An OU math professor is running for mayor to promote integrity and responsibility in Norman’s government, but some feel he won't be able to effectively govern in a more liberal city like Norman.
Gary Barksdale is one of three mayoral candidates up for election on April 5. Barksdale, who described himself as “the reluctant candidate,” said he was running because he is concerned about city spending, selective voting dates, and ethics violations in the current administration.
A fourth generation Normanite, Barksdale said his primary concern has always been the welfare of the people of Norman, and that the current administration’s habit of choosing inconvenient days for citywide voting deprives many of their say in government.
Barksdale cited the vote on Norman Forward, a measure that introduced new taxes to pay for city improvements, as an example. Of Norman’s population of around 120,000, he said only 12,000 voted. Barksdale said the low voter turnout was intentional, a way for elites to get their agenda passed.
Barksdale said he believes this is indicative of a larger problem in Norman government.
“Our city council hasn’t been the best at following ethics,” he said.
Current Norman mayor Cindy Rosenthal violated the city's ethics policy in June 2015 when she agreed to co-host a fundraiser for a candidate in a Cherokee Nation election, a violation she called unintentional.
In contrast, Norman resident Fred Pope said he is supporting Barksdale because of his principles and character.
“He is the better Christian and constitutional-centered individual running in the race,” Pope said.
Barksdale said constitutionalism and conservative values, like fiscal responsibility and civil liberties, are an important part of his platform.
“The city can either allow civil liberties or deny civil liberties a lot more easily than the federal government can because the city’s laws affect one’s day-to-day activities," he said.
When asked about which of Barksdale’s proposals appealed to him, Pope said he liked the idea of contracting with OU rather than out-of-state universities to conduct studies in the city.
“I do believe that we could perhaps enter into agreements with talent at the university to conduct some of these studies and avoid a lot of the extreme expenses,” Pope said.
Barksdale said he hoped his relationship with the university could help bring this about.
However, Norman resident Kathryn Taylor said Barksdale’s values are not inclusive and, because of this, he will not be able to work with those who believe differently than him to build consensus.
Taylor is one of the administrators of the Facebook page “Norman Residents Against Gary Barksdale for Mayor,” which posts what it claims are screenshots of Barksdale’s past Facebook posts where he criticized or mocked liberals.
“There has to be a certain level of respect that you have for people even if you disagree with their lifestyles or their beliefs,” Taylor said.
Although many of the screenshots are submitted by others, Taylor said the administrators are “fairly certain” that they are authentic and that “we would not have them up if we were not 100 percent sure that they were what he posted to his Facebook.”
Barksdale acknowledged that a few of the posts were his.
“I’m not going to deny the fact that I’ve made jokes,” he said, but added that other posts were photoshopped and that the page’s administrators are not credible. He denied Taylor’s claim that he will be unable to work with people from different backgrounds, citing his time at OU during which he wrote letters of recommendation for students of different races, sexual orientations and ideologies as proof.
“I believe in treating every person with dignity and respect,” he said. “In that respect, I’m more of an adherent to Martin Luther King Jr., because I’m going to look at the content of your character.”
