NORMAN (KOKH) - Dozens of concerned Norman residents gathered for an emergency townhall meeting on Thursday after Ward 5’s newest councilman claims those tasked with redistricting might be guilty of gerrymandering.
"It seems like all the political rhetoric in a nonpartisan committee that changes Ward boundary lines, and the resulting product looks like they're taking away a lot of my voters," said Councilman Rarchar Tortorello.
Fox 25 uncovered audio tapes from a September 8th meeting where the reapportionment committee who’s in charge of drawing out new city lines can be heard having a long discussion about the impacts of moving farm land from ward 5 to ward 6.
Tortorello claims the committee alluded to him personally as “dangerous.”
"I'm the only guy that was elected in Ward five, I'm not a farmer so anybody who listens to that tape, I mean, they can only be speaking about me," said Tortorello.
Tortorello has since written a letter to Mayor Breea Clark on Tuesday, demanding the Committee be disbanded due to “ethically improper, wholly inappropriate, and painfully skewed concerns”.
"She was probably taken back by what I accused the committee of and I think she's taking the required time to investigate this," added Tortorello.
So far though, Mayor Clark has yet to reply.
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