Tulsa Mayoral Race Heads To Runoff Election

A very close race for Tulsa mayor, with only a few hundred votes separating the top candidates.

State Representative Monroe Nichols and Tulsa County Commissioner Karen Keith each got 33% of the vote and will move on to a runoff in November. Brent VanNorman got 32%, only trailing Karen Keith by about 400 votes.

This was one of the closest mayoral races in Tulsa in a long time. The top two candidates - Monroe Nichols and Karen Keith — were separated by just under 300 votes.

Monroe Nichols has served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives since 2016 and previously served in the mayor’s office under former Tulsa Mayor Kathy Taylor.

He's currently the chair of the Oklahoma Legislative Black Caucus. He says he's been a leader when it comes to economic growth, education, criminal justice reform and health care during his time at the Capitol and that all this experience sets him apart.

He says they still have a long way to go but calls this an exciting time for the city of Tulsa.

"I think this is the first time in our history that a person of color has finished first in a race for mayor. We got a long way to go, but it's an indication that people are like it's time for something a little bit different,” Nichols said. 

Meanwhile, Karen Keith says she is really equipped to step in on day one and lead this city.

She worked for former Mayor Bill LaFortune before becoming a Tulsa County Commissioner in 2008.

She was also a former news anchor. She says all that experience helped her learn about the office and credits her work with transforming downtown Tulsa. She hopes that will help her win in November.

"We're just ready to get back to work. We're gonna run a good nonpartisan race, which is what we did the first time, and we hope to bring everybody in from the outside, and we're going to win this thing in November,” Keith said. 

Monroe Nichols and Karen Keith will face off again on November 5th.