Federal Offices on General Election Ballot
U.S. Senate
Senator Tom Coburn's unexpected decision to leave the Congress two years early has created the unusual situation of Oklahoma voters choosing two U.S. Senators on the November ballot, as the seat held by Senator Jim Inhofe was already up for election in 2014. Because Coburn's seat was not up until 2016, the special election for his post will be for a "short term" of just two years, while Inhofe's post is for a full six-year term.
Senator Jim Inhofe, won the GOP nomination in the June Primary Election with 88% of the vote over four challengers. Inhofe, 79, has been a conservative leader since his days in the Oklahoma Legislature, as Mayor of Tulsa, his time in U.S. House of Representatives, and while in the U.S. Senate. Inhofe was first elected to the Senate in a special election in1994, and reelected with ease since then. Investment planner Matt Silverstein, 33, of Bixby is the only Democrat in the race. He will also face Independent candidates Ray Woods, 78, of Fairview; Joan Farr, 48, of Broken Arrow; and Aaron De Lozier, 30, is listed as Wichita Falls, TX.
Inhofe has long been known to be on the "short list" of best members of Congress, from the viewpoint of conservatives. He is pro-life, and a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment. When other politicians were keeping their heads down, and their mouths shut, Inhofe was the voice "crying in the wilderness," opposing the Global Warming alarmists.
Through many years of fighting for free enterprise, limited government, and conservatives principles, Jim Inhofe has never wavered. His record in the Oklahoma Legislature, as mayor of Tulsa, in the U.S. House of Representatives, and in the U.S. Senate has been consistently conservative. With the question of federal judgeships, conservatives would certainly favor Inhofe casting for or against presidential nominations over the next six years.
Inhofe's opponent, Matt Silverstein, however, says the issue of "climate change" is not debatable. "Climate change is real . . . If you think you're informed and you don't believe then you are not properly informed. Period." That is how Silverstein proposes to discuss the issue of Global Warming. This is not surprising, since he favors an amendment to the Constitution, amending the First Amendment's protections of free speech, an amendment which would overturn the Supreme Court decision, Citizen's United.
"Women are paid less than men for the same work and that must change," Silverstein has said. He also supports "Clearly-articulated national standards and expectations for core subject areas." A graduate of the University of Michigan, Silverstein offers the predictable, "I'm not a politician," as a reason to support him.
A member of the B'nai Emunah Jewish Synagogue in Tulsa, Silverstein said his Jewish faith, along with his Choctaw Native American heritage, gives him a unique perspective on government. One side of his family escaped the Warsaw Ghetto during World War II, while another side was removed from their lands and forced to walk along the Trail of Tears to the Indian Territory.
The open seat for the "Unexpired Term"created by Coburn's early exit attracted some strong candidates for the Republican nomination.. With seven candidates running for the GOP nod, a runoff had been expected. But, fifth district Congressman James Lankford, 46, of Edmond won the nomination with 57% of the vote in the June Primary Election. After many years in church youth camp work, political novice Lankford surprised many observers with his election to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2010. He has again surprised pundits with his win of the Republican nomination in the senate race.
State Senator Connie Johnson, 61, of Forest Park finished first in the June 24 Democrat Primary with 44% of the vote and faced second place finisher Jim Rogers in the August 26 Runoff Primary. Johnson beat Rogers with 58% of the vote in the Runoff and will now contend with Lankford in the General Election.
With a 12% Conservative Index score, Johnson is among the most liberal members of the state Senate. She is opposed to the death penalty and has a solid pro-Abortion voting record. She was one of the leaders of the failed effort to get an initiative petition on the ballot to legalize the use of marijuana in Oklahoma.
There will also be an Independent candidate on the November ballot. Mark Beard, 54, is from Oklahoma City.
U.S. House
Candidates for four of Oklahoma's five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives are on the ballot in the November election. First District (Tulsa area), incumbent Republican Jim Bridenstine, 38, was unopposed for reelection and will serve another term.
Markwayne Mullin, 36, of the Second District (Eastern Oklahoma, from the Kansas border to the Red River, won nomination for a second term in the June Primary, winning 80% of the vote. In the Democrat Primary, Earl Everett, 80, of Fort Gibson won the nomination. Everett is a Korean War veteran who ran for the seat in 2012, losing in the Primary election. Mullin and Everett join Independent Jon Douthitt, 74, of Claremore in November General Election.
Long-time Third District Congressman Frank Lucas, 54, who was first elected in a special election in 1994, won renomination with 83% of the vote in the Primary. Lucas is opposed in the November election by Democrat Frankie Robbins, 68, of Medford. Robbins lost to Lucas in 2008 and 2010. He also ran in 2012, but lost in the Primary election. Robbins is a Civil Engineer, and is retired from the U.S. Forest Service. The third district covers most of the western and northern parts of the state.
Fourth District Congressman Tom Cole, 64, won renomination with 84% of the vote in the Primary. He faces Bert Smith, 66, of Moore who won Democrat nomination. Smith ran for the 5th Congressional District three times (2004, 2006, 2008), then moved to Moore and ran for the 4th District in 2012, losing in the Democrat primary. He retired as a math teacher for Oklahoma City Public Schools in 2009. Independent Dennis B. Johnson, 74, of Norman will also be on the ballot in November.
With the decision of Fifth District Congressman James Lankford to run for the open U.S. Senate post, the seat he won in 2010 is now open, and attracted many candidates including six Republicans, three Democrats, and three Independents. Neither of the two parties selected their nominee in the June 24 Primary Election and so the battle for the respective nominations carried on to the August 26 Runoff Primary.
Former state Senator Steve Russell finished first in the June Primary and went on to defeat Corporation Commissioner Patrice Douglas in the August Runoff with 59% of the vote. Russell, 50, of Oklahoma City earned a 74% cumulative Conservative Index score during his tenure in the Legislature and won the endorsement of the Oklahoma Conservative Political Action Committee (OCPAC) in his run for Congress. Russell has been a staunch defender of the Second Amendment and the protection of the unborn. Serving as a military officer during the Iraq War, was in charge of the unit that found dictator Saddam Hussein, and that publicity helped propel Russell to election to the state Senate.
With the open seat, Democrats are hoping to take back the central Oklahoma district that has been Republican since John Jarman switched from Democrat back in 1975. Three Democrats filed for the office and none received more than 50 percent of the vote in the Primary. Tom Guild finished in first place, followed by state Senator Al McAffrey. But, Sen. McAffrey went on to overtake Guild in the Runoff. McAffrey won 54 percent of the vote. State Senator Al McAffrey, 65, of Oklahoma City was first elected to the Oklahoma House in 2006, and reelected in 2008 and 2010. He won a special election to the state Senate in 2012. McAffrey has a cumulative average score of 14% on the Oklahoma Conservative Index.
There will also be three Independents on the November ballot. Robert Murphy, 66, a perennial candidate from Norman (you don't have to live in the district) also ran for the seat in 2012 and has run for various other offices in the past. He has previously run as a Libertarian and as an Independent. Minister Buddy Ray, 70, of Edmond and Tom Boggs, 51, of Thailand are the other Independents.
The 5th District includes most of Oklahoma County, Pottawatomie and Seminole counties.
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