Oklahoma primary election features race to replace Oklahoma governor - ICT
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The primary election will narrow the list of candidates vying to replace controversial Gov. Kevin Stitt, whose history with tribes has often proven adversarial

Kevin Abourezk
ICT

An important governor’s race for Indian Country will see the list of candidates narrowed Tuesday during primary elections in Oklahoma.

Those candidates will vie for major party nominations and the winners will head to the November 3 general election and face off to see who will replace Gov. Kevin Stitt, Cherokee. Stitt is ineligible to run for reelection as he is serving his final year and last term as governor. Oklahoma has a lifetime limit of two four-year terms for the governor.

During his tenure, Stitt has had a contentious history with his state’s 38 tribes. Nearly 330,00 American Indian and Alaska Natives call Oklahoma home or about 8.4 percent of the population, according to the 2020 Census.

The outcome of the race likely will greatly impact the relationship between tribal governments and the state for at least the next four years.

Ross Swimmer, who served as principal chief of the Cherokee Nation from 1975-85 and as a Special Trustee for American Indians at the U.S. Department of Interior under former President George W. Bush, said Stitt mistakenly chose to frame state and tribal relations as based on race rather than on sovereignty.

“I never understood why he has taken that position,” Swimmer said. “I think it’s wise that whoever comes in as the governor can sit down with the tribes and their administrations that can make sure that the governor understands that tribal relationships are not built on race but on sovereign relations with the tribes that have existed for thousands of years.”

Swimmer, a Republican, said he voted by mail for Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond, also a Republican, who he said has had a fairly positive relationship with tribes and who has based his decisions on the law rather than on political considerations.

“I felt very comfortable in that and also feel comfortable that he knows the law,” he said.

Voting locations will open Tuesday at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. local time. For a list of polling locations, acceptable forms of identification and a sample ballot, head to the Oklahoma Voter Portal.

Oklahoma governor candidates

There are nine Republican candidates on the ballot for Oklahoma’s primary election set for June 16:

  • Gentner Drummond: 20th Attorney General for Oklahoma
  • Chip Keating: Former highway trooper and former Oklahoma Secretary of Public Safety
  • Mike Mazzei: Former Oklahoma state Senator and former Secretary of Budget
  • Charles McCall: Longest-serving Speaker of the House in Oklahoma history
  • Jake Merrick: Local radio host and former Oklahoma state Senator
  • Kenneth Sturgell: Local, small business owner
  • Leisa Mitchell Haynes: Former marketing director and former city manager
  • Calup Anthony Taylor
  • Jennifer Domenico-Tillett

Three Democratic gubernatorial candidates are also running for the primary election:

  • Cyndi Munson: Oklahoma House Minority leader
  • Connie Johnson: Former Oklahoma state Senator
  • Arya

Candidates will have to get more than 50 percent of the votes to avoid a runoff. If there is no outright winner, the top two candidates for each political party will head to a primary runoff election on Aug. 25.

An additional three Independent candidates will automatically head to the general election this November. They are Robert Brooks, Orlando Lynn Bush and Jerry Griffin.

Gubernatorial candidate forums in Oklahoma in recent months have included lively discussions about the state’s relationship with tribes.

During an April 6 Republican candidates forum, Republican candidates Gentner Drummond, Charles McCall, Chip Keating and Mike Mazzei, were asked to raise their hand if they shared Stitt’s perspective on the Supreme Court’s decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma. Stitt was quoted as saying that the McGirt decision has torn Oklahoma apart and has created two justice systems based on race.

None of the four candidates raised their hand, and all four promised their administration would work with tribal nations and negotiate tribal compacts.

A top issue in Maine and Oklahoma governors’ races? Tribal sovereignty.

Democratic candidate Cyndi Munson, Oklahoma House Minority leader, said in a recent press release that her caucus supports tribes.

Stitt has been outspoken against tribal compacts for tobacco and car tags, and tribal gaming compacts. Tribal-state compacts are legal agreements between federally recognized tribes and state governments. It is most commonly used for class III gaming – slot machines and table games.

Stitt vetoed several tribal compacts, despite overwhelming support by the state’s legislature, slowing the process for establishing the tobacco, car tag and gaming compacts between Oklahoma and tribal nations.

Swimmer said tribal-state compacts have served Oklahoma well by injecting revenue earned by tribal enterprises into state coffers and into tribal communities, which have used those funds to build roads, schools and healthcare facilities that also serve non-Native people. He said tribal programs and infrastructure have especially benefitted rural communities that have often been ignored by state lawmakers and leaders.

“It’s just amazing and none of that is being done by rural Oklahoma that has been ignored by the state of Oklahoma for a century,” he said.

Democratic candidate Cyndi Munson, Oklahoma House Minority leader, said in a recent press release that her caucus supports tribes.

Native candidates on the ballot

Native candidates are seeking offices in several other races in Oklahoma with the most notable being Tom Cole, Chickasaw, who is facing a challenge from fellow Republican Marcie Everhart in his race for the U.S. House of Representatives District 4 seat. Cole is the longest-serving Indigenous congressional member.

Another notable race features N’Kiyla “Jasmine” Thomas, Chickasaw, a Democratic candidate seeking a U.S. Senate seat who is facing four other Democratic candidates in their race to replace Sen. Markwayne Mullin, who left office to serve as U.S. secretary of homeland security under President Donald Trump. Mullin is Cherokee.

Other Native candidates on Oklahoma’s ballot on Tuesday are:

  • John Pfeiffer, Cherokee, a Republican candidate for state labor commissioner
  • Brad Boles, Cherokee, a Republican candidate for the Oklahoma Corporation Commission
  • Amanda Clinton, Cherokee, a Democratic candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 71
  • Chelsey Branham, Chickasaw, a Democratic candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 85
  • David Hardin, Cherokee, a Republican candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 86
  • Hurchel “Trey” Cardwell, Choctaw, a Republican candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 63
  • Kristina Gabriel, Cherokee, a Democratic candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 77
  • Ronald “Ron” Stewart, Choctaw,  a Democratic candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 73
  • Josh Brecheen, Choctaw, a Republican candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 2

Native candidates in Oklahoma who are running unopposed are:

  • Diane McGee, Choctaw, a nonpartisan candidate for Atoka City Council
  • Christopher Wier, Cherokee, a Democratic candidate for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 4

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