Last Updated on August 6, 2023, 2:50 AM | Published: May 4, 2023
OKLAHOMA CITY — Four people were sworn in to serve four-year terms on the City Council for Oklahoma City Tuesday, May 2. Three are incumbents having won re-election and one is a newcomer to the eight-seat horseshoe. Elections are held in staggered classes to ensure some continuity on the Council from election to election.
Councilors were officially sworn in early in the morning by city officials before the meeting and then ceremonially sworn in publicly during the City Council meeting.
Ward 2, James Cooper
Ward 2 City Council incumbent James Cooper won by a landslide without a runoff against two other challengers. Cooper was first elected to the Council in 2019.
Ward 5, Matthew Hinkle
Ward 5 newcomer Matthew Hinkle went into a tight runoff race before eventually winning by a slim margin. Hinkle has experience in City government, however, having served on the Planning Commission. Long a resident of Ward 5, Hinkle takes the seat of long-term Council member David Greenwell who chose not to run for re-election after several terms on the Council.
Ward 6, JoBeth Hamon
Ward 6 City Council incumbent JoBeth Hamon notched a decisive win against a well-funded challenger after having picked up political enemies in both the police union and the Chamber of Commerce because of policy positions Hamon took in the last term. Hamon was first elected to the Councli in 2019.
Ward 8, Mark Stonecipher
Ward 8 incumbent Marck Stonecipher also won a comfortable re-election bid against two challengers without having to go to a runoff. Of all the City Council members, Stonecipher now has the distinction of having been on the horseshoe the longest having first been elected in 2015. Before that, he served on the City’s Board of Adjustment.
The newly-sworn councilors and the rest of the Council got to work immediately with the public hearing on the City’s budget that must be complete and in place by the start of the fiscal year on July 1.
Founder, publisher, and editor of Oklahoma City Free Press. Brett continues to contribute reports and photography to this site as he runs the business.
