Kirk Humphreys | |
---|---|
34th Mayor of Oklahoma City | |
In office April 9, 1998 – November 3, 2003 | |
Preceded by | Ron Norick |
Succeeded by | Guy Liebmann |
Personal details | |
Born | [1] | September 13, 1950
Political party | Republican |
Alma mater | University of Oklahoma |
Kirk Humphreys (born September 13, 1950) is an American politician who served as Mayor of Oklahoma City from April 9, 1998, to November 3, 2004. [2] He was considered a favorite candidate of the Republican party establishment for U.S. Senator in 2004, [3] [4] losing to former Congressman Tom Coburn, MD in the primary. [5] Humphreys was appointed to The Oklahoma City Public Schools Board as Chairman, but was later unseated by former state Sen. Angela Monson.
Humphreys is the Executive Chairman of Humphreys Capital, a real estate investment fund management company based in Oklahoma City. [6]
Humphreys graduated from the University of Oklahoma in 1972 with a Bachelor of Business Administration in Finance. [6]
From 1972 until 1989, Humphreys built a distribution business with his brothers that specialized in the distribution of beauty products and other non-food items to leading retailers across the United States. [6] In 1989 he founded The Humphreys Company, a real estate development and investment firm. Among the company's current projects are Carlton Landing, a 1,800-acre new town development on Lake Eufaula in southeastern Oklahoma, and The Wheeler District, the redevelopment of the 150-acre site of the former Downtown Airpark on the Oklahoma River near downtown Oklahoma City. [6]
Humphreys is Executive Chairman of Humphreys Capital, which manage real estate investment funds with more than $700 million in assets in 15 states.
Humphreys is vice-chairman of the Oklahoma City Airport Trust, vice-chairman of the Oklahoma Industries Authority and serves on the board of the Hough Ear Institute. He is a former trustee of the Urban Land Institute and was founding chairman of the Oklahoma District Council of ULI.
From 2008 until 2019, Humphreys was co-host of "Flash Point," an award-winning locally-produced Sunday morning political talk show on Oklahoma City NBC affiliate KFOR-TV (channel 4), alongside co-host Mike Turpen and moderator Kevin Ogle.
On December 10, 2017, in his capacity as a "Flash Point" cohost, Humphreys made comments about his personal beliefs, the "me too" movement, homosexuality, and his belief in the existence of universal truth in a culture of moral relativism. His comments prompted calls for his resignation from the University of Oklahoma Board of Regents by the LGBTQ Alumni Society and Freedom Oklahoma. [7] [8] [9] In addition, Paula Lewis, the chair of the Oklahoma City Public Schools board of education, issued a statement calling for Humphreys to resign from the board of John Rex Charter Elementary School, located in downtown Oklahoma City. [10] A few dozen John Rex parents held a protest December 15, 2017, also demanding Humphreys' resignation from the school's board. In January, 2018, more than 2,000 parents of John Rex students and citizens of Oklahoma City signed a letter of support for Humphreys, demanding that he remain in a role of leadership for John Rex and defending his religious liberties http://m.news9.com/story.aspx?story=37220732&catId=112032 [11] [12] On December 21, 2017, at the end of a special meeting of the OU Board of Regents, Humphreys announced he would resign from the board of regents at the beginning of the spring semester in January 2018. [13]
Humphreys was elected to the Putnam City School Board in 1987 and served until 1995. [6] In 1998, he was elected mayor of Oklahoma City and served two terms. As mayor, he changed the popular opinion of the downtown revitalization effort, known as Metropolitan Area Projects (or MAPS), to a more favorable view. This resulted in increased economic development and improved quality of living in the downtown Oklahoma City area and a move toward a second project, known as MAPS for Kids, aimed at a revitalization of the area's public schools. [14]
In 2004, Humphreys was a candidate in the Republican primary for the U.S. Senate and was considered a favorite for the party's nomination as he was endorsed by incumbent Don Nickles and Oklahoma's other U.S. Senator James Inhofe. [3] [4] However, he was defeated by Tom Coburn with a vote of 61% to 25%. [5]
In 1972, Humphreys married the former Danna Kircher of Stroud, Oklahoma. He and Danna have three children and 15 grandchildren.