The Edmond City Council appointed small business owner and media professional Maggie Murdock Nichols to its vacant Ward 1 seat Monday evening, solidifying her as the first of four newcomers to a soon-to-be revamped council next year. The appointment process and Edmond’s truncated 2025 election cycle — which saw two other council seats elected by default following a renter’s withdrawal — leaves lingering questions about the city charter’s “freeholder” requirement for candidates, namely if it will be enforced in the future or removed altogether.
Murdock Nichols, who is the daughter of former and well-respected Edmond city attorney Stephen Murdock, was selected from a pool of four considered candidates. The others in contention were Deric Duncan, a local VFW post commander and nonprofit advocate, Curtis Liggins, a former engineer with the City of Oklahoma City, and Will Gattenby, chief operating officer of the Oklahoma Association of REALTORS.
Murdock Nichols will likely be sworn into office before the end of December, Mayor Darrell Davis indicated Monday night. She is set to fulfill the remainder of former Ward 1 Councilman Tom Robins’ term, which runs to May 2027. Murdock Nichols holds a degree in sociology and nonprofit organizational studies from the University of Oklahoma and has been self employed as a marketing professional since 2015, according to a city press release.
“I am honored and grateful to have been appointed by the remaining city councilors to fill the vacancy and represent Ward 1,” Murdock told NonDoc. “I truly love Edmond and look forward to serving.”
Her appointment ends an abbreviated season of uncertainty surrounding who would take the dais following the departures of former Ward 1 Councilman Tom Robins and outgoing Councilwomen Christin Mugg and Stacie Peterson. Mugg’s and Peterson’s respective Ward 3 and Ward 4 seats were up for election in 2025, but both races were won without contest. The only Edmond municipal race remaining is the hotly contested mayoral seat, with four candidates vying for the post.
In Ward 4, businessman Phil Fraim was the only candidate to file. Two candidates initially filed for election in Ward 3 — Preston Watterson and Corey Winston — but Winston withdrew from the race soon after the filing period ended, leaving Watterson the victor. They will be sworn into office in May.
Mugg: Property requirement not considered in Murdock Nichols appointment
When Tom Robins vacated the Ward 1 seat Nov. 1, a requirement in the Edmond city charter that claims property ownership is a necessary for anyone seeking public office in the city came under scrutiny.
In a press release announcing his Dec. 6 withdrawal from the Ward 3 race, Winston indicated the “freeholder” charter provision motivated him to file for office as a renter.
“While there are several reasons [I chose to run], one stands out: like a third of Edmond’s residents, I am a renter, not a property owner or ‘freeholder,’ as required by the City Charter for candidates to qualify for office,” Winston wrote. “Although I cannot speculate on why this provision was included in 1925, it is clear that today, it disenfranchises a significant portion of our community. My candidacy was intended to challenge this outdated provision and advocate for its removal.”
Winston said he withdrew of his own accord and was not forced out of the race or disqualified.
“It is my sincere hope that this election sparks conversations and actions to update our charter, eliminating barriers that exclude so many from participating in our democratic process,” Winston said in his statement.
Duncan applied for the Ward 1 position despite not meeting the charter’s property ownership criteria, like Winston. While submitting his paperwork for Ward 1 consideration, Duncan said he learned “freeholder” stipulations like Edmond’s were ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court’s 1970 decision in Turner v Fouche decision, where justices found “the limitation of school board membership to freeholders violates the equal protection clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.”
“The ruling made it clear that such requirements are unconstitutional because they arbitrarily exclude otherwise qualified candidates from serving in public office,” Duncan told NonDoc by email prior to the council’s Ward 1 decision. “Since the Supreme Court has already invalidated this type of restriction, no additional legislative or judicial action is necessary to change or eliminate it. The ruling itself renders the freeholder requirement unenforceable as it currently stands. As a 10-year Navy veteran, a disabled veteran, and a dedicated Edmond resident, I have consistently worked to better our community through leadership in nonprofits, partnerships with the Downtown Edmond Business Association, and initiatives benefiting local residents.
“Denying my candidacy or anyone else’s based on a freeholder requirement is not only unconstitutional but also fundamentally unfair to the many renters who are vital contributors to Edmond.”
Mugg, who is an attorney, said the property ownership provision was not a factor she considered during the Ward 1 appointment process.
“It’s my understanding that requirement is unconstitutional, and so I didn’t take that into consideration when I was evaluating the four folks,” Mugg said. “I’m hopeful that will get resolved and clarified, but that was not an issue for me.”
While the Edmond City Council could take action to alter the charter, it is currently unclear if the city would have tried to enforce the provision had Winston remained in the Ward 3 race or had other non-land-owning candidates filed.
“I have not spoken to any of the council members about what they did or didn’t consider insofar as this vacancy is concerned, so I don’t know that the city has a stance on that necessarily. I certainly would not be the one to give an opinion on that,” said Madeline Sawyer, Edmond’s current city attorney. “Until something happens, it’s not my place to speculate what we may or may not do with the legal requirement. That’s not at issue right now, in this moment.”
Council approves park cost hikes, considers development impact fees
The council took action on a pair of revenue items later in Monday’s meeting, approving slight increases to fees at parks and recreation facilities and extending the lifespan of its development impact fee focus group.
Prior to November’s failed general obligation bond election, the city had been considering implementation of development impact fees as a new revenue stream. Such fees are one-time payments by builders to the city that are intended to offset municipal costs related to a new development for public infrastructure like streets and sewers.
Ward 2 Councilman Barry Moore was the only council member to vote Monday against retaining an existing focus group studying development impact fees.
“I think we’ve got other things that we should be looking at as opposed to impact fees. We need to look at our financial picture, we need to look at our sales tax issues, we need to get those on the ballot and get them approved, and I think focusing on an impact fee takes away from that effort,” Moore said. “We talk about affordable housing, workforce housing — this isn’t it. The last time I saw something on this item, a portion of these fees would go toward paying the debt services on city hall. I’m not for that. I’ve made that very clear.”
Mugg agreed with Moore’s comments, but said she saw no harm in extending the focus group to at least further consider the potential revenue stream.
“I don’t disagree with what Councilman Moore said, but at the same time, we have to look at all the opportunities to fund infrastructure and services,” Mugg said. “Even if we continue to have this focus group, it doesn’t mean we’re necessarily implementing it, but we’re at least continuing to explore all of the options and opportunities.”
A slate of fee increases at Arcadia Lake, Gracelawn Cemetery and the Kickingbird Golf facilities was also approved. For Kickingbird, many of the weekday and weekend prices were increased by $1 to $2. Annual camping passes at Arcadia Lake saw bumps from $20 to $50. Fees at the Gracelawn Cemetery increased by around $100.
The new fee schedule for all impacted facilities is available here, and will take effect Jan. 1, with the exception of Kickingbird, where new fees take effect March 1.
