OKLAHOMA CITY – In a social media post Wednesday, JoBeth Hamon, the two-term City Councilwoman for OKC’s Ward 6, announced that she will not seek re-election when her term ends next year, citing political burnout and the lingering difficulty of her 2023 campaign.
Hamon was first elected in 2019 to represent Ward 6, covering much of the inner city and a wide range of economic and cultural demographics, including neighborhoods as diverse as Capitol Hill and the Calle Dos Cinco, Metro Park, Heritage Hills, and much of Downtown OKC, including Film Row and Automobile Alley.
She quickly became one of the most outspoken progressive voices on the council, often leading its liberal opposition bloc in votes against the billion-dollar tax funding for the new arena, increasing police budgets, and large-scale corporate development, while championing the City’s new Mobile Integrated Health unit for mental health crisis and public transit projects like the BRT.
In recent years, she’s become one of the principle drivers in City government for the Key to Home partnership and its Encampment Rehousing Initiative, as well as placing a persistent and regular emphasis on affordable housing funding in packages like MAPS 4 and 2025’s GO Bond.
“I think we’ve been able to not only elevate those topics to some more urgency then previously afforded,” Hamon said in her statement on social media Wednesday, “but we’ve made meaningful strides in change of practice, investment, and new programs that make our neighborhoods and our residents stronger and healthier.”
Hamon was re-elected in 2023 following a fraught first term that saw public pushback from police and a contentious re-election campaign that reportedly involved threats and personal harassment directed against her.
Those experiences, she said, have stayed with her, and played no small part in her decision to not run again.
“The last election cycle took a toll on me that I don’t think I’ve ever fully reckoned with and I sincerely don’t think I would be able to get through another campaign cycle like that,” her statement reads. “I’m ready to step back and tend to my own health and wellbeing.”
Saying that she is “deeply burnt out,” Hamon acknowledged that many in the city have seen her as “a bomb thrower” for her willingness to speak out against even largely popular issues, but reiterated her belief in forcing a dialogue and developing better policy through disagreement.
“Yes, I voice dissent, I ask critical questions, and I am not afraid to raise issues I think are important even if others want to ignore them,” she said. “Change and progress rarely occur without conflict and tension – and despite living in a culture that holds conflict as inherently negative, I hope that we can recognize that it doesn’t have to be.”
Hamon will continue representing Ward 6 until the end of her term in May of 2027, and while her statement made no mention of what her post-City Council plans might be, she indicated that she intends to continue community support work in some capacity.
“We certainly still have so much more to do,” her statement reads. “I look forward to continuing to be part of that work, even if it’s in a different role.”
A request to Hamon for comment was not returned at the time of publication.
Brett Fieldcamp is the owner and Editor in Chief of Oklahoma City Free Press. He has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for nearly two decades and served as Arts & Entertainment Editor before purchasing the company from founder Brett Dickerson in 2026.
He is also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
