15 June 2008: Born 1955, Kathy Taylor brought an extensive background in business and commerce when elected as Tulsa’s second-ever female mayor in 2006. Taylor’s professional background is ostensibly in the car rental industry, where she worked at boardroom level, and as an advisor to global franchising concerns expanding their US presence. She has also sat on the boards of a number of government agencies, including the Grand River Dam Authority and the University of Oklahoma.

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In 2003 Taylor was appointed Oklahoma Secretary for Commerce and Tourism by Governor Brad Henry and was tasked with heading three executive state agencies and acting as the governor’s small business advocate for the state. Taylor resigned in 2006 in order to run for mayor in her hometown of Tulsa, where she defeated one term Republican mayor Bill LaFortune with the highest turnout for any mayoral election in the city. Taylor pledged to bring a business-like attitude to city hall and institute far-reaching management reforms in order to tackle her inherited budget deficit.

As a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns coalition, Taylor has inevitably attracted the attention of the state’s gun-owning community, who have vowed to thwart any gubernatorial ambitions she may have. Her admirable stance of restricting city police checks of immigration status to only those accused of a felony crime has also drawn the predictable ire of local ‘patriots’ and conservatives. Taylor is currently a member of the National Conference of Democratic Mayors’ nominating committee.

She is married to husband Bill Lobeck, CEO of National and Alamo Car Rental, and has one daughter.