Tulsa County Commissioner Karen Keith has thrown her hat in the ring for mayor.
Keith is the second candidate to formally announce a run for mayor following state Rep. Monroe Nichols’ announcement in July. The election is in August 2024.
Keith has served 16 years as a county commissioner. She was a TV anchor for more than two decades before that.
As a commissioner, Keith secured taxes that built Tulsa’s Family Center for Juvenile Justice, and got the county federal money to repair the levee system on the Arkansas River. She was also director of Community Relations and Vision Implementation for Tulsa mayor Bill LaFortune, where she helped pass and execute the city’s Vision 2025 projects.
As mayor, Keith says she’ll focus on adding infrastructure to improve the city, and on addressing homelessness.
“It’s real important that we work hard on these issues surrounding homelessness, and I want to expand on the work done by Mayor [G.T.] Bynum,” she said. Last week, Mayor G.T. Bynum recommended the city enhance enforcement and services to address homelessness in Tulsa.
“But the first thing I’ll do is listen to my fellow Tulsans, to understand their needs and hear their suggestions. Then we’ll come up with a plan and, should I be elected, we’ll execute it. We’ll work together and get results,” Keith said in a news release.
Keith is the lone Democrat on the board of county commissioners. Nichols is also a Democrat.
“Whether he entered or didn’t enter, that wasn’t really a consideration. It was — we just, I just feel like there are some things that I have to offer with all my years of experience that I’d like to bring to bear at the city,” she said.
A spokesperson for the mayor’s office said Bynum will not endorse a candidate in the race, but added that his office is open as a resource for the candidates.
