Mick Cornett

Cornett is a native of Oklahoma City. His mother was a teacher and his father was a postal worker.[5] He attended Putnam City High School, graduating in 1976.[2] He then attended the University of Oklahoma, earning a journalism degree in television news.[2] He earned a Master of Business Administration from the New York University.[6]

After graduating, Cornett worked at KOCO-TV channel 5 (ABC affiliate) for twenty years in news and sports as a sports reporter and sports director, weekend sports anchor, morning/noon news anchor in Oklahoma City.[2] As a reporter, he covered city politics from 1997 to 1999. In 1999 he started his own video production company, Mick Cornett Video Productions, specializing in jobs for the corporate and legal sectors. Cornett is the co-host of The Verdict, a local Oklahoma City television show discussing legal and social issues.

Cornett was elected to the Oklahoma City Council in 2001.[2] He defeated the incumbent City Councilman, Frosty Peak.[7]

Cornett with Vice President Dick Cheney in 2007

Cornett in 2009

Cornett became the Mayor of Oklahoma City on 2 March 2004. He was re-elected to a second term on 7 March 2006 by an 87.6% margin, the largest in city history. In 2010, he became only the fourth mayor in Oklahoma City history to be elected to a third term, defeating Steve Hunt by gaining 58% of the vote.[2] In 2014, he became the first mayor to be elected to a fourth term, defeating Ed Shadid with 65.7% of the vote.[3]

Cornett served as an Executive Vice President of Ackerman McQueen from 2009 to 2011, during which the Oklahoma Ad Club named him 2010's "Ad Man of the Year." Cornett came in for some criticism for potential conflict of interest as a mayor serving as an employee of a private corporation.[8]

Cornett received an MBA, specializing in management, entrepreneurship and leadership, from NYU Stern School of Business in July 2011.[9]

Cornett's most notable achievements as Mayor include the successful lobbying that resulted in Oklahoma City's first major league sports team, the Oklahoma City Thunder of the National Basketball Association, and the passage of MAPS 3, a $777 million quality-of-life infrastructure program for Oklahoma City.

In 2013, Cornett served as one of six selection committee members for the Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence.[10]

In 2009, he was named one of the top 10 most powerful Oklahomans by the Oklahoma City Friday newspaper, ranking ahead of the state's two U.S. Senators.[17]

In November 2010, Governing Magazine named Cornett one of their "2010 Public Officials of the Year" and put him on the cover.[18]

Also in 2010, he was named runner-up of the World Mayor prize, and also the recipient of the World Mayor Project's 2010 World Mayor Commendation, in recognition of the economic and civic progress of Oklahoma City.[19][20]

In 2012, Newsweek named Cornett one of the five most innovative mayors in the United States.[21]

Cornett was the recipient of the 2013 Oklahoma Mayor of the Year Award, presented by the Mayors Council of Oklahoma of the Oklahoma Municipal League.[22]

The American Architectural Foundation awarded Cornett the Joseph P Riley Award, for his contributions to Oklahoma City Metropolitan Area Projects, at a gala in Washington, D.C. on March 22, 2013.[23]

Fortune Magazine released their 2018 list of the "World's 50 Greatest Leaders" list on April 19, 2018. Cornett was ranked as the 25th greatest leader in the world, where Fortune gave credit to his fiscal conservative background for the creativity in leading Oklahoma City's advancements in school revitalization, public transit and downtown improvements.[24]

The month Cornett left office after 14 years as mayor, Oklahoma City was named the #1 city in the United States to start a business. The #1 ranking was given to Oklahoma City thanks to high marks in three different categories: Business Environment, Access to Resources and Business Costs.[16]

On May 11, 2006, Cornett announced that he would be running to fill the seat in the United States House of Representatives vacated by Ernest Istook. On August 22, 2006, he was defeated by Lt. Governor Mary Fallin in a GOP run-off election, as Fallin was elected to Congress in the general election.

Following Fallin's decision to run for governor in 2010, Cornett was widely considered a possible candidate for the seat, but he decided to run for re-election as mayor.[25]

In 2008, Cornett was scheduled to address the Republican National Convention in St. Paul, Minnesota, but his speech was canceled when reaction to Hurricane Gustav suspended the convention. He returned and addressed the 2012 Republican National Convention.[26]

In 2010, Cornett's Chief of Staff, David Holt, was elected to the Oklahoma Senate. In 2012, Holt authored the book Big League City: Oklahoma City's Rise to the NBA, which chronicled Cornett's efforts to bring the NBA to Oklahoma City.

In 2017, Cornett was appointed to sit on the US DOT's Automation Committee for overseeing self-driving transportation policy.[27][28]

On February 22, 2017, Cornett announced that he would not seek reelection for a fifth term as Oklahoma City mayor.[29]

On May 31, 2017, Cornett announced[30] his 2018 candidacy for governor of Oklahoma via Twitter.[31] On June 26, Cornett placed first in the Republican primary but did not receive more than 50% of the vote. He advanced to the runoff election on August 28, 2018 which he placed second to Tulsa businessman Kevin Stitt who in November general election was elected as Governor.

Cornett became a filmmaker with the release of "Oklahoma City: The Boom, the Bust and the Bomb" in 2016. The film was produced, written and directed by Cornett who describes the documentary as "...a tale of resilience, exploring how Oklahoma City's turbulent past helped shape its bright, flourishing future."[32] The film takes a look at Oklahoma's history, specifically its economic ups-and-downs with commodities. The focus narrows in on the 25-year period of Oklahoma City history from 1970 to 1995, which saw the rise of the oil boom in the 1970s, the banking and financial crash of the 1980s and also the physical and emotional effects resulted in the bombing of the Oklahoma City Murrah Federal Building in 1995.

On September 25, 2018, Penguin Random House will release the first book authored by Cornett, titled The Next American City.[33] The book is described as "An invigorating look at how American cities are reinventing themselves and redirecting the future of the nation by way of civic engagement, inventive public policy, and smart urban design, The Next American City is a look at the changes re-shaping American urban life–and a blueprint for those to come." The book borrows the title of a magazine known as The Next American City, later shortened to Next City which promotes socially, economically and environmentally sustainable practices in urban areas across the country and examines how and why cities are changing. It covers topics such as planning, transportation, urban economies, housing and environmental issues. In 2011, Next City ceased publication of its quarterly print magazine, relaunching in 2012 as a fully digital operation.

In 2011, Cornett filed for divorce from his wife of 32 years, Lisa, citing "total irreconcilable incompatibility."[34] The couple has three grown sons: Mike, Casey and Tristan.[2] Cornett married his second wife, Terri (Walker) Cornett, on November 26, 2014.[35]

Cornett also drew attention in 2020 for one of his hobbies. His collection of Green Bay Packers football cards became ranked number one in the world according to Professional Sports Authenticators (PSA) of Newport Beach, California.[36]

2018 Oklahoma gubernatorial election

• List of mayors of the largest 50 US cities

• CityMayors.com profile
• About The Verdict. URL accessed 15 March 2006.
• ArenaFan Articles by Mick Cornett

• Mick Cornett at TED
• Appearances on C-SPAN