Bolstered by a big turnout of GOP voters on Election Day, state Sen. Stephanie Bice returned Oklahoma’s 5th Congressional District to Republican control, narrowly defeating incumbent Democrat Kendra Horn in the state’s most competitive federal race.
In unofficial results, Bice won with 52% of the vote to Horn’s 48%. The race was too close to call for much of Tuesday night, with Bice claiming victory about 10:45 p.m. shortly after she took the lead in overall votes. She credited her volunteers with getting out the vote, calling them the “Bice Storm,” after a week of power outages and ice damage across much of the congressional district.
“One of the reasons I ran for Oklahoma Senate six years ago is because I wanted to make a difference for my daughters and your children and grandchildren as well,” Bice said at the Oklahoma County GOP watch party in Edmond. “Part of this is really for them, to make sure that Oklahoma is the best place it can possibly be for them in the future. I am thrilled that once again Oklahoma on the federal level is 100% red.”
Horn later spoke to her supporters at the Tower Theatre in Oklahoma City, saying progress still has to be made on health care and education in the state.
“While tonight’s results aren’t what we want them to be, we have to remember that the fight is not over,” Horn said. “This seat does not belong to a party. It belongs to the people of Oklahoma. It belongs to us, and the only way that we change things is to keep going. When we fall down, we get back up.”
View our interactive map to view precinct results. (Jesse Howe/For Oklahoma Watch)
Horn, who pulled off an upset to take the seat in 2018, had a commanding lead in absentee mail votes and a narrow lead in early voting. But it wasn’t enough to overcome a strong turnout of Election Day GOP voters in Oklahoma, Pottawatomie and Seminole counties.
Horn narrowly won the district’s Oklahoma County precincts with 50.4% of those votes, but she failed to win a single precinct in the more rural Pottawatomie or Seminole counties. Bice dominated precincts making up her state Senate district and precincts in Edmond, Choctaw and Harrah. Horn took most of the Oklahoma City precincts, including the southside, central core and the northeast side.
In the weeks leading up to Election Day, voters in the district were bombarded by commercials on the airwaves and online, giving many voters a rare taste of what it’s like to experience a competitive congressional race. Before Horn won in 2018, the district had been reliably Republican for a generation.
Much of the commercials and campaign mailers were paid for by outside groups. More than $16 million has been spent on the race by PACs and SuperPACs, according to the latest data from the Center for Responsive Politics. The Horn campaign raised more than $5.4 million in the election cycle. Bice, who had to win an August runoff with businesswoman Terry Neese, reported raising more than $3 million.
What Lawmakers Did and Didn’t Do for Voters and Election Officials
Incremental changes, including new legal protections for poll workers and other election officials, will take effect ahead of the 2024 presidential election cycle.
Long Story Short: New Social Studies Curriculum Goes For a Test Drive
Jennifer Palmer goes inside a new social studies curriculum. Keaton Ross on why Oklahoma backed out of a interstate effort to identify election fraud. Ari Fife on a plan to address childcare scarcity.
Why Oklahoma Isn’t Joining An Interstate Effort to Counter Voter Fraud
Lawmakers were high on this organization’s ability to catch fraud and boost registration. The GOP majority soured amid debunked claims of privacy violations and partisan influence.
As Presidential Elections Near, Oklahoma GOP Eyes Tighter Voting Rules
GOP-controlled legislatures in other states have pushed for similar restrictions on election funding and registration.
As Voting Turnout Dips, Young Oklahomans Risk Losing Political Influence
Less than 10% of registered voters 30 and under voted on State Question 820 last month.
When Are Voting Rights Restored in Oklahoma? Legislature Considers Clearing Up Confusion
An attorney general’s opinion issued last year settled questions on the voting rights of certain commutation recipients, but state statute remains vague on the matter.
Interactive: Precinct Map Shows Rural, Suburban Opposition to Recreational Marijuana
While pockets of support can be found in places like Muskogee and Stillwater, the vast majority of non-metro voters opposed State Question 820.
