CEO of the Tulsa Regional Chamber Mike Neal said in a statement, “we are also pleased that voters approved all five changes to the City of Tulsa charter, which the Chamber’s Board of Directors endorsed. These changes will make for a stronger charter, enabling Tulsa's municipal government to function more efficiently and with greater accountability.”