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Voter Discontent Could Spell Problems For Incumbents

Flickr / KOMUnews

Mid-year cuts to public schools and other state services, along with a looming budget crisis, helped draw a record number of political newcomers to races for state House and Senate offices in Oklahoma this year.

Legislators will soon learn if the same general discontent exists among voters, who head to the polls June 28 for Oklahoma's statewide primary election. Every Oklahoma senator up for re-election drew at least one opponent this year, while only 14 current House members went unopposed as a record number of candidates filed for office.

Rep. John Paul Jordan, a first-term Republican who represents the Oklahoma City suburb of Yukon, drew a slate of opponents including two Democrats, two Republicans and an independent.

"There's frustration with the Legislature, and I think we're looking at an election cycle where a lot of people are just frustrated with the status quo," Jordan said.

Jordan, an attorney, faced some criticism this year for sponsoring a measure aimed at returning a Ten Commandments monument to the Capitol grounds after the Oklahoma Supreme Court ruled it violated the state constitution's ban on using public property to support a religion. Jordan's response was to seek a public vote on whether to amend the constitution to remove the prohibition.

"The majority of the folks in my district, they want the Ten Commandments back," Jordan said.

The Ten Commandments arguments occurred while legislators also had a $1.3 billion budget hole with which to contend.

On the Senate side, two-term incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Newberry of Tulsa also was a popular target, drawing two Republican challengers, three Democrats and an independent. Among his Democratic opponents is a retired superintendent from Sand Springs, and Newberry acknowledges some pro-education groups would like to knock him out of office.

"I think it's a concerted effort by a special interest group that doesn't appreciate the work that's being done in the Capitol building, and they want to take a shot at people running for re-election," Newberry said.

House Democratic leader Rep. Scott Inman, who leads a caucus of 30 Democrats in the 101-member House, said voter frustration will be measured by the number of incumbent Republicans ousted, if any.

"If any of them lose, if one or two of them lose, I think you'll see shock waves go through the Republican caucus," Inman said, "because for years in this building, the rule of thumb as a Republican elected official was kowtow to the right wing and you won't be beaten by a Democrat or a more centrist Republican. This election cycle could turn that on its ear."

For voters like 62-year-old Donita Brown of Oklahoma City, a public school teacher who typically favors Republicans, this year could prompt her to vote to put a Democrat in the Legislature.

"Am I disappointed with my Republicans? Yes, I am," said Brown, who believes state funding for public schools is inadequate. "I don't feel appreciated. I feel thrown on the ground and stomped on. They're not going to run me off - I'll teach with a sandbox and a stick. But it's not fair to the children."

There are 57 primary elections in the House - 21 among Democrats and 36 for Republicans. In the Senate, there are seven Democratic primaries and 20 for Republicans. If no candidate gets a majority of votes in the primary, a runoff primary election is set for Aug. 23. The general election is Nov. 8.

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