Republicans look to defend down-ballot strongholds

"Down ballot" is relatively new to the American political lexicon, but the electoral geography it describes is not. It begins somewhere south of president or governor and extends all the way down to dogcatcher.

Oklahoma's Nov. 3 down ballot includes seven of the 10 statewide elected offices: lieutenant governor, attorney general, state superintendent of public instruction, treasurer, insurance commissioner, labor commissioner and one corporation commissioner.

The other two corporation commission spots are not up for election this year, and Melissa Capps has no opponent for state auditor and inspector.

Republicans have won every every statewide election since 2010, and the political terrain remains difficult for non-GOP candidates. It requires running statewide campaigns, often on a local city council budget.

The World has already previewed two of the more high-profile down ballot races, for attorney general and state superintendent of public instruction.

Here's a summary of the others.

Lieutenant governor

Former Oklahoma Speaker of the House of Representatives T.W. Shannon has twice lost Republican primaries for the U.S. Senate, but the 48-year-old Trump administration adviser is favored here.

That is not to say personable Democrat Kelly Forbes won't come closer than a lot of people expect. Forbes, a 42-year-old Oklahoma City educator who grew up in Skiatook and Broken Arrow, has led an active campaign that seems to have resonated with the Democratic base.

The Democratic base, though, isn't enough to win a statewide election in Oklahoma.

Shannon has a lot of connections in Oklahoma politics. He worked for two congressmen representing the 4th District, J.C. Watts and Tom Cole, before election to the Oklahoma House from a Lawton district. He was the first and to date only Black speaker of the House and is also a member of the Chickasaw Nation.

Shannon has been an officer of the tribe-owned Chickasaw Community Bank and has been closely associated with several Trump enterprises, including the America First Foundation.

Trump endorsed Shannon in the Republican primary.

Forbes, who holds an Ed.D. in administration and leadership from Southern Nazarene University, is an independent consultant after years as a classroom teacher, in school administration, as a federal programs director, director of dual-language education, and an adjunct professor.

He's also been a professional entertainer.

With limited resources, Forbes has stuck to positive, in-person politics emphasizing community engagement and education. He has taken issue with Shannon for derogatory comments about public education.

He is fluent in Spanish and a director of Oklahoma City's Family Justice Center.

Indicative of Republican candidates' financial advantages in Oklahoma, Shannon's August campaign finance filing list contributions of $692,000, while Forbes listed just $56,000.

Treasurer

After Trump's endorsement of Shannon, term-limited state Auditor and Inspector Cindy Byrd shifted her campaign from lieutenant governor to treasurer and knocked out incumbent Todd Russ in the Republican primary.

Byrd, 53, won plaudits from Republicans and Democrats during her eight years running the A&I office, and some hope she will depoliticize the office of the treasurer, which under Russ had tried to exert more influence on state pension and trust fund investments.

First, though, Byrd will have to defeat Libertarian Kiefer Perry of Broken Arrow in the general election.

Perry, 37, is the Oklahoma Libertarian Party's vice chairman and could retain the Libertarians' recognized party status in Oklahoma by getting 2.5% of the general election vote. He says he wants to give voters a real alternative and promises more openness in the treasurer's office if elected.

Byrd is a certified public accountant and has been with the Auditor and Inspector's Office since 1997. She has led several high-profile audit investigations, including of Tulsa Public Schools, Epic Charter Schools and the Oklahoma Department of Health.

Perry is a retail merchandiser.

Insurance Commissioner

Rocketing premiums have turned unusual attention onto the Insurance Department, and with incumbent Glen Mulready term-limited the job of running it is up for grabs.

Republican Bob Sullivan, 41, and Democrat Craig MacIntyre, 60, both have extensive insurance experience — as insurance commissioners tend to do. One challenge for the two candidates is convincing frustrated voters that knowledge will be used to the benefit of policyholders.

Sullivan touts his time on the front lines, dealing with insurers and the insured. He says Oklahoma's insurance market is effectively uncompetitive and best addressed by attracting additional insurers.

MacIntyre's background is as an actuary, product development and compliance. He has said the market is somewhat competitive but largely controlled by three or four companies. Aggressively enforcing consumer protection laws, he said, would help balance that out.

In a recent appearance with Sullivan on OETA, MacIntyre cited Attorney General Gentner Drummond's lawsuit against State Farm.

"Oklahoma has the highest property and casualty rates in the nation," MacIntyre said during a recent OETA appearance. "The attorney general has had to step in and sue the largest property and casualty in the nation because they won't pay their claims. This isn't right, this isn't fair, and this is why I entered this race."

"I would encourage everyone to be very mindful of this office," Sullivan said during the same forum. "This is a significant role for the next four to eight years in our state's history. Particularly how it affects the affordability of insurance and kitchen table economics."

Corporation Commissioner

Perhaps no statewide office is more underappreciated than corporation commissioner. The commission regulates utility rates, oil and gas exploration and production, pipelines, telecommunications, and some aspects of transportation.

With Republican Commissioner Todd Hiett termed out, the job will go to either GOP state Rep. Brad Boles 43, or Democrat Rhonda Eastman, 54.

A Marlow businessman, Boles is leaving the Legislature after eight years. Much of his time in the House has been spent on utility issues, including spearheading legislation incentivizing large-load electric customers to build their own generation and requiring new large-load projects pay for utilities' capital costs associated with serving large-load customers.

He also supports investigating the viability of nuclear energy.

Boles' contributor list suggests he's the clear favorite of the business sector, including those interacting with the commission. His donors include Williams Cos., Halliburton, Oklahoma Energy Producers, H.F. Sinclair, OG&E, ONEOK and the Petroleum Alliance.

He's received more from his family ($28,000) than Eastman has raised altogether ($24,792).

Eastman was born in Tulsa but grew up in LeFlore County, where she still lives. She says she worked in trucking, utilities and construction before obtaining a college degree and going to work for the Oklahoma Employment Security Commission.

She's now a construction manager.

Eastman says she became interested in the Corporation Commission because of her opposition to a data center hear her grandchildren's home. She's also taken up the cause of those trying to stop a planned aluminum smelter near Inola.

"I am not against industry, or oil and gas production," Eastman says on her website. "I do take issue with companies that make billions yearly in profit off of Oklahoma's resources then leaving the mess behind. And the state and by extension the taxpayers are left to deal with it."

Boles, during a recent interim study on data centers and industrial development, suggested they could ultimately lower rates by paying for capital improvements that benefit general rate payers.

Labor Commissioner

Historically, the Labor Commissioner's main job was looking out for workers, but over the years it's grown to include such things as elevator and carnival ride inspections and licensing locksmiths.

Three names are on the ballot to replace term-limited incumbent Leslie Osborn, who was twice elected as a Republican but recently disclosed she's serving out the remainder of her second term as an independent.

The favorite is state Rep. Kevin West, R-Moore, who decided to forgo a likely sixth House term for this race. The 59-year-old Moore resident defeated fellow House Republican John Pfeiffer in the Republican runoff to make the general election.

Democrat Kevin Dawson, 65, is retired from a 43-year railroad career that included time as a locomotive engineer and in training, safety and workforce development.

Libertarian Mike Hall, 59, has a background in engineering and project management.

"In that world, there is no room for partisan rhetoric — only results, efficiency, and accountability," Hall says on his website.

West boasts extensive experience in government and in the workforce. Before winning election to the House in 2016, he'd worked in several blue-collar businesses, most notably cabinetmaking.

His platform lists rebuilding skilled trades as his No. 1 priority, followed by "standing with small businesses and local contractors."

Dawson is more of a throwback. He's been a union member for 46 years, he says, and his campaign emphasizes worker safety. His website features such quotes as "When safety rules are written in blood, enforcement is not optional" and "Nobody should be required to lose a drop of blood to earn a paycheck."

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