In 1997, Tarbell began his political career by campaigning in his now well-known top hat and tails. He was first appointed to Cincinnati City Council in 1998 to replace the retiring
Bobbie L. Sterne, was elected in 1999, and re-elected in 2001, 2003 and 2005. Until 2003, when
Christopher Smitherman won a seat on the council, Tarbell was the sole Charterite on the council. In 2005, Tarbell was appointed Vice Mayor by
Mark Mallory, the newly elected Mayor of Cincinnati. Because of term limits, Tarbell could not run for re-election in the November 2007 election. In March 2010, Tarbell ran for Hamilton County Commissioner for the first time. In September 2014, Tarbell announced that he was running for Hamilton County Commissioner again, this time as a write-in candidate. ==References==