In a surprising turn of events for the June 18th elections, incumbent Creek Commissioner for District 2 Leon Warner was defeated by challenger Zac Moore after the poll numbers rolled in on Tuesday evening.
It was a tight race decided by just 14 votes, of which Zac Moore received 695 or 50.51%, and Leon Warner received 681, or 49.49%. A total of 1,376 votes were cast.
Moore described the campaign as “a grassroots effort that had a lot of moving parts.”
“I’m so thankful for all of the hard work and support I had through this,” he told Sapulpa Times in a statement the night of the election. “I couldn’t have done it without everyone’s help. I do not take lightly the trust that has been put in me to be the voice for the citizens here in District 2. I look forward to getting to work and being the voice for them.”
Warner, who was running for a second term, congratulated Moore on winning a “very close election,” and said that he wished the Commissioner-elect the best.
Warner also said that the recent controversy surrounding the changing of the Public Safety Answering Point boundaries—also known as the 911 Boundaries—likely contributed to the results of the election.
“Many were upset with the 911 boundary changes that were recently approved by the State 911 Commission,” Warner said. “The State 911 Commission has been vocal in directing all Oklahoma Counties to get prepared for the Next Generation 911 systems. This effort will require all County dispatch centers to come together to map out plans for the future of 911 in Creek County.”
Warner relayed that he was “deeply thankful for the opportunity to have served the citizens of Creek County and District 2. It’s been rewarding and we were able to improve numerous roads and bridges during that time. Thank you to the citizens of our District.”
Other Creek County offices were up for election this year, but the incumbents filed unopposed and won by default:
- District 2 County Clerk – Jennifer Mortazavi
- District 2 Court Clerk – Amanda VanOrsdol
- District 2 Treasurer – Rick Engleman
- Creek County Sherriff – Bret Bowling
A number of state congressional seats were also up for election, and Frank Lucas won outright, whereas all others will now continue on to face challengers from another party in November, or face a runoff in August.
Caleb Wortz contributed to this story.
