By Constitution Staff

Mary Fallin's decision to run for governor has spurred a flood of Republican candidates to fill the open seat. The GOP has held the Fifth District seat since Mickey Edwards was elected in 1974, so the winner of the Republican nomination will likely be the next congressman. The central Oklahoma district covers most of Oklahoma County and also Pottawatomie and Seminole counties.

Following Fallin's announcement for governor, former state Rep. Kevin Calvey quickly became an announced candidate. Calvey served from 1998-2006 in the Oklahoma Legislature where he earned a 78% cumulative Conservative Index rating, and scored a 100 percent rating in 2006. He was a candidate in the crowded Republican primary in 2006, when Fallin won the seat. Calvey left politics following the election and volunteered to deploy with the Army National Guard to Iraq. Calvey's mission was to prosecute terrorists in the Iraqi court system, for which he was awarded the Bronze Star Medal.

Calvey has benefitted from the support of many conservative groups, including the Club for Growth, the nation's premier fiscal conservative advocacy group which helped propel Dr. Tom Coburn to victory in the US Senate primary over establishment candidate Kirk Humphreys six years ago. Calvey has also been endorsed by the Oklahoma Rifle Association, the state's NRA affiliate, and by the president of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, a leading advocate for border security and enforcement of immigration laws, and Concerned Women for America, a nationwide group which advocates for the right to life and other social conservative issues.

In March, Calvey won the endorsement of the Oklahoma Political Action Committee (OCPAC). The six Republican candidates interviewed by the OCPAC members before voting for the endorcement. While every candidate received some votes, Calvey won the endorsement with a majority of the vote on the first ballot.

Calvey opposed the passage of the national health care bill and pledges to work to repeal ObamaCare when elected to Congress. After the bill became law, Calvey was joined by other business, political and religious leader in the filing of a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the health care law.

State Rep. Mike Thompson of Oklahoma City, served as an aide to Congressman Ernest Istook when he held the seat before Fallin, and is now in the commercial real estate business. He was first elected to the Oklahoma House in 2004 and has a 76% score on the Conservative Index. Thompson is the author of one of the bills in the Legislature ( SJR 59) to allow Oklahoma to opt out of ObamaCare, and pledges to work to repeal ObamaCare when elected to Congress.

Liberal State Rep. Shane Jett of Tecumseh is the latest Republican to enter the race. First elected to the Oklahoma House in 2004, he has only a 45% score on the Conservative Index. Jett joined the Naval Reserve last year and is reportedly scheduled for a year of full-time service. If elected to Congress, he would not have to report to active duty, but if he were reelected to his legislative seat, he would probably be called to active duty around the first of next year and would then have to resign his legislative seat. Jett has been a vocal opponent of legislation to crack down on illegal immigrants. His association with the controversial Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)drawn criticism. Jett was at CAIR's 2008 annual dinner and was in attendance at its Anti-Airport Profiling townhall meeting this past January.

Edmond Republican James Lankford, 41, has been the Director the Falls Creek Oklahoma Youth Camp since 1996. Falls Creek is the largest Christian youth camp in America with over 50,000 students and adults attending each summer. Lankford has also been an adjunct professor at Oklahoma Baptist University and has coordinated church mission teams around the world. Lankford has never run for public office before, but has support from some prominent Southern Baptists, the state's largest Christian denomination.

Dr. Johnny B. Roy, an Edmond urologist who also made the race in 2006, is running again. Born in Bagdad, Iraq, Roy is the son of a British soldier who married an Iraqi. He immigrated legally into the United States over 40 years ago and says that those who enter this country illegally should be returned to the contry of origin.

Rick Flanigan is running as a constitutional conservative. Flanigan graduated from Del City High School in 1987 and joined the Navy in 1988 and served as a damage controlman. He left the Navy in 1990 and returned to Oklahoma. Since 1996, he and his wife have owned and operated a retail battery store in Bethany, Oklahoma. He has never run for public office before.

The results from the first independent scientific poll in the Republican race was released in March. Soonerpoll.com, showed Calvey leading the race, with more than two-to-one lead over Thompson, his closest challenger. But, sixty-three percent of those questioned by the Oklahoma City pollster, said they don't know whom they will vote for in the primary. Calvey polled 20 percent, Thompson 9 percent and Lankford, 7 percent. Dr. Johnny Roy and Rick Flanigan each received about 1 percent. Jett announced his candidacy after the poll was taken.

Voters will have a couple of independent choices on the ballot in November. Oklahoma Libertarian Party Vice Chair Clark Duffe announced that he is running for the seat. Duffe, 52, of Edmond, will have to run as an Independent, due to Oklahoma's stringent ballot access laws which make it difficult for third parties to become officially recognized by the state. Another independent in the race is Dave White, an inventor, entrepreneur, and former Navy SEAL.

For a time, it looked like the Democrats may not have a candidate. But two have now stepped forward. Tom Guild ,55, taught political science and legal studies at the University of Central Oklahoma for 27 years and for three years at Oklahoma City University. He was elected secretary of the Oklahoma County Democratic Party last year. Years ago, when he was a registered Republican, Guild made three races for a seat on the Corporation Commission, but lost in the Republican primary the last two times, the last time to Commissioner Bob Anthony in 1988. He claimed to be a conservative back then, even putting "Reagan/Guild" on his campaign signs, and leading a conservative organization. Back then, he blasted Henry Bellmon as too liberal. Now, he says the other party (the Republican Party) has "routinely opposed meaningful changes." Many have wondered what caused Guild to change his political philosophy, but the important thing is that he is now a liberal Democrat.

Guild supports the nationalization of health care which recently passed Congress. He does, however, oppose the Obama Administration's efforts to create a cap-and-trade system for carbon emisions.

The other Democrat in the race is Oklahoma City attorney Billy Coyle. Coyle, 35, joined the U.S. Marine Corps after graduating high school in Florida. He received a bachelor's degree from Florida State University in 1998 and a law degree from the University of Oklahoma in 2003. He has not run for public office before. Coyle said that he wants to stand up and "fight for the little guy," saying that he is tired of big corporations "ruining our lives." He supports natural gas and wind power.

The quarterly campaign contribution and spending reports filed with the Federal Election Commission show this has become a multi-million dollar race. For the reporting period ending March 31, 2010, Calvey had total receipts of $763,377 with $561,098 in available cash-on-hand. The next closest candidate was Thompson who reported total receipts of $721,121 and $429,274 in available cash-on-hand. Lankford was third in the fundraising contest with total receipts of $234,556 and $85,294 on hand. Roy had raised $94,315 and had $91,815 remaining. Jett has raised $9,850. Flanigan reported receipts of $3,118 and had $1,088 unspent. No information was reported for Guild, Coyle, Duffe, and White.

The candidate filing period will be June 7-8-9. The Primary Election will be held on July 27, the Runoff Primary Election, where needed, will be on August 24. The General Election will be on November 2.