WASHINGTON (AP) — Three Republican lawmakers from Oklahoma will face voters in runoff elections for the second time in two months on Tuesday. They are among candidates in 10 districts across the state vying for the Republican nomination again after failing to win an outright majority in the June 18 primary.
In Senate District 3, State Senator Blake “Cowboy” Stephens faces physician Julie McIntosh in his bid for a second term. Stephens is endorsed by state Attorney General Gentner Drummond. McIntosh, a former county health department official, is endorsed by Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt, U.S. Rep. Josh Brecheen (listed as “John Brecheen” on McIntosh’s campaign website) and Carolyn Coburn, the widow of former Republican U.S. Senator Tom Coburn.
Stephens defeated McIntosh in the June 18 primary, 38.1% to 37.4%. Wagoner City Councilman Patrick Sampson came in third with 24.5%. Either Stephens or McIntosh will face independent candidate Margaret Cook in November. No Democrat will appear on the ballot.
In the 32nd House District, Representative Kevin Wallace faces a tough re-election battle against energy company executive Jim Shaw. Wallace, chairman of the House Budget Committee, has the governor’s backing but came in second in the June 18 primary with about 42% of the vote, compared to about 46% for Shaw. The winner will run unopposed in November.
In the House’s 98th District, Rep. Dean Davis is seeking a fourth term, but first faces a primary election from Gabe Woolley, an elementary school teacher, podcast host and parental rights advocate. Davis was censured by the House and stripped of his committee assignments after being arrested for public intoxication in March 2023. His committee assignments were restored after he submitted a written apology nearly a year later in February. He was previously charged with driving under the influence, speeding and obstructing an officer in August 2019.
In the June 18 primary, Davis was the leading candidate by one vote, receiving 911 votes to Woolley’s 910, with the remaining 327 votes going to J. David Taylor. The winner of the Republican runoff will face Democrat Cathy Smythe in November.
The seven remaining runoffs in which no incumbent is running include the Republican race in Senate District 15, where Lisa Standridge is running to succeed her husband, outgoing Republican Senator Rob Standridge. She was the candidate with the most votes in the June 18 primary, followed by Robert Keyes, an executive with a drilling and construction company. The winner will face Democrat Elizabeth Foreman.
Half of Oklahoma’s 28 Senate seats and all 101 seats in the state’s House of Representatives are up for election in 2024, though many of those races are uncontested or have no Democratic candidate. Republicans hold overwhelming two-thirds majorities in both chambers.
Here’s a look at what to expect on Tuesday:
Day of the runoff election
The Oklahoma state primary runoff elections will take place on Tuesday. Polls close at 8 p.m. ET.
What is on the ballot
The Associated Press will release voting results on Tuesday and announce the winners of 10 races, all of which are Republican runoffs. State Senate runoffs will be held in the 3rd, 15th, 33rd and 47th districts, while state House runoffs will be held in the 20th, 32nd, 50th, 53rd, 60th and 98th districts.
Who can vote
Only registered Republicans may participate in the Republican primary runoffs. Democrats and independents may not participate.
Decision notes
The Third Senate District in western Oklahoma includes parts of Cherokee, Mayes, Rogers and Wagoner counties. Wagoner received 65% of the district-wide vote in the June primary. McIntosh won Wagoner and Rogers, while Stephens won Cherokee and Mayes. Sampson, the Wagoner council member, had his best showing in Wagoner, finishing second and beating Stephens by 12 votes.
Wagoner also plays a major role in the 98th House District, having won 61% of the vote in the June primary. Woolley beat Davis in Wagoner, 44% to 42%, a margin of just 20 votes. Davis won Tulsa County, 43% to 40%, or 21 votes.
Lincoln County is the key to victory in central Oklahoma’s 32nd District. It received 91% of the vote in the June primary. Shaw beat Wallace in Lincoln, 47% to 42%. He also won Logan County by a wide margin, while Wallace held the upper hand in Payne County.
Runoff elections are typically lower-turnout events than the original elections that sparked them. This could snail-paced the ballot counting process for a contested election, especially in smaller state districts. In these cases, determining the outcome could depend on a compact handful of ballots that have not yet been counted.
The AP does not make predictions and will only declare a winner if it determines that there is no scenario in which the trailing candidates could close the gap. If a race has not yet been called, the AP will continue to report on any major developments, such as concessions or declarations of victory by the candidates. In doing so, the AP will make clear that it has not yet declared a winner and will explain why.
Oklahoma’s automatic recount law applies only to ballots, not elections with candidates. Candidates can request and pay for a recount regardless of the vote difference. The cost is refunded if the recount changes the outcome of the race.
What about voter turnout and early voting?
As of August 1, nearly 2.4 million voters were registered in Oklahoma. Of these, 52% were Republicans, 28% were Democrats and 20% were independents.
More than 297,000 voters participated in the June 18 primary, most of them Republicans. Voter turnout in the Republican primary was about 20% of registered Republicans.
In the ten districts that had to hold runoff elections, the number of votes cast before Election Day in the June 18 primary varied from district to district. The highest was House District 53, with 16% of votes cast before Election Day. The lowest was Senate District 33, with 7%. In seven of the ten districts, the number of votes cast before Election Day was at least 12%.
As of Thursday, just over 10,000 votes had been cast in runoff elections across the state, not just for the 10 state legislative runoffs that AP will cover. Of those, about 5,800, or 58% of the pre-Election Day votes, came from Republicans.
How long does the vote count usually take?
In the June 18 primary, AP first reported results at 8:08 p.m. ET, eight minutes after polls closed. Election night counting ended at 10:22 p.m. ET, after about 99.9% of all votes had been counted.
Are we there yet?
As of Tuesday, there are 70 days left until the parliamentary elections in November.
___
Follow AP’s coverage of the 2024 election at https://apnews.com/hub/election-2024.
