OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. — Voters in Oklahoma County, which includes Oklahoma City, turned down a proposed sales tax for a new county jail on Tuesday and handed Democrats all three county offices on the ballot, unofficial returns show.
The jail tax drew 84,143 votes in favor, or 37.6%, against 139,181 votes opposed, or 62.3%. The money would have paid to build and run a new jail over the next 25 years. The price of a facility with at least 1,800 beds had climbed to about $850 million, far above the $260 million in bonds voters approved in 2022.
In the closest race, Democrat Jennifer Mayo beat Republican Jessica Clayton for the District 3 seat on the Board of County Commissioners, 49,288 votes to 49,221. The 67-vote gap could lead Clayton to ask for a recount.
In the county assessor race, Democrat John Gibbons unseated Republican incumbent Larry Stein, who has held the job since 2019, by 121,794 votes to 104,544. Democrat Jessica Thompson won the treasurer race over Republican Christie Miller, 127,692 to 98,214.
Mayo’s win gives Democrats two of the three commission seats for the first time in decades. She will join District 1 Commissioner Jason Lowe, a Democrat who opposed the jail tax, while District 2 Commissioner Brian Maughan, the board chairman, becomes the lone Republican.
District 3 covers most of Edmond, the far north end of Oklahoma City, Luther and Arcadia. Interim Commissioner Paul Foster holds the seat now. Mayo works for Hunger Free Oklahoma.
The results stay unofficial until the Oklahoma State Election Board certifies them.
Section: More Oklahoma City OK politics news
Filed under: Oklahoma City OK Politics News
