A Tulsa Community College regent, an author and a longtime sportscaster are running for the only Tulsa City Council seat without an incumbent seeking reelection: District 9 in midtown.
Pete Regan wants to bridge political divides to find solutions; Ben Johnson is concerned about affordability and the economy; and Shawn Tiemann believes his media background can provide a unique perspective to the Tulsa City Council. Incumbent Carol Bush is leaving the position after a single term.
Tulsa’s District 9 boundaries reach as far north as East 31st Street, east to South Sheridan Road, south to East 71st Street and west as the Arkansas River.
Meet the Candidates
A District 9 candidate forum is set for 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 10 at Community Brookside, 1307 E. 38th St. The free event is hosted by the Tulsa Flyer, Tulsa Press Club and Tulsa World. Those in attendance will have an opportunity to submit questions. Sign up for our remaining event, the District 1 forum on Aug. 11, here and find your district here.
Regan: ‘I love this city and I want to give back’
A former Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor and a graduate of Edison Preparatory School, Pete Regan is an attorney and vice president of WSB, an architecture, engineering and construction firm. He told the Flyer he fell in love with public policy working for former Oklahoma Gov. George Nigh while attending night school at the University of Central Oklahoma in Edmond.
After graduating with a bachelor’s degree in economics and a master’s degree in public administration, Regan joined Nigh’s staff during his time as UCO president. Regan later worked for then-U.S. Sen. David Boren in Washington, D.C., and followed him back to Norman when Boren became the University of Oklahoma president in 1994. After graduating law school from OU, he served as the chief of staff and legal counsel for Boren’s son, U.S. Rep. Dan Boren.
After an unsuccessful run for lieutenant governor in 2006, Regan said he thought he would never run for office again. He felt compelled to run when the District 9 seat opened in June.
“When this race came open, I thought, ‘OK, I could sleep in my bed,’” Regan said. “I love this city, and I want to give back.”
Regan said he wants to bridge political divides through his background in public policy and infrastructure, and believes each political party has more in common with one another than they think. Regan noted he was appointed to the Oklahoma Transportation Commission by former Gov. Brad Henry, a Democrat, and was later reappointed by former Gov. Mary Fallin, a Republican.
”Regardless of your political stripes, people live here by choice. They want this to be a flourishing and vibrant community. They want safe neighborhoods, and a lot of times they want to be left alone,” Regan said.
Appointed to the TCC Board of Regents by Gov. Kevin Stitt in 2023, Regan said he wants to continue the city’s work to end homelessness, and bring more economic development and workforce opportunities to District 9.
Johnson: Housing ‘is a need that is generational’
An author and a former EMT, Ben Johnson is a Booker T. Washington Hornet who has worked as a 911 dispatcher in Tulsa since moving back to the city in 2014. He said writing and publishing a book with his best friend is ultimately what motivated him to run for office.
“Inequality by Design,” which Johnson published in August 2025 with Ryan Mattson, focuses on economic inequality in the United States and how systems are intentionally designed to maintain those structures, he said.
“It’s great to write a book and feel like you put your voice out there, put your name on the public record, and that makes everybody feel good on the inside. It made my publisher happy, but it got me thinking, it’s not enough to just write about these problems,” Johnson said. “Someone needs to run for office to do something about them.”
As housing prices climb and artificial intelligence begins to take jobs from people, Johnson fears younger generations could face “entrenched, cyclical and generational poverty” if policies do not change. With his history in public safety, he said he’s seen firsthand how systemic problems can affect people’s personal lives.
“When people are spending way more of their income on housing than anything else, people are having to make choices between affording medicine and not. People are having to make decisions like, ‘can I afford to buy essentials for my family or not?’” Johnson said.
To that end, Johnson said he supports Tulsa’s momentum on creating more housing, but believes there needs to be even more emphasis. He called Mayor Monroe Nichols’ stated goal of adding at least 6,000 housing units by 2028 “a good first step.”
“I don’t want to say no one, because there are good people in the city council, but as a consensus, an overall consensus, I didn’t see any sort of local desire for someone in the political establishment to really tackle the issue of housing,” Johnson said. “This is a need that is generational.”
Tiemann: ‘I’m a listener first’
A St. Louis native, Shawn Tiemann has spent nearly 30 years in sportscasting. He first moved to Tulsa in 2007 to join sports radio station The Sports Animal. Now, he works as a sales representative and fundraising coach with Vertical Raise, but still calls radio play-by-play for Bixby High School football and Rogers State men’s and women’s basketball, along with ancillary contract work.
Tiemann has also spent time working in media relations for minor league baseball teams and as a news director in small- to mid-sized markets. He believes his professional experience sets him apart in the District 9 race.
“You can have all the knowledge in the world, but if you don’t know the right questions to ask — or a way to funnel and dig and investigate things — I feel like you’re behind the 8-ball,” Tiemann said. “So, I feel like I’m the most unique candidate because of what I’ve done in my life in terms of my career.”
Tiemann said he supports the city’s progress on ending homelessness but wants the city to go even further.
“Tulsa is starting to move in the right direction in terms of private-public partnerships, and trying to help people,” Tiemann said. “I think we demonize the homeless and that needs to stop. I think they’re pushing in the right direction. I want to push that forward even more.”
A Brookside neighborhood resident, Tiemann said he wants to help create opportunities for small businesses in the area to continue growing.
“I’m a listener first, and then I’m gonna ask questions after that. I don’t profess to know all the answers on every issue. But I do know the right questions, and I do know how to keep digging on a story, because I’ve been in the media,” Tiemann said. “I think that’s massive. I think it’s huge at a local level.”
Early voting runs from Aug. 20-22. For more information on candidates and issues on the Aug. 25 ballot, check out the Flyer’s voter guide.
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