Seats in Legislature Move Toward Resolution
On August 28, there will be Runoff Primary elections in eight legislative districts in which no candidate received more than 50 percent of the vote in the Primary.
STATE SENATE
There will be Republican Runoff Elections in four state senate districts on August 28:
In Senate District 15, which includes parts of Cleveland and Oklahoma counties, there will be a Runoff between two Republicans. Rob Standridge of Norman, a pharmacist, finished first in the Primary with 46% of the vote in the and orthopedic surgeon Jack Beller, also of Norman came in second with 25%. The winner of the GOP Runoff Election will face Democrat Claudia Griffith, 61, of Norman who is a nurse. The seat is currently held by Sen. Jonathan Nichols (R-Norman) who was term-limited.
In Senate District 17, which includes parts of Oklahoma and Pottawatomie counties, Ed Moore, 59 , of Shawnee will compete in the Republican Runoff Election with Ron Sharp, 59, also of Shawnee. Moore received 34% of the primary vote and Sharp 31%. Since only Republicans filed for the seat, the winner will be the new Senator. Moore is a pastor and formerly served in the State Senate in the 1980s when he lived in south Oklahoma City. Sharp is a High School teacher. The seat is currently held by Sen. Charlie Laster (D-Shawnee) who chose not to seek reelection.
In Senate District 33 located in Tulsa County, Republican Tim Wright, 61, of Broken Arrow received 38% of the vote and will face Nathan Dahm, 29,also of Broken Arrow who finished close behind with 36%. Dahm ran for congress in the 2010 election. Since only Republicans filed for the seat, the winner will be the new senator.
In Senate District 43, which includes parts of Garvin, Grady, McClain, and Stephens counties, Republicans Corey Brooks, 32 ,of Washington who won 46% of the vote in the primary, will compete with Peggy Davenport, 63 , of Duncan who received 25% of the vote. The winner will face Democrat Mike Fullerton, 46 , of Newcastle.
STATE HOUSE
Republicans will have Runoff Primary elections in two state house districts and Democrats will also compete in two districts:
In state House District 14, which includes parts of Cherokee and Muskogee counties, Democrats Jerry Rains, 60, of Muskogee who finished first with 42% of the Primary vote will face Bobby Jefferson, 55, also of Muskogee, who received 31%. The winner will face Republican Arthur Hulbert, 40, of Fort Gibson.
In state House District 53 in Cleveland County, Republican Mark McBride, 51, of Moore will face fellow Republican Paula Sullivan, 50, of Norman.. McBride almost won in the Primary with 49% of the vote, while Sullivan finished second with 39%. Since only Republicans filed for the seat, the winner will be the new representative. The seat is currently held by Rep. Randy Terrill (R-Moore) who ran for a County Commissioner post in Cleveland County.
In state House District 70 in Tulsa County, Republicans Ken Walker, 40, of Tulsa and Shane Saunders, 40, also of Tulsa will meet in the Runoff Primary. Since only Republicans filed for the seat, the winner will be the new representative. Walker finished first in the Primary Election with 42% of the vote and Saunders received 39%. Since only Republicans filed for the seat, the winner will be the new representative.
In state House District 88 located in Oklahoma County, Democrats Kay Floyd, 53, of Oklahoma City and Mike Dover, 63, also of Oklahoma City will be in the Runoff Primary. Floyd finished first in the June Primary with 48% of the vote and Dover had 22%. The winner will face Oklahoma City Republican Aaron Kaspereit, 28, a drama teacher who won the GOP Primary with 59% of the vote. The seat was previously held by Al McAffrey (D-Oklahoma City) who won the Special Election earlier this year in Senate District 46.
Republicans are assured of maintaining control of one chamber of the Legislature and are only a few seats away from control in the other chamber. Not only is continued Republican control almost certain, most observers expect the GOP to reinforce their numbers as a result of redistricting following the 2010 Census.
It is mathematically impossible for Democrats to regain control of the state Senate. Republicans ended the last legislative session with a 32-16 majority in the 48 member chamber. Senators serve four-year terms, with half of the seats up for election each election cycle. The even numbered districts will not be on the ballot until 2014. Republicans hold 17 of those seats, with Democrats holding the other seven. The twenty-four odd numbered districts are up for election this year. Fifteen of those are currently held by Republicans, and nine by Democrats. Seven Republicans were elected because they had no opposition. Four more Republicans will be elected in the Primary Elections, because no Democrats nor Independents are running. When added to the 17 Republican seats not up for election this year, the GOP is guaranteed to have 28 seats. Two additional seats are likely to remain Republican because the Republican candidates are only being challenged by Independents.
Meanwhile, only one Democrat was elected without opposition. Democrats will go into the General Election guaranteed to have only eight seats. Even if Democrats won all of the 10 seats that they are running a candidate in the General Election, the GOP Senate would have a 28-18 majority with possibly two Independents. Republicans are expected to win at least enough of the contested seats to maintain their current edge, and picking up several additional seats is considered likely.
In 101 member House, the GOP holds a 67-31 majority (Note: The Special Election in District 71 was invalidated by the Oklahoma Supreme Court and will remain vacant, also two other seats were vacated too late to call for a special election). Because they drew no opponents, 56 members of the House, 37 Republicans and 19 Democrats, have already been elected. Eleven Republicans and one Democrat will be elected as a result of the Primary Elections, since they have no opposition in the General Election. Therefore, the GOP will go into the General Election guaranteed to have at least 48 seats, just three short of a majority, compared to just 20 for the Democrats. There are 53 seats at stake in the November 6 General Election.
It is expected that Republicans will finish at least near their current level and could make further gains due to redistricting. Also, since the GOP nominee for President is likely to carry Oklahoma, he will provide "coattails" that could pull in some borderline districts for the Republicans.
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