Hawkins takes Stillwater City Council seat, Baker and DeYong return to school board
Apr. 8—Christie Hawkins will be sworn in April 19 as the newest member of the Stillwater City Council. She replaces Vice Mayor Pat Darlington who has served since 2014 and opted against running again for Seat 4.
A new Vice Mayor will have to be selected. The position has traditionally gone to the councilor with the most seniority, which would be Councilor Alane Zannotti.
Hawkins is the Director of Institutional Research and Analytics at Oklahoma State University. She defeated Ariel Ross, a professor of English at OSU who served on the Stillwater Planning Commission and Board of Adjustment and currently serves on the Block 34 Trust, 1,289 votes to 890.
Turnout for the city run-off dropped by almost 10% from the Feb. 9 general election, in which 2,412 ballots were cast.
Hawkins said she was happy with the turnout and was honored and humbled by the support she received.
She called Ross "a great example of what we want in engaged citizens," and said she looks forward to continuing to work with her.
Ross will continue serving on the Block 34 Trust and is making plans for ways to get her students more involved in the community.
Marshall Baker returns to the Stillwater Board of Education after unseating incumbent Steve Hallgren, 1,466 votes to 1,009.
Baker represented Ward 2 on the board from February 2017 through late 2018 and vacated the seat when he moved to Raleigh, North Carolina for a job opportunity.
Hallgren previously ran for the Ward 5 seat and was appointed in September to fill an opening in that ward until the next election.
Incumbent Camille DeYong took the lead early in her race and won the seat in Ward 1 decisively, defeating newcomer Carle Santelli, 1,980 votes to 386.
Although DeYong is entering her third term on the board, this was her first campaign, having been appointed then running unopposed. DeYong praised Santelli for being bright and caring and said she enjoyed getting to know her.
Voting in the Board of Education general election dropped off from the Feb. 9 primary by about 10 %. Although all voters living in the Stillwater school district could vote for both offices, 109 fewer voters made a selection in the second race on the ballot.
Election results are considered unofficial until they are certified by the Payne County Election Board on Friday.
Other local races were decided Tuesday:
Town of Langston City Office 2
* Michael Boyles — 83.58%
* Sheila D. Stevenson 16.42%
City of Perry Ward 2
* Amy K. Nation — 43.88%
* Amber Dilbeck — 56.12%
City of Perry Ward 4
* Betty Warner — 24.56%
* Derek Coldiron — 75.44%
City of Pawnee Ward 3
* Ryan Schulze — 74.51%
* Emily K. Elliott — 25.49%
City of Cushing Office 2
* Stephen R. Orton — 36.34%
* Lee R. Denney — 63.66%
City of Perkins Seat 1
* Gary N. Varnell, Sr. — 17.73%
* Aaron C. Box — 82.27%
Coyle Public Schools Office 1
* Justin Whitmore — 73.17%
* Christie R. Calvert — 26.83%
Coyle Public Schools Office 4
* Chuck Edwards — 25.77%
* Amy Caldwell — 74.23%
Glencoe Public Schools Office 1
* Dalton Ross — 92.67%
* Colby Torres — 7.33%
Perkins-Tryon Public Schools Office 1
* Rick Lomenick — 37.56%
* Jessie Johnson — 62.44%
