The precincts haven’t completely finished reporting in, yet, but the results are clear: the Republican candidate for the Governor’s race won’t be decided today.
With 94% reporting in, most media outlets agree that Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond and former State Senator Mike Mazzei will have to duke it out in a runoff election in August—to be expected, given the crowded Republican field. Drummond held a narrow lead over Mazzei with 94% of precincts reporting, though the margin between the two candidates remained under 1 percentage point.
The second-biggest issue on the ballots in Creek County was most likely State Question 832, which proposed to raise the state’s minimum wage over the years and then tie it to a national inflation index. As of this writing, that measure was losing by a double-digit margin.
Several other statewide Republican races have been settled, however: T.W. Shannon has won the Republican nomination for lieutenant governor with more than 53% of the vote. Jon Echols has also secured the Republican nomination for Attorney General with about 55% of the vote. State Treasurer Cindy Byrd also appears to have secured renomination after receiving more than 61% of the vote.
Other statewide races appear to be headed to runoffs, including Labor Commissioner and Insurance Commissioner. Kevin West led the race for Labor Commissioner, but failed to reach the majority needed to avoid a runoff against second-place finisher John Pfeiffer. Bob Sullivan and Marty Quinn will also face off in August for Insurance Commissioner.
The State Superintendent Race is tightly split among several candidates, with Robert Franklin leading the pack at 22.6%, followed by James Taylor at 19.7%. John Cox narrowly missed a spot in the runoff with a close third place at 18.4%.
Kevin Hern rallied late to collect nearly 69% of the vote, winning the Republican nomination for Oklahoma’s open U.S. Senate seat.
For Creek County voters, most local seats will likely see familiar faces: Todd Gollihare won the Republican primary for State Senate District 12, and House Speaker Kyle Hilbert easily won re-election in House District 29. Haley Anderson appears headed for victory in the Creek County Assessor race, and Jarrod Whitehouse holds a commanding lead in the County Commissioner District 3 contest.
If you’re thinking election mailers, calls and texts will slow down now, don’t bet on it. The voters whose candidates fell short on Tuesday have suddenly become the most sought-after voters in Oklahoma.
The Primary Runoff Election will be Tuesday, August 25th, with the General Election in November.