Photo: JERRYE & ROY KLOTZ MD · CC BY-SA 3.0How is Cherokee run?
Cherokee’s city government spent $1.8 million on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, about $1,212 per resident. These are Census Bureau estimates: Cherokee didn’t report its figures, so this page shows them without comparisons.
What stands out about how Cherokee is run
Read from the city’s budget and official records.
About $1,212 per resident a year, or $3.32 a day
Day-to-day services only (a Census Bureau estimate). The biggest line: administration & buildings, at 40%.
Thank you for being a neighbor
Cherokee didn’t report all of its 2022 figures to the Census Bureau, so most of these numbers are the Bureau’s estimates.
No comparison or trend for Cherokee yet
Every year of Cherokee’s figures is a Census Bureau estimate: the city reported none of its dollars for 2022. Estimates are shown above, labeled, but never ranked against places that reported or drawn as a trend.
How Town Hall compares budgets →The typical homeowner pays $714 a year
Every local property tax on the home: town, schools and county. About 0.74% of the home’s value, vs 0.80% across Oklahoma.
Typical yearly bill next door and statewide
The Housing page’s calculator splits a monthly payment into loan, tax and insurance at Cherokee’s rate.
Can I afford it? →The median bill homeowners report to the Census survey (bills of $10,000+ are reported as “$10,000+”). The effective rate is that bill ÷ the median home value: a rough guide, not the official tax rate. In a town this small the estimate has a wide margin.
Tax bills are one input to Cherokee’s Cost of living grade. Cost of living in Cherokee →
Who’s in charge in Cherokee
Names change after every election, so we link to the source that keeps them current.
One full-time city employee for every 124 residents
On the payroll in March 2022, from the Census Bureau’s Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll. Residents: the Census population in the 2022 finance file (1,492).
By department full-time, plus part-time, March 2022
The Census reports one month’s payroll (March); yearly figures are that month × 12, an estimate. Part-timers count half in the bar lengths.
Cherokee Public Schools
Cherokee’s K–12 school district, shared with Lambert. It’s its own government, with a budget separate from the town’s.
Of the $14,557 per pupil, $8,232 goes to the classroom (teachers, aides, supplies); the rest to buses, buildings, counselors and administration. Building projects and debt payments aren’t in the per-pupil figure.
Oklahoma districts overall: 42% local, 45% state, 14% federal.
School year 2023–24. Census Bureau school finance survey.
Cherokee’s votes are counted by county
Oklahoma reports official results by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Cherokee alone, and we don’t estimate them. These are Alfalfa County’s results.
Donald J TrumpRepublican87.5%1,891 votes
Kamala D HarrisDemocrat10.9%236 votesOthers: 1.5% (33 votes).
Most votes in Alfalfa County: Donald J Trump
Oklahoma: Trump 66.2%, Harris 31.9%
100% of Cherokee lies in Alfalfa County. Every 2024 race in Alfalfa County is on the county’s page.
Alfalfa County’s 2024 results →Official 2024 general election returns, as certified (MIT Election Data + Science Lab). Percentages are of votes for candidates; blank and spoiled ballots aren’t counted. Candidates are listed by votes, and party colors are neutral on purpose.
Portraits: Kamala D Harris: official vice-presidential portrait, Lawrence Jackson, The White House, 2021; Donald J Trump: official portrait, Shealah Craighead, The White House, 2017. All are U.S. government works in the public domain. A race shows photos only when every candidate has an official portrait; otherwise every candidate in it gets initials.
From town hall to Washington
Every level of government that speaks for Cherokee.
- 1Your cityMayor & councilLocal officials aren’t on record yet.
- 2Oklahoma HouseState representatives
- 3Oklahoma SenateState senator
- 4GovernorStatewide
- 5U.S. HouseYour representative in Congress
- 6U.S. SenateBoth represent all of Oklahoma
Democrat · Republican · other or independent. Tap a name for their official page.
Reach Cherokee’s government
Neighbors add phone numbers and hours to the Handbook.
Questions about Cherokee’s government
How much does Cherokee spend per resident?
About $1,212 per resident on day-to-day services in the year to June 30, 2022, a Census Bureau estimate (Cherokee didn’t report its figures). With building projects and interest, the whole budget was about $3.2 million.
What is the property tax rate in Cherokee?
Homeowners report a typical bill of $714 a year (Census ACS, 2020–24), about 0.74% of the typical home’s value, vs 0.80% across Oklahoma. For the official rate per $1,000 of assessed value, see the city’s assessor.
Who runs Cherokee’s government?
We name an official only when a public source lists a current term, and none does for Cherokee yet.
How did Cherokee vote in 2024?
Oklahoma counts votes by county and precinct, not by city, so there are no official results for Cherokee alone. Alfalfa County, where 100% of Cherokee lies, voted Trump 87.5%, Harris 10.9% for president; its page has every race.
How many people work for Cherokee?
12 full-time and 6 part-time employees in March 2022, with a March payroll of $61,635 (about $739,620 a year if every month were the same), as reported to the Census Bureau.
Who represents Cherokee in the state legislature?
State Senate District 19 (Roland Pederson) and State House District 58 (Carl Newton). The House district also covers 26 other towns. Listed by Open States; districts from the Census Bureau.
Ask neighbors about Cherokee’s government
Neighbors who’ve been to the meetings can help.
Budget and staff: U.S. Census Bureau, Census of Governments (2022, every government) and Annual Survey of State and Local Government Finances (2023–24, a sample) and the Annual Survey of Public Employment & Payroll (for Cherokee, the Bureau’s estimates); day-to-day spending is current operations, with hospitals, utilities and airports apart. School district: Census school finance survey, 2023–24. Property tax: Census American Community Survey, 2020–24. Elections: official 2024 returns via the MIT Election Data + Science Lab; turnout uses Census citizen voting-age population (CVAP, 2020–24). Officials: Open States, names shown only with a current term (checked October 9, 2026). Districts: Census Bureau (119th Congress, 2024 state districts); legislators: Open States and congress-legislators. How Town Hall works →