Capitol incumbents fall in GOP runoffs

All three of Oklahoma's state senators that were on the ballot Tuesday lost t heir reelection bids t o Republican challengers.

Sens. Ron Sharp, Larry B o g g s a n d P a u l S c o t t lost their primary runoff elections.

I ncumbents t ypically struggle i n runoff elections, and Tuesday was no exception.

Senate District 17

Former lawmaker Shane Jett, of Shawnee, unseated Sharp in a contentious Senate race.

Jett garnered 59% of the vote and beat his opponent by 1,458 votes.

Many forces were Jett working against Sharp's reelection bid. A pro schoolchoice group Sharp spent

more t han $ 30,000 trying to prevent Sharp from winning a third term.

Sharp also was targeted by dark money groups that weren't registered with Oklahoma' s secretary of state or state's Ethics Commission — a violation of campaign finance laws.

The senator's feud with Epic Charter Schools also played a role in the heated Senate race.

Sharp has been a vocal critic of the state's largest virtual charter school system.

Late last week, Epic sent an email top aren ts criticizing Sharp and reminding people to vote in legislative races Tuesday, according to the Tulsa World. Sharp said the email was payback for a judge dismissing a libel and slander lawsuit Epic filed against him.

About a week prior, an Oklahoma County district judge also ordered Epic to pay Sharp's legal fees and a $500,000 fine under a law that sanctions plaint i f f s who f i l e meritless lawsuits.

S t a t e A u d i t o r a n d Inspector Cindy Byrd is conducting an investigative audit of Epic after the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation alleged the virtual charter school system embezzled millions in taxpayer dollars.

J e t t s e r v e d i n t h e Legi s l a t ur e f r o m 2 005 t o 2 01 0. He c a n s e r v e s i x mor e y e a r s i n t h e Legislature before being term-limited out of office. He will face Libertarian Greg Sadler in the general election.

Senate District 7

Boggs, R- Wilburton, lost to Warren Hamilton, who ran as a political outsider and self-proclaimed abortion “abolitionist ,” who seeks to criminalize abortion.

Hamilton Hamilton won by 222 votes and advances to face Democrat Jerry Donathan in the Boggs general

election. Should he win in the general election, Hamilton is poised to be the only “abolitionist” in the Legislature. He follows in the footsteps of former Sen. Joseph Silk, who mounted an unsuccessful bid for Congress this year instead of seeking reelection.

`I' m not a politician, I'm a soldier,” Hamilton said in a well-watched campaign video. “Send me to Oklahoma City to immediately stop wasteful s pending and excessive taxation, to end abortion and to protect our unalienable Second Amendment rights to keep and bear arms.”

Hamilton succeeded despite heavy opposition, both from Senate leadership and dark money groups.

The Senat e Majori t y F u n d , whi c h s u p p o r t s i n c u m b e n t s e n a t o r s , spent thousands of dollars trying to help Boggs. S e n a t e P r o T e m Gr e g T r e a t p r e v i o u s l y t o l d The Oklahoman he was e x t r e mel y i n v e s t e d i n helping Boggs win a third and final term.

T r e a t a n d o t h e r Republican senators who oppose abortion have dismissed “abolitionists” as a “fringe” group.

Senate District 43

Scott, R-Duncan, lost to Republican challenger J e s s i c a Ga r v i n b y 2 3 8 votes.

Garvin, who has been campaigning for more than a year, is an Garvin administrator at a nursing home and assisted living center in Marlow. Scott“I think

there are a lot of people in our district who are interested in change,” she previously told The Oklahoman. “I think people are looking for something different.”

Scott, who owns a medical X-ray company, was first elected in 2016.

Garnering 49.89% of the vote in the June primary, Scott nearly prevented the runoff primary altogether. Runoff elections occur when no single candidate in a race captures more than 50% of the vote.

Garvin will face Democrat Terri Reimer in the general election.

House District 96

Preston Stinson beat out Margaret Best to clinch a seat in Oklahoma' s Legislature.

The candidates were vying for an open seat representing Oklahoma County.