Thirteen Republicans who will vie for four county offices in a July 27 primary stated their case to their own party members in a June 29 forum.
Hosted by the Canadian County Republican Party, candidates vying for District 1 and District 3 commissioners posts, as well as county assessor and county treasurer appeared at the forum. No Democrats filed for any of the open seats; those individuals elected will take office Jan. 1.
Both commissioners races feature three candidates, including an incumbent in each district. Four residents threw their hat in the ring for the chance to assume retiring Assessor Ronnie Funck''s seat, while three individuals hope to be the one selected to follow longtime Treasurer David Radcliff, who also announced his retirement in April.

County assessor
The county assessor race will include J.B. Olbert, 50, of Mustang; Bob Mallam, 59, of Yukon; Karen Nix, 58, an El Reno resident; and Okarche resident Matt Wehmuller, 37.
Olbert said he had experience running a multimillion-dollar company for several years and has “extensive” experience dealing with finances and business. Olbert said he believed the priority for the county was to keep taxes level.
“We are on an unsustainable path,” he said. “There is no statutory requirement that property values must be increased every year, and we can''t continue to assess property at higher and higher levels when our citizens have less and less money to spend.”
Mallam pointed to Oklahoma County Assessor Leonard Sullivan''s website and said Canadian County should have a similar asset for its residents.
“That''s what we need to aspire to – it''s user friendly and contains all of the information someone would need,” he said. “That''s something that would be a top priority for me.”
Mallam has lived in Yukon for 33 years. After 25 years as a driver for United Parcel Service, he became a field assessor in the county office. Although he has worked primarily in commercial property assessment, he said he is familiar with other county operations as well.
Mallam said educating residents about benefits available to them – such as homestead exemptions and senior assessment freezes – is one of his top priorities. Another is updating technology used and offered by the office, he said.
“You have other assessors who have websites that are much easier for the public,” he said. “That''s something we need to look at.”
Nix has worked as director of the El Reno Chamber of Commerce, as well as director of the El Reno Economic Development Partnership. She said analyzing the office and communicating its role to residents would be key.
“We need to better educate people about where their taxes are going and what the assessor does,” she said.
Wehmuller is a former finance director with Integris Hospital, as well as serving a stint on the Oklahoma State Insurance Board. The fifth-generation Canadian County resident said his emphasis would be increasing technology and transparency in the assessor''s office.
“We need to take it to the next level,” he said.
County treasurer
El Reno resident Carolyn Leck, 54, will face Billie Wilds, 57, also of El Reno, and Pete Katzdorn, 37, of Yukon, in the county treasurer race.
Leck has worked in the treasurer''s office for 15 years, serving as chief deputy for 12 years. Improvements during that time in technology and efficiency should be continued, she said.
“We''ve had a huge change in how we do things, from hand-written entries to computerized systems that keep evolving,” she said. “The key is to be able to safekeep the county''s money and earn interest on it – be innovative yet be compliant in audits.”
Wilds said her experience as a business owner and in banking and finance has prepared her for the treasurer''s post. She has owned and operated Wilds Green Grass Sod Farm for 12 years with her husband, Richard Wilds. She said her goal would be to improve efficiency and customer service in the office.
“We need to catch mistakes early – it costs less money,” she said. “Saying ''thank you'' and ''how can I help you'' needs to be an automatic part of working in that office.
Katzdorn, Canadian County Republican Party chairman, worked in an escrow office for five years. In that position, he said he learned lessons which would help him assume the treasurer''s role.
“We need to sell abandoned property quickly and look at technology,” he said. “The key is saving money, advocating small government and technology.”