Paul Hassink

Paul Hassink

Republican Party

Candidate, Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Elections and appointments

Next election

November 3, 2026

Education

Bachelor's

Georgia Institute of Technology, 1979

Graduate

Purdue University, 1980

Personal

Birthplace

Lake Charles, La.

Religion

Roman Catholic

Profession

Engineer, supervisor, manager, and director

Contact

Campaign website

Campaign Facebook

Campaign Twitter

Personal LinkedIn

Paul Hassink (Republican Party) is running for election to the Oklahoma House of Representatives to represent District 79. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.^[source]

Biography

Paul Hassink was born in Lake Charles, Louisiana. He earned a bachelor's degree from the Georgia Institute of Technology in 1979 and a graduate degree from Purdue University in 1980. His career experience includes working as an engineer, supervisor, manager, and director for American Electric Power Service Corp. Hassink has been a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, CIGRE, and Knights of Columbus.

Elections

2026

See also: Oklahoma House of Representatives elections, 2026

Note: At this time, Ballotpedia is combining all declared candidates for this election into one list under a general election heading. As primary election dates are published, this information will be updated to separate general election candidates from primary candidates as appropriate.

General election

The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.

General election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Paul Hassink is running in the general election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79 on November 3, 2026.

		Candidate
		Paul Hassink (R)

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	There are no incumbents in this race.
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Endorsements

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2024

See also: Oklahoma House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Incumbent Melissa Provenzano defeated Paul Hassink in the general election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79 on November 5, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Melissa Provenzano (D)	54.6	7,227
		Paul Hassink (R)	45.4	6,015

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 13,242
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Melissa Provenzano advanced from the Democratic primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Paul Hassink defeated Jenifer Stevens in the Republican primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79 on June 18, 2024.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Paul Hassink	73.7	1,208
		Jenifer Stevens	26.3	430

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 1,638
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Hassink in this election.

Pledges

Hassink signed the following pledges.

• U.S. Term Limits

2022

See also: Oklahoma House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Incumbent Melissa Provenzano defeated Paul Hassink in the general election for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Melissa Provenzano (D)	51.8	5,496
		Paul Hassink (R)	48.2	5,104

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 10,600
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Melissa Provenzano advanced from the Democratic primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

Paul Hassink defeated Karen Gilbert and Stan Stevens in the Republican primary for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79 on June 28, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Paul Hassink	52.1	1,552
		Karen Gilbert	38.2	1,137
		Stan Stevens	9.7	288

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 2,977
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Paul Hassink has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. If you are Paul Hassink, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

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You can ask Paul Hassink to fill out this survey by using the button below.

2024

Paul Hassink did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Paul Hassink completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hassink's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.

Expand all | Collapse all

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

As an Experienced Businessman and Lifelong Conservative, I am running for Oklahoma Representative of House District 79 so that people in our district will have a grounded conservative to represent them in the legislature. Born of Immigrants, who lived through the WWII occupation of the Netherlands, I have a true appreciation of how blessed we are in the US. With over 40 years of business, managerial, regulatory, and engineering experience, I can make a difference for our district in the Legislature. I am a strong consensus builder and I am well prepared to pull together the resources necessary to enact the beneficial common sense conservative legislation we deserve.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

• As an experienced businessman, I understand the how to build a strong economy that supports education, jobs, and infrastructure. We need to implement common sense solutions and not unproven theories.
• As a lifelong Christian, I am grounded in conservative values. Voters know where I stand and constituents can be confident that I will represent their conservative values in the Legislature.
• I have lived my life based on the belief that each of us is created in the image and likeness of God. Colleagues, friends, and family have consistently endorsed me for who I am, even when we differ on policy.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

My father instilled in me the drive to always make a difference. As an engineer, I understand how to seek out the logical answer by addressing the root cause of problems. When institutions simply seek to survive, they may be willing to bypass what is right for what is expedient. Experience has taught me that standing up for what is right may come at a price. I am prepared to shine a light on real problems and find people willing to join the effort to bring forth actual solutions. I am prepared to make a difference.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

In a world that has accepted socialism, my father had the foresight to see where it would lead. For that reason, he left the Netherlands post-WWII, as socialism was taking over his country. He took my mother and my two older siblings to the US to seek freedom and opportunity. It was very difficult to leave their family and a well-paying job in the Dutch government to start over in the US. I was born four years after they arrived in Lake Charles, LA. He worked two jobs so that we could attend parochial school which nurtured our faith. My siblings and I were afforded the opportunity to work in our chosen fields and grow up in a truly Christian culture. Through my parent’s sacrifice, I learned the importance of equal opportunity and hard work.

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

Recognizing the dignity of every individual is paramount. Far too often policies are promulgated without attention to the consequences to individuals. In the interest of “getting something done” we find that there are unintended consequences that undermine the intent of the law. If legislators truly respect the dignity of every individual, laws would be fully vetted and constituents will be protected.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

As an Engineer and a Director, I have the skills to work with teams to drive decisions. By collecting information and debating the consequences of actions, teams can discern the benefits of legislation relative to the cost and impacts on constituents. Navigating challenging issues within a specific time are skills that I have developed and enhanced over my 40 year career. Legislation requires the support of many representatives, so skills that enable differing voices to be heard and common understanding to be developed are critical to common sense legislation.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Captain Jean-Luc Picard, of the Starship Enterprise, had a mastery of history. By drawing from the past to set a course for the future, he could anticipate outcomes. Those who would reject the past fail to see the great depth of understanding that builds on those who have gone before us.

What do you perceive to be your state's greatest challenges over the next decade?

Oklahoma has many great resources; the greatest of which is its citizens. With our oil and gas economy under attack by the federal government and inflation climbing rapidly, it is difficult to retain the next generation of Oklahomans as they seek opportunity in other states. If I am elected, I will focus on developing our economy with lower taxes, focusing education on students, and creating well-paid jobs, so that we can retain talent in Oklahoma.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

Absolutely, as an engineer, I recognize that bringing diverse talent together is far more successful than going it alone. My business skillset, particularly in the utility sector, will be very valuable and should position me as an asset to many legislators.

Should the legislature oversee or grant the use of emergency powers?

Emergency powers are very easy to abuse, as we have seen just across the border in Canada. The three way balance of power in government, legislative-executive-judicial, is undermined if executive power goes unchecked. Even in the most recent pandemic, hindsight shows that overreaction and lack of thoughtful action have led to poor decisions in many states.

Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.

Campaign finance summary

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Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

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Paul Hassink campaign contribution history

Year	Office	Status	Contributions	Expenditures
2024*	Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79	Lost general	$64,429	$67,491
2022	Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79	Lost general	$90,880	$87,463
Grand total			$155,309	$154,955
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
* Data from this year may not be complete

See also

2026 Elections

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Candidate

Oklahoma House of Representatives District 79

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Footnotes

[show]

Current members of the Oklahoma House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:Kyle Hilbert

Majority Leader:Mark Lawson

Representatives

District 1

Eddy Dempsey (R)

District 2

Jim Olsen (R)

District 3

Rick West (R)

District 4

Bob Culver (R)

District 5

Josh West (R)

District 6

Rusty Cornwell (R)

District 7

Steve Bashore (R)

District 8

Tom Gann (R)

District 9

Mark Lepak (R)

District 10

Judd Strom (R)

District 11

John Kane (R)

District 12

Mark Chapman (R)

District 13

Neil Hays (R)

District 14

Chris Sneed (R)

District 15

Tim Turner (R)

District 16

Scott Fetgatter (R)

District 17

Jim Grego (R)

District 18

David Smith (R)

District 19

Justin Humphrey (R)

District 20

Jonathan Wilk (R)

District 21

Cody Maynard (R)

District 22

Ryan Eaves (R)

District 23

Derrick Hildebrant (R)

District 24

Chris Banning (R)

District 25

Ronny Johns (R)

District 26

Dell Kerbs (R)

District 27

Danny Sterling (R)

District 28

Danny Williams (R)

District 29

Kyle Hilbert (R)

District 30

Mark Lawson (R)

District 31

Collin Duel (R)

District 32

Jim Shaw (R)

District 33

Molly Jenkins (R)

District 34

Trish Ranson (D)

District 35

Ty Burns (R)

District 36

John George (R)

District 37

Ken Luttrell (R)

District 38

John Pfeiffer (R)

District 39

Erick Harris (R)

District 40

Chad Caldwell (R)

District 41

Denise Hader (R)

District 42

Cynthia Roe (R)

District 43

Jay Steagall (R)

District 44

Jared Deck (D)

District 45

Annie Menz (D)

District 46

Jacob Rosecrants (D)

District 47

Brian Hill (R)

District 48

Tammy Townley (R)

District 49

Josh Cantrell (R)

District 50

Stacy Adams (R)

District 51

Brad Boles (R)

District 52

Gerrid Kendrix (R)

District 53

Jason Blair (R)

District 54

Kevin West (R)

District 55

Nick Archer (R)

District 56

Dick Lowe (R)

District 57

Anthony Moore (R)

District 58

Carl Newton (R)

District 59

Mike Dobrinski (R)

District 60

Mike Kelley (R)

District 61

Kenton Patzkowsky (R)

District 62

Daniel Pae (R)

District 63

Hurchel Caldwell (R)

District 64

Rande Worthen (R)

District 65

Toni Hasenbeck (R)

District 66

Clay Staires (R)

District 67

Rob Hall (R)

District 68

Mike Lay (R)

District 69

Mark Tedford (R)

District 70

Suzanne Schreiber (D)

District 71

Amanda Clinton (D)

District 72

Michelle McCane (D)

District 73

Ron Stewart (D)

District 74

Kevin Norwood (R)

District 75

T. Marti (R)

District 76

Ross Ford (R)

District 77

John Waldron (D)

District 78

Meloyde Blancett (D)

District 79

Melissa Provenzano (D)

District 80

Stan May (R)

District 81

Mike Osburn (R)

District 82

Nicole Miller (R)

District 83

Eric Roberts (R)

District 84

Tammy West (R)

District 85

Cyndi Munson (D)

District 86

David Hardin (R)

District 87

Ellyn Hefner (D)

District 88

Ellen Pogemiller (D)

District 89

Arturo Alonso-Sandoval (D)

District 90

Emily Gise (R)

District 91

Chris Kannady (R)

District 92

Forrest Bennett (D)

District 93

Mickey Dollens (D)

District 94

Andy Fugate (D)

District 95

Max Wolfley (R)

District 96

Preston Stinson (R)

District 97

Aletia Haynes Timmons (D)

District 98

Gabe Woolley (R)

District 99

Ajay Pittman (D)

District 100

Marilyn Stark (R)

District 101

Robert Manger (R)

Republican Party (81)

Democratic Party (20)