Campaign 2018: It’s A Stitt Stunner
‘Blue Wave’ Fizzles in Oklahoma as GOP Maintains Dominance
By Trevor Brown, Oklahoma Watch | November 7, 2018
A Democratic “blue wave” that would upend Republican dominance over Oklahoma failed to materialize Tuesday as the state’s political makeup – with a few exceptions – saw little change after the highly anticipated midterm elections.
Kevin Stitt’s defeat of Drew Edmondson in the governor’s race clenched a Republican sweep of statewide offices, making it the third straight election cycle in which GOP candidates shut Democrats out of the executive branch.
Republicans lawmakers, meanwhile, extended their decades-long streak of picking up legislative seats as the GOP added a Senate seat and four House seats to their already substantial control over the two chambers.
“This election seems to be one of reaffirming the redness of the Oklahoma electorate,” said James Davenport, a professor of political science at Rose State College. “You’re not seeing any kind of Democratic wave. The race for governor turned into a rout, and you’re not seeing the Democrats make the kind of gains in the Legislature that they were hoping to make.”