Lawton could see pivotal leadership changes dependent upon voter turnout

The next month could bring about major change for the Lawton community with upcoming council elections. Five out of the eight seats are up for reappointment. Seats for wards 3, 4 and 5 are in line with the general election cycle, while the other two seats, ward 1 and 2, actually opened up from the representatives resigning.

Ward 1 Councilwoman Mary Ann Hankins-Booker announced her resignation in early July after controversy arose when she moved out of her represented district. Additionally, Ward 2 Councilman RL Smith, who sat next to Hankins-Booker announced his immediate resignation later that same month. Smith explained in a statement his decision came from wanting to spend more time with his family and on-going health concerns.

Hankins-Booker and Smith swore into their seats mid-January. Both council members left with more than two years remaining in their term.

The process for deciding the next representatives for these five seats will vary. There will be an application and executive session decision for the members who resigned. Wards 3-5 will be elected by the people.

Many in the Lawton community talk about the low-voter turnout. A 2024 study by the University of Florida showed Oklahoma was the second lowest, behind Hawaii, in potential voter turnout. Below is a graph from the previous seats election compared to the current amount of registered voters by ward which reflects the states lack of poll-goers. These numbers come from the State and County Election Board.

To get a better understanding of why a lot of Oklahoma cities see such low voter turnout, Dark Roast reached out to the Oklahoma Policy Institute, a policy research nonprofit. 

“The reason we hear most often is that ‘my vote won’t make a difference.’ But there have been too many instances where elections were decided by one vote. While that may happen infrequently, each vote that’s cast is a cumulative indication of what the people want to see in their government or who they want to represent their interests,” stated Communications Director David Hamby. “We also hear a lot from people who just don’t know the process or don’t keep up with current events enough to either know that an election is coming up or what’s on the ballot. This is an issue that everyone can help their friends and family become more informed and engaged.” 

One way to be more engaged is to attend your local city council meetings. Kaysa Whitley, a Lawton resident, started regularly attending city council meetings following the Westwin Elements announcement, but quickly saw the overall importance.

“I felt like it gave me a more holistic point of view of what really happens at the city level as opposed to having a tunnel visioned view of what the city wants you to see,” Whitley stated. “I get to see every piece of it instead of just the end result.”

One thing Whitley noticed during her time in council meetings is that most votes are unanimous, explaining it feels like the council is just voting with the mayor and not what their constituents want.

“I feel like the track record is that some are involved, some are not,” Whitley said. “It’s kind of just, they all vote with each other because they don’t want to actually do the work to be part of the decision making.”

Whitley said she’s seen decisions she thought were made in good faith by the council, such as the abundance of road construction. However, she’s also seen decisions she thought were made with greed, such as Westwin Elements. 

Whether this is viewed as a city council all on the same path or a city council that’s not properly represented, Whitley stated this next month has the potential to change the direction of council. Like Whitley, Hamby reiterates a higher voter turnout comes from being informed.

“If you are passionate about issues and government, then you can help your friends and family become more informed,” Hamby explained. “The key will be doing it in a way that doesn’t alienate or push away potential voters.”

Lawton also has a history of not seeing many names on the ballot. According to Hamby, when there are minimal options, it makes it more difficult to generate enthusiasm for an upcoming election. For example, the Ward 5 seat ran uncontested in 2019 and 2022, according to documents. While Ward 1 and 2 seats are accepting applications for council to make a decision, as of August 21, officials say only two have applied for the ladder and four have applied to the former seat.

Hamby expressed that while national, state and local level elections are important for different reasons, the votes that have the most impact are at the local level. The Ward 3, 4 and 5 elections will be held on September 9, with potential runoffs in November.