Tulsa City Councilor G.T. Bynum announced over the weekend that he will be leaving his District Nine City Council Seat to run for Mayor of Tulsa. He made the announcement on social media. Below is the text of his statement:
Family, Friends & Neighbors: Having served you on the City Council for the last 7 years, I wanted to contact you directly regarding my intentions moving forward. On Monday, I will submit the paperwork necessary to form a campaign for Mayor of Tulsa. My hope is to continue service to you in that capacity after the 2016 elections. Other than Susan agreeing to marry me, the chance to serve you on the City Council has been the great honor of my life. Thanks to your confidence, we've been able to make some really important improvements to the City - whether it be the two largest street programs in Tulsa history, giving our Police officers the tools and colleagues they need, or forming the first city rainy day fund in the state. This week in particular, I'm mindful that we created the first municipal veterans treatment court in the United States - a service which is providing compassion and assistance to those who have kept us free. Much has changed in the last 7 years. Our son was just a chubby toddler when I first ran - now he has far outpaced any athletic achievements I could ever claim (and in fairness, he did that by the time he was about 5!). He was the original reason I ran for the Council - because people like my grandfather made it a great city for me and I wanted to do that for our boy. And then we had our baby girl! That has only deepened my commitment to making decisions based on what is best for their generation, not what is best for me. There will be plenty of time to talk over the coming months about why I am running for Mayor, but the short motivation remains the same: our family is committed to Tulsa for the long haul and I believe we have the capacity to build an even better city for the next generation of people we love. Thank you so much for the opportunity to serve you. As always, please don't hesitate to let me know how I can be of help. Best regards, GT