Larry Heikkila unseats incumbent Breea Clark, wins first term as Norman Mayor

NORMAN — Larry Heikkila won a first term as mayor of Norman on Tuesday, unseating incumbent Breea Clark.

With 100 percent of precincts reporting, Heikkila received more than 53% of votes, with more than 24,000 ballots cast in the race.

The race, which went to a runoff when no single candidate earned more than 50% of the votes in February, saw candidates divided on what they believed to be the most pressing issues facing Norman residents.

Clark, after leading the city through the pandemic spoke about a desire to return to “the business of Norman,” and resuming projects that had been disrupted by the pandemic. She was also an advocate for the city’s proposed water rate increase, which failed, spending time on the campaign trail educating residents about the goals and uses of the increase.

More: 2022 Oklahoma City Area Election Results

Heikkila, endorsed by the Norman Fraternal Order of Police, said the city needed to focus primarily on strengthening its police and fire departments. He said Clark and the council had “defunded” the department, referring to a vote by the council to reduce the proposed police budget. However, both that vote, later reversed by a judge and the finalized budget, still resulted in increases to the police department's overall budget.

When discussing the city’s rise in homelessness, Heikkila took a firm stance saying city money should not be used to build homeless shelters. Clark said homelessness was not a problem exclusive to Norman that takes collaboration at multiple levels to solve.

Heikkila's stance on the proposed Oklahoma Turnpike Authority route through Norman was less evident, while Clark vowed to fight against the turnpike and look for “something more fair and appropriate for Norman.” Heikkila simply said the city would need to "redefine" itself after the turnpike came through.

What might be next for Norman based on candidate statements?

Heikkila has expressed wanting to see Norman police and fire salaries increased and expanding services to create what he calls a "protection equity," so residents in all areas of the city have similar call response times.

Days before the election, Heikkila expressed a desire to see citizens actively involve themselves in city government.

"I want the citizens to redefine who we are as a town. I want the citizens to be able to sit down and tell us what their expectations are for our city employees and for the efforts of the city,” he said.

Other races on the ballot in Norman

In addition to the mayoral runoff, Norman residents voted a city council seat and a proposed water rate increase.

In the race for Norman City Councilmember for Ward 4, Helen Grant beat Gale Hobson earning just over 54% of votes.

The proposition to increase monthly water rates in Norman failed with more than 54% of votes cast in opposition of the measure.

For more local race results, check out The Oklahoman's local elections results page.

All race results are unofficial results from the Oklahoma State Election Board.

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Larry Heikkila unseats incumbent Norman Mayor Breea Clark