Help us improve in just 2 minutes—share your thoughts in our reader survey.
Oklahoma State Senate elections, 2016
|
2018 →
← 2014
|
|
| 2016 Oklahoma Senate Elections | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Primary | June 28, 2016 |
| General | November 8, 2016 |
| 2016 Election Results | |
| 2014・2012・2010・2008 2006・2004・2002・2000 | |
| 2016 Elections | |
|---|---|
| Choose a chamber below: | |
|
| |
| • State legislative elections in 2016 | |
A total of 25 seats out of the 48 seats in the Oklahoma State Senate were up for election in 2016. Republicans gained three seats in the November 2016 general election.
Oklahoma state senators serve staggered, four-year terms and half of the senate is up for election every two years.
Introduction
Elections for the Oklahoma State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on June 28, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was April 15, 2016.
Majority control
- See also: Partisan composition of state senates
Heading into the election, the Republican Party held the majority in the Oklahoma State Senate:
| Oklahoma State Senate | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Party | As of November 7, 2016 | After November 8, 2016 | |
| Democratic Party | 9 | 6 | |
| Republican Party | 39 | 42 | |
| Total | 48 | 48 | |
Retired incumbents
Twelve incumbent senators did not run for re-election in 2016. Those incumbents are:
| Name | Party | Current Office |
|---|---|---|
| Charles Wyrick |  Democratic |
Senate District 1 |
| Earl Garrison | Democratic |
Senate District 9 |
| Brian Bingman |  Republican |
Senate District 12 |
| Susan Paddack | Democratic |
Senate District 13 |
| Patrick Anderson | Republican |
Senate District 19 |
| Jim Halligan | Republican |
Senate District 21 |
| Ron Justice | Republican |
Senate District 23 |
| Mike Mazzei | Republican |
Senate District 25 |
| John Ford | Republican |
Senate District 29 |
| Don Barrington | Republican |
Senate District 31 |
| Brian Crain | Republican |
Senate District 39 |
| Clark Jolley | Republican |
Senate District 41 |
2016 election competitiveness
Oklahoma sees improvement in electoral competitiveness.
Ballotpedia conducts a yearly study of electoral competitiveness in state legislative elections. Details on how well Oklahoma performed in the study are provided in the image below. Click here for the full 2016 Competitiveness Analysis »
- In the Oklahoma State Senate, there were nine Democratic incumbents and 39 Republican incumbents. One incumbent faced primary opposition in the Democratic Party. There were eight primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- In the House, there were 30 Democratic incumbents and 71 Republican incumbents. Three state representatives faced primary opposition in the Democratic Party. There were 17 primary challenges in the Republican primary.
- Overall, 18.6 percent of Democratic incumbents and 21.4 percent of GOP incumbents faced primary opposition in all of the state legislatures with elections in 2016.
- The cumulative figure for how many state legislative candidates faced no major party opposition in November in these states was 41.8 percent. This compares to 32.7 percent in 2010, 38.3 percent in 2012, and 43.0 percent in 2014.
- More details on electoral competitiveness in Oklahoma can be found below.
List of candidates
General election
| 2016 Oklahoma Senate candidates | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| District |  Democrat
|
 Republican
|
Other |
| 1 | John Myers: 11,590 | Micheal Bergstrom: 16,933  |
|
| 3 | Rhonda Cox: 10,695 | Wayne Shaw: 16,091 (I) |
|
| 5 | Stacey Allen Ebert: 10,987 | Joseph Silk: 14,665 (I) |
|
| 7 | Joel Kerns: 12,867 | Larry Boggs: 16,209 (I) |
|
| 9 | Jack A. Reavis: 12,828 | Dewayne Pemberton: 13,641 |
|
| 11 | Kevin Matthews (I) |
No candidate | |
| 12 | No candidate | James Leewright |
|
| 13 | Eric Hall: 10,393 | Greg McCortney: 18,686 |
|
| 15 | No candidate | Rob Standridge: 21,069 (I) |
Shawn P. Sheehan: 12,811 (Ind.) |
| 17 | No candidate | Ron Sharp (I) |
|
| 19 | Rhonda Harlow: 5,719 | Roland Pederson: 19,877 |
Whitney Hall: 3,292 (Ind.) |
| 21 | No candidate | Tom J. Dugger |
|
| 23 | Larry Wasson: 7,120 | Lonnie Paxton: 24,087 |
|
| 25 | Robert Founds: 10,398 | Joe Newhouse: 28,362 |
|
| 27 | No candidate | Bryce Marlatt (I) |
|
| 29 | Robert Jobe: 11,419 | Julie Daniels: 21,704 |
|
| 31 | Perry Brinegar: 7,737 | Chris Kidd: 17,828 |
|
| 33 | Kimberly Fobbs: 11,128 | Nathan Dahm: 23,087 (I) |
|
| 35 | No candidate | Gary Stanislawski: 19,737 (I) |
Frank Grove: 10,690 (L) |
| 37 | Lloyd W. Snow: 12,729 | Dan Newberry: 17,671 (I) |
Shawn W. Ketcher: 1,325 (Ind.) |
| 39 | John Waldron: 16,793 | Dave Rader: 19,002 |
|
| 41 | Kevin McDonald: 13,215 | Adam Pugh: 25,751 |
Richard Prawdzienski: 1,815 (L) |
| 43 | Leah Pollan: 8,290 | Paul Scott: 25,395 |
|
| 45 | No candidate | Kyle D. Loveless (I) |
|
| 47 | Judy Mullen Hopper: 15,445 | Greg Treat: 22,858 (I) |
Steven Weber: 2,249 (Ind.) |
| Notes | • An (I) denotes an incumbent. | ||
| • Candidate lists can change frequently throughout an election season. Ballotpedia staff update this list monthly. To suggest changes, click here to email our State Legislature Project. | |||
Primary election
Races we watched
Ballotpedia identified five notable Oklahoma state primary races in 2016, two of which were state Senate contests.
Click here to read more about Ballotpedia's coverage of notable Oklahoma races »
Primary contests
- Four Republicans competed for an open seat left by the Republican incumbent. Joe Newhouse and Lisa Kramer proceeded to a runoff election. Newhouse defeated Kramer in the primary runoff.
- ☑ Joe Newhouse ☐ Bob Jack ☐ Craig Murray ☑ Lisa Kramer
- The Republican incumbent faced two primary challengers.
- ☑ Nathan Dahm (Inc.) ☐ Patrick Pershing ☐ Larry Curtis
Candidates removed from the ballot
- Ben Scroggs (I), District 12
- Larry R. Sturgill (I), District 17
- Joshua Lee Setzer (D), District 27
- Steven Vincent (D), District 45
Margins of victory
The average margin of victory for contested races in the Oklahoma State Senate in 2016 was lower than the national average. Out of 25 races in the Oklahoma State Senate in 2016, 19 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 27.7 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.[1]
| Only Republican candidates in the Oklahoma State Senate had contested races in 2016. Republicans won 24 races. In the 19 races where a winning Republican faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 27.7 percent. Democrats won one race in 2016. It was unopposed. |
| More Republican candidates than Democratic candidates saw margins of victory that were less than 10 percentage points. Two of the 19 contested races in 2016—10.5 percent—saw margins of victory that were 10 percent or less. One race saw a margin of victory that was 5 percent or less. Republicans won both races with margins of victory of 10 percent or less. |
Oklahoma State Senate: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent District Winning Party Margin of Victory District 9 R 3.1 percent District 39 R 6.2 percent
| The average margin of victory for incumbents in the Oklahoma State Senate who ran for re-election and won in 2016 was lower than the national average. Twelve incumbents who ran for re-election in 2016 won. The average margin of victory for the eight winning Oklahoma State Senate incumbents who faced a challenger in 2016 was 21.1 percent. The average margin of victory for all winning incumbents in contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016 was 31.8 percent. |
Oklahoma State Senate: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis Party Elections won Average margin of victory Races with incumbent victories Average margin of victory for incumbents Unopposed incumbents Unopposed races Percent unopposed Democratic 1 Unopposed 1 Unopposed 1 1 100.0 percent Republican 24 27.7 percent 11 21.1 percent 3 5 20.8 percent Total 25 27.7 percent 12 21.1 percent 4 6 24.0 percent
Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in Oklahoma State Senate districts in 2016.
| Oklahoma State Senate: 2016 Margin of Victory by District | ||
|---|---|---|
| District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory |
| District 1 | R | 18.7 percent |
| District 3 | R | 20.1 percent |
| District 5 | R | 14.3 percent |
| District 7 | R | 11.5 percent |
| District 9 | R | 3.1 percent |
| District 11 | D | Unopposed |
| District 12 | R | Unopposed |
| District 13 | R | 28.5 percent |
| District 15 | R | 24.4 percent |
| District 17 | R | Unopposed |
| District 19 | R | 49.0 percent |
| District 21 | R | Unopposed |
| District 23 | R | 54.4 percent |
| District 25 | R | 46.4 percent |
| District 27 | R | Unopposed |
| District 29 | R | 31.1 percent |
| District 31 | R | 39.5 percent |
| District 33 | R | 35.0 percent |
| District 35 | R | 29.7 percent |
| District 37 | R | 15.6 percent |
| District 39 | R | 6.2 percent |
| District 41 | R | 30.7 percent |
| District 43 | R | 50.8 percent |
| District 45 | R | Unopposed |
| District 47 | R | 18.3 percent |
Important dates and deadlines
- See also: Oklahoma elections, 2016
The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Oklahoma in 2016.
| Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Deadline | Event type | Event description |
| April 13, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate filing period opens |
| April 15, 2016 | Ballot access | Candidate filing period closes |
| April 30, 2016 | Campaign finance | First quarter report due |
| June 20, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-primary report due |
| June 28, 2016 | Election date | Primary election |
| August 15, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-runoff report due |
| August 23, 2016 | Election date | Runoff primary election |
| October 31, 2016 | Campaign finance | Pre-general report due |
| November 8, 2016 | Election date | General election |
| January 31, 2017 | Campaign finance | Partial quarter report due |
| Sources: Oklahoma State Election Board, "2016 Statewide Candidate Filing Packet," accessed January 11, 2016 Oklahoma Ethics Commission, "2016 Reporting Calendar," accessed January 11, 2016 | ||
Competitiveness
Candidates unopposed by a major party
In eight of the 25 seats that were up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of seven Republicans and one Democrat were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.
Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 17 (68%) of the 25 seats up for election.
Primary challenges
Nine incumbents faced primary competition on June 28. Twelve incumbents did not seek re-election and another four incumbents advanced past the primary without opposition.
Retired incumbents
Twelve incumbent senators did not run for re-election, while thirteen incumbents ran for re-election. A list of those incumbents, eight Republicans and one Democrat, can be found above.
Impact of term limits
- See also: State legislatures with term limits
The Oklahoma State Senate has been a term-limited state senate since Oklahoma voters approved State Question 632 in 1990, as an initiated constitutional amendment. This amendment became part of Section 17A of Article V of the Oklahoma Constitution and limits the amount of time that an Oklahoma State Senator can serve to a cumulative total of 12 years in either or both chambers of the Oklahoma State Legislature.
Altogether, there are 48 Oklahoma State Senators. In 2016, eleven of them who were current members, three Democrats and eight Republicans, were ineligible to run for re-election in November.
The state senators who were term-limited in 2016 were:
Democrats (3):
Republicans (8):
- Patrick Anderson
- Ron Justice
- Mike Mazzei
- John Ford
- Don Barrington
- Brian Crain
- Clark Jolley
- Brian Bingman
Results from 2014
There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.
Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.
| Overall Competitiveness | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 2012 | 2014 | |
| Competitiveness Index | 36.2 | 35.8 | 31.4 |
| % Open Seats | 18.6% | 21.2% | 17.0% |
| % Incumbent with primary challenge | 22.7% | 24.6% | 20.1% |
| % Candidates with major party opposition | 67.3% | 61.7% | 57.0% |
The following table details Oklahoma's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.
| Oklahoma Legislature 2014 Competitiveness | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| % Open Seats | % Incumbent with primary challenge | % Candidates with major party opposition | Competitiveness Index | Overall rank |
| 24.6% | 24.6% | 37.3% | 28.8 | 25 |
Historical context
Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.
Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.
Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.
Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.
Campaign contributions
The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State Senate in Oklahoma in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State Senate races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.[2]
| Oklahoma State Senate Donations | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Candidates | Amount |
| 2014 | 65 | $7,575,280 |
| 2012 | 67 | $6,323,971 |
| 2010 | 54 | $6,162,126 |
| 2008 | 49 | $7,973,382 |
| 2006 | 59 | $7,652,563 |
State comparison
The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state senates. The average contributions raised by state senate candidates in 2014 was $148,144. Oklahoma, at $116,543 per candidate, is ranked 16 of 42 for state senate chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s senate candidates in 2014.[2][3]
Qualifications
Article 5, Section 17 of the Oklahoma Constitution states: "Members of the Senate shall be at least twenty-five years of age, and members of the House of Representatives twenty-one years of age at the time of their election. They shall be qualified electors in their respective counties or districts and shall reside in their respective counties or districts during their term of office."
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ This calculation excludes chambers that had elections where two or more members were elected in a race. These chambers are the Arizona House, the New Hampshire House, the North Dakota House, the South Dakota House, the Vermont House, the Vermont Senate, and the West Virginia House.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 followthemoney.org, "Contributions to candidates and committees in elections in Oklahoma," accessed July 28, 2015
- ↑ This map relies on data collected in July 2015.
