Oklahoma County Commissioner Carrie Blumert, whose expertise in public health and nonprofit management gives her a distinctive voice, is resigning her post to become CEO of Mental Health Association Oklahoma − and her announcement was a total surprise to her county colleagues.
“She hasn’t told anyone,” Commissioner Brian Maughan, chairman of the Board of County Commissioners, said Tuesday morning after Blumert had issued a news release. “With us not having any money, we’ve got to pay for an election now. It’s just something else. This is going to cost the taxpayers.”
Maughan said the vacancy will occur too late to add to the November ballot. A special election after the first of the year will decide her replacement, he said. In the meantime, Blumert’s deputy commissioner, will serve in her place.
At Mental Health Association Oklahoma, Blumert will replace Terri White, the former state Secretary of Health and head of the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. Blumert’s last day on the Board of County Commissioners will be Sept. 30. She starts her new job on Oct. 1.