Norman’s Feb. 8 election has the potential to be a consequential moment for a city recently embroiled in political turmoil, including an effort to recall the mayor and the emergence of the groups Unite Norman and We Are Norman with vastly different points of view.
In Tuesday’s election, city residents will choose among five candidates for the Norman mayoral race, including the incumbent, a local business owner, a retired long-time city employee and a co-founder of Unite Norman, the group that tried to have three elected officials recalled recalled.
There are also elections in Norman’s four even-numbered wards, and the candidates’ views and backgrounds run the gamut.
The following profiles of those candidates are presented in alphabetical order within each ward and were assembled from publicly available information.
The last day of early voting is Feb. 4, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and polling places will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. for Election Day on Tuesday. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in any race, the top two finishers will face off on April 5.
Norman Ward 2
Ward 2 includes the area east of Interstate 35 and west of Berry Road between Robinson Street and the southern city limits.
John Argo
Occupation: Retired owner of Argo Metalworks.
Experience: Argo has run for the Ward 2 seat twice before, including last year, and he ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic nomination in Congressional District 4 in 2020.
Platform: Argo is campaigning in part to build up the city’s self-esteem, according to an interview with the OU Daily. Argo says he wants to “pep people back up” in the city. He would also like to be a candidate who can bridge the gap between Unite Norman and We Are Norman, a left-leaning group that works to unite the city against racism and hatred toward elected officials, according to its Facebook page. He also considers Ward 2 the “face of Norman.”
Online: Facebook
Interviews: OU Daily | Norman Transcript
Lauren Schueler (incumbent)
Occupation: Director of N.E.W. Leadership and civic engagement director at the University of Oklahoma’s Carl Albert Congressional Research and Studies Center.
Experience: Schueler is the current Ward 2 councilwoman. She was appointed in May, 2021, after the recently elected Matt McGarry resigned his seat to take a job outside Norman.
Platform: Schueler has said she wants to improve the city’s gap in the housing market, which she says needs a greater supply of affordable homes for lower-income residents to purchase. She would also push to re-develop the Lindsey Street corridor in the wake of a lengthy road construction project. She believes some aspects of the city’s public safety services should be re-imagined if that can lead to better response times for police and fire departments.
Interviews: OU Daily | Norman Transcript
Norman Ward 4
Ward 4 covers much of Norman’s core, with a leg stretching south of Lindsey between Berry Road and Chautauqua Avenue.
Teresa Borum
Occupation: EMBARK bus driver for 12 years.
Experience: This is Borum’s first run for office. The Shawnee native has lived in Norman for the past 20 years, according to her website.
Platform: One of the things that inspired Borum to run for office is frustration with the city’s partisan politics. If elected, Borum has said she would focus on improving police funding and finding long-term solutions to the city’s homeless problem. She believes there is currently a concentration of those services in Ward 4, which she believes can increase crime and create safety issues for children.
Interviews: Norman Transcript
Helen Grant
Occupation: Works at Oscillator Press in Norman.
Experience: Grant serves on the City of Norman’s Community Development Block Grant Committee and the Inclusive Community Subcommittee.
Platform: If elected, one area Grant would focus on is working to bridge the divide between the Norman’s urban core and its outlying areas. She is endorsed by Sally’s List and the Red Earth Group, Norman’s Sierra Club affiliate. Other priorities include improving Norman’s storm water runoff problem, increasing equity and inclusion and promoting long-term sustainable economic growth throughout the city.
Interviews: Norman Transcript
Doane Harrison
Occupation: Certified public accountant.
Experience: Harrison is making his first run for office.
Platform: Harrison got into the race because of the city’s controversy over police funding. While he supports mobile crisis units and other efforts to assist with those suffering from mental illness, he does not support using police funds to do it. Harrison said it’s time to take an honest look at the city’s TIFF programs and its homelessness programs, which he believes have produced mixed results. He supports bonds to pay for a long-term solution to the city’s storm water problem.
Online: Facebook
Interviews: Norman Transcript
Gale Hobson
Occupation: Psychologist with 40 years of experience.
Experience: This is Hobson’s first run for office. Hobson has served on Norman’s Senior Center Committee. She is the sister of former state Sen. Cal Hobson.
Platform: Hobson supports efforts to create a different mobile crisis unit that can assist police when they encounter citizens who are dealing with mental illness. Hobson said those programs can be established without cutting the city police budget. Hobson called Norman’s water issues complex and has said she wants to look for solutions that don’t damage the environment.
Interviews: Norman Transcript
Norman Ward 6
Ward 6 lies in north-central Norman, from 12th Avenue NW to 36th Avenue NE.
Elizabeth Foreman (incumbent)
Occupation: Director of finance and accounting for the Oklahoma Primary Care Association.
Experience: Foreman has served as the chairperson of Norman’s Historic District Commission and was a member of The Norman Transcript’s editorial board. She became Ward 6’s council member in 2020.
Platform: Among her biggest areas of focus are Norman’s budgetary needs, which she believes are not adequately addressed given what she calls “massive additions” to the city’s 2021 budget. If reelected, she said she would continue to work with Norman’s director of finance to ensure the city was focused on a sustainable budget.
On Wednesday, Foreman’s opponent, Alex Torvi, called her “disrespectful” when she failed to show up for a candidate forum. Foreman addressed the incident on Facebook, saying it was a “mixup” caused by a missed email.
Online: Facebook
Interviews: OU Daily
Alex Torvi
Occupation: Construction company owner.
Experience: Advisory board for Mid-America Technology Center and secretary of his neighborhood homeowners’ association.
Platform: Torvi’s campaign website calls him a “blue collar conservative.” The main photo on the site shows him sitting in front of big-game-hunting trophies and a throw cushion that reads, “Hunting. New Zealand. The Big Five. South Africa. Safari. Blessed. The Dangerous Seven Zimbabwe. Outfitter. Family. Friends. Big Game. Namibia.”
His website lists fiscal conservatism, support for the police and belief in limited government as his guiding principles. Torvi recently joined the Norman Police Department’s Citizens Academy and has said his experience as a business owner is what the city needs moving forward. He also said he has long-term concerns about the city’s sales tax growth. He supported the effort to recall Mayor Breea Clark.
Torvi recently criticized opponent Elizabeth Foreman for not attending a voter forum in Hall Park that he says has been a fixture in city council elections for years. He has questioned her claim that she did not receive a confirmation email for the event.
Online: Website
Norman Ward 8
Norman’s 8th ward is in the northwest part of the city between 36th Avenue West and 12th Avenue East.
Scott Dixon
Occupation: Pharmaceutical sales.
Experience: This is Dixon’s first run for office.
Platform: Dixon said one reason for his campaign is to become a cheerleader for Norman. If elected, he would work to finish Norman Forward projects, which would attract more professionals to the city, he said on his website. He favors the construction of a multipurpose arena in partnership with Cleveland County. Dixon said it’s also time to start looking at long-term infrastructure, including what the city will do for freshwater in the future. He also believes it’s time for the city to address its storm water runoff problems, but doesn’t believe Ward 8 residents should be footing the bill for problems in other wards.
Dixon supports Unite Norman and told The Norman Transcript that he was motivated to run by the 2020 police-funding controversy.
Interviews: Norman Transcript
Matt Peacock (incumbent)
Occupation: Peacock owns an architecture firm in Norman.
Experience: Peacock took over as the 8th ward’s council member in 2020. He has served as a planning commissioner for the City of Norman and on several nonprofit boards.
Platform: One of Peacock’s biggest areas of focus is making sure Norman is walkable, supports arts and culture and operates sustainably. He believes Norman has become too car-centric, particularly in some core parts of the city.
Peacock said one of the biggest challenges facing Norman in the future is its fiscal shortfalls, which he believes are limiting infrastructure growth.
Interviews: Norman Transcript | OU Daily
Related: Norman mayoral race cheat sheet
Cheat sheet: Norman mayoral race a clash over city’s direction
