OKLAHOMA CITY – Incumbent Mayor David Holt secured a third term in the role in a landslide victory Tuesday night, claiming more than 80% of the vote to once again take the top elected position in Oklahoma City government.
His next term will officially begin in April and continue into 2030.
“We are absolutely living in Oklahoma City’s Golden Age,” Holt told guests at his official watch party after the race was called. “Thanks to the people of Oklahoma City tonight, that continues for another four years.”
City growth in first two terms
Holt was first elected as OKC’s 38th Mayor in 2018 after serving Oklahoma’s 30th District in the State Senate.
Since then, he has presided over the passage of MAPS 4 and last year’s $2.7 billion General Obligation bond, the largest bond package ever passed in Oklahoma City, as well as overwhelming approval for the $1 billion new Downtown arena following a vocal opposition campaign.
He secures re-election to the mayoral role this time amid a rising national profile that includes currently serving as President of the United States Conference of Mayors, whom he led last month in issuing a statement condemning the deadly actions of federal agents in Minnesota.
Only one challenger
Unlike in the previous two mayoral elections, Holt only faced a single challenger this time around, 34 year old Matthew Pallares, an administrative assistant with the Greater OKC Hispanic Chamber of Commerce.
Pallares opposed Holt’s platforms of further increasing high-level building development and what he characterized as a too-lenient approach from Holt regarding increasingly aggressive immigration enforcement aimed at OKC’s Hispanic population.
At the time of publication, Pallares had not posted any public statement or concession following the election results. An attempt by Free Press to contact Pallares was not returned.
‘Not finished yet’
After thanking voters, his family, and his campaign team, Holt reiterated the many ongoing and upcoming projects that OKC will be developing in coming years, echoing a slogan from his first mayoral campaign in 2018: “We’re not finished yet.”
“As I look forward to four more years, I think it’s really important we understand that we have the Olympics ahead, we have the launch of the bond issue, we have the completion of the arena, the completion of MAPS 4,” he told the small crowd. “So it is still the case that we are not finished yet.”
Brett Fieldcamp is our Arts and Entertainment Editor. He has been covering arts, entertainment, news, housing, and culture in Oklahoma for 15+ years, writing for several local and state publications. He’s also a musician and songwriter and holds a certification as Specialist of Spirits from The Society of Wine Educators.
