Wednesday, April 3rd 2024, 9:17 am
An Enid city commissioner was ousted by voters in a recall election Tuesday night after a campaign to replace him over his alleged ties to white supremacist groups.
Click here to watch News 9 live.
Out of a total of 1,390 votes, Judd Blevins lost to challenger Cheryl Patterson, who earned 829 total votes, or 59.6%.
The recall election came after organizers behind the Enid Social Justice Committee gathered enough signatures on a petition to remove Blevins after photos showing him at the 2017 Unite the Right rally in Charleston, Virginia, were released.
RELATED: Enid City Commissioner Accused Of Having Ties To Hate groups Addresses Heated Crowd At Meating
With all four precincts reporting in Enid's Ward 1, results show voters chose to recall 42-year-old Judd Blevins. They instead selected Cheryl Patterson, a grandmother and longtime youth leader at an area church, to fill the seat.
Blevins, an Iraq War veteran, was narrowly elected to the seat last year despite his ties to white nationalist groups.
Enid, Okla. City Council member Judd Blevins at a commuity forum on March 26, 2024.AP PHOTO / SEAN MURPHY
Blevins acknowledged at a community forum last week that he marched in the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, in 2017. He also admitted being connected to the now-defunct white supremacist group Identity Evropa.
When asked at the forum to explain his involvement in the rally and his ties to Identity Evropa, he responded: "Bringing attention to the same issues that got Donald Trump elected in 2016: securing America's borders, reforming our legal immigration system and, quite frankly, pushing back on this anti-white hatred that is so common in media entertainment."
The recall effort in Oklahoma was launched by two longtime Enid residents, best friends Connie Vickers and Nancy Presnall, both Democrats, in a county where Republicans have a nearly 4-to-1 advantage in voter registration.
Blevins released a statement Tuesday night following the election.
"It took a coalition of leftists and moderates, an all-out media blitz from local, state, and national outlets, and scare tactics... about the future of Vance Air Force Base, unfounded in any truth or reality, yet shamefully endorsed by the establishment... to remove a true conservative from office."
Patterson will fill the seat for Ward 1 commissioner.
July 30th, 2024
July 27th, 2024
October 3rd, 2024