By Constitution Staff

While the 2024 election cycle came to an end with the General Election on November 5, there are three vacant seats in the Oklahoma Legislature to be filled. The vacancies are the result of the resignation of a senator and two representatives. Due to the timing of those resignations, voters in those legislative districts will not have representation for all or most of the upcoming legislative session.

SENATE DISTRICT 8

State Sen. Roger Thompson (R-Okemah) resigned his seat with two years remaining in his final term. Thompson was elected in 2014 and was chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee. He was replaced in that position during the budget negotiations near the end of the last legislative session. Thompson later announced that he would resign effective November 1, 2024. and would become the CEO and Executive Director of the Oklahoma Osteopathic Association. The Senate District 8 seat includes Okmulgee, Okfuskee and McIntosh counties and portions of Creek and Muskogee counties in eastern Oklahoma.

Governor Stitt set the Special Election dates to fill the remaining two years of Thompson’s term. The winner of the Special Election would need to run for reelection to a full 4-year term during the 2026 election cycle. The Primary Election will be held on Tuesday, March 4, 2025. A Runoff Primary Election, if necessary, would be held on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. The General Election was set for Tuesday, May 13, 2025.

Eight candidates filed during the January 6-8, 2025, filing period. There are six Republicans, one Democrat, and an independent competing for the seat.

Republican Candidates

Steven Baldridge, 62, of Okmulgee serves on the Okmulgee City Council and was previously the city’s mayor. He is a systems administrator for the College of the Muscogee Nation.

Hoss Durrett. 45, of Checotah operates Hosstyle Motors with locations in Muskogee and of Checotah.

Ed Jolly, 59, of Okemah is a diesel engine instructor at the Gordon Cooper Technology Center in Shawnee. He also has a diesel engine shop and a raises cattle.

Bryan Logan, 41, of Paden is a pastor at Paden Pentecostal Holiness Church, he has run a residential construction and custom carpentry business, and also raises cattle. Since 2016, he has served on the Oklahoma Construction Industries Board and is Secretary/Treasurer with the Oklahoma Building Inspectors Association. Since 2010, he has been on the Residential and Commercial Advisory Board for Gordon Cooper Technology Center.

David Nelson, 48, of Morris is a former U.S. Army Ranger helicopter pilot. He operates the Morris Tag Agency. Nelson is also president of the Morris Lions Club.

Jeff R. Ramsey, 69, of Paden is a former U.S. Marine and spent 28 years with the Oklahoma City Police Department. He then spent 13 years as a marshal in Oklahoma City. He is currently an Okemah Police Department school resource officer.

Other Candidates

On the Democratic side, Nathan Brewer, 41, of Henryetta was the only candidate to file for that party’s nomination. Brewer’s daughter was one of six murder victims in a 2023 mass murder-suicide in Henryetta, Brewer said he is running to strengthen public safety laws protecting children.

Steve Sanford, 58, of Henryetta is running as an independent. He serves on the Henryetta City Council where he also serves as vice mayor.

HOUSE DISTRICT 74

A Special Election will be held to fill the vacancy in House District 74, due to the resignation of Rep. Mark Vancuren (R-Owasso) effective January 1, 2025. Former State Rep. Lonnie Sims (R-Jenks) did not run for reelection in 2024, and instead ran for District 2 Tulsa County Commissioner. Sims won the office in the November election and the newly-elected commissioner appointed Vancuren to be his deputy commissioner, starting on January 1. Vancuren was elected to the House in 2018, the same year as Sims. In his resignation announcement, Vancuren said that his wife, Sheila Vancuren, will run for the open seat.

Governor Stitt set the candidate filing period for the Special Election for January 27- 29, 2025. The Special Election will either conclude on May 13 or June 10, depending on if the candidate field necessitates primary and runoff elections. The Primary Election(s) would be held Tuesday, April 1, 2025. The Runoff Primary Election(s) would be held Tuesday, May 13, 2025. The General Election would be held June 10, 2025. If a Primary Election is not necessary, the General Election will be held on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. If a Runoff Primary Election is not necessary, the General Election will be held on Tuesday, May 13, 2025.

HOUSE DISTRICT 71

State Rep. Monroe Nichols (D-Tulsa) did not run for reelection in 2024, and instead sucessfully ran for mayor of Tulsa. On December 12, the new Tulsa Mayor announced that Rep. Amanda Swope (D-Tulsa) would join his administration as Tulsa’s new director of Tribal Policy & Partnerships beginning on January 29, 2025. Swope is a descendant of the Osage Nation and a citizen of the Muscogee Nation where she is employed as the Director of Tribal Juvenile Justice. She was first elected to her House seat in 2022 and was reelected to a second term in 2024.

Governor Stitt has 30 days to announce a special elections once vacancies occur.