(Update: On Tuesday, June 16, GOP candidates George Phipps and Chris White advanced to an Aug. 25 runoff election.)
Four Republicans are running in the June 16 primary for the open House District 1 seat in far southeast Oklahoma after Rep. Eddy Dempsey (R-Valliant) announced he would not seek reelection in December.
Austin Loard, George Phipps, Wes Watson and Chris White filed for the open HD 1 seat, each bringing their own ideas on how to better their rural district.
HD 1 covers all of McCurtain County and the southern portions of LeFlore County in southeast Oklahoma. The district represents the communities of Broken Bow, Eagleton, Haworth, Hochatown, Idabel, Talihina, Valliant and Wright City. HD 1 is wholly located within the Choctaw Nation Reservation.
If none of the candidates receives a majority of the June 16 primary vote, the top two finishers will face each other in an Aug. 25 runoff election. The winner of the Republican primary will win the seat because Idabel Democrat Kurt Reisdorf withdrew his candidacy on April 27.
All four candidates participated in a May 26 forum hosted by the McCurtain County Republican Party.
The following cheat sheet offers an overview of the HD 1 Republican candidates based on information from publicly available sources, such as the forum, websites, social media pages and other online resources. Candidates are presented in alphabetical order.
Austin Loard
Age: 27
Profession/background: According to his campaign announcement on Facebook, Austin Loard is a former paraprofessional and classroom teacher at Idabel High School, where he also helped coach football, baseball and powerlifting.
Platform: In terms of education, Loard has laid out five changes he would like to see from his experiences to help eliminate struggles inside the classroom, including a return to teaching the basics, such as phonics-based reading at a young age, and only using technology to enhance learning and not replace teacher-led instruction.
“Our kids deserve serious leadership from people who actually understand schools — not superficial sound bites from someone looking for a Facebook like,” Loard said in a post criticizing an unnamed opponent for not knowing the definition of an individualized education program, or “IEP.”
He also says his platform is centered around transparency.
“The issues and solutions that I stand for are practical and achievable and are not just said to get your vote,” Loard said. “My educational background is in political science, and I understand exactly how a government functions and what needs to be done for legislation to be passed.”
During the forum, Loard emphasized his experience as an educator.
“Working with the education system, I get to work with all kinds of people every day. I get to see the walk of life that everyone faces everyday, so it’s really strengthened my relationship with people,” he said. “How do we actually get things done, how do we work in a group for the greater good.”
Links: Facebook
George Phipps
Age: 56
Profession/background: According to his website, George Phipps is a lifelong farmer and rancher who owns and operates Ferguson Cattle Equipment in Ringold. He is also a volunteer firefighter for Ringold who serves on the department’s board, as well as on the county fair board.
Platform: On his website, Phipps lists six priorities, including property tax relief, stronger schools, supporting farmers and ranchers, law and order, defending Oklahoma values, and America First leadership. On Facebook, he has also noted that libraries matter.
“They serve our kids, our families, and our communities every single day,” Phipps said. “While I support reducing the burden of property taxes on Oklahoma families, I also believe we have a responsibility to protect essential services like our libraries. We can do both and we should.”
Phipps also said he believes in tribal sovereignty and that the state is better when Oklahoma’s leaders work with tribal leaders.
“This state was theirs first, and our tribes continue to do great things for Oklahoma’s economy, health care, schools, and local communities,” he wrote on Facebook. “Tribal partnerships help support and strengthen many areas across our state, especially in rural Oklahoma.”
In the forum, Phipps said agriculture makes the state of Oklahoma run, and he said his ability to understand people qualifies him to serve in the Legislature.
“I have been really high in life, as far as things have gone good, I’ve been really low in life, as far as things going really bad,” Phipps said. “You have to experience both of those. You have to know what people go through to understand people, and I truly believe that I can understand people.”
Wes Watson
Age: 68
Profession/Occupation: According to the Poteau Daily News, Wes Watson is a former superintendent of Red Oak Public Schools and a lifelong educator.
Platform: According to his website, Watson said he “has a plan for success” and pledged to return his entire salary to the people of HD 1 “to address our local needs.” He said he has refused to accept campaign donations.
On his Facebook, Watson said he is “the proven grant writer,” with the Poteau Daily News stating he recommended people searching the Federal Records Registry for grants that fit their area.
“We want the best for SE Oklahoma! But let’s be honest: the local budget only goes so far,” he wrote. “To get the big things done without the heavy tax burden, we have to go after the money that’s already out there. We have to look for grants.”
During the forum, he said his “primary focus is for the people.”
“We’ve got a lot of things that’s coming up against them, but together we can get over there and achieve them,” Watson said. “By myself I can do nothing, and I tell you that up front. But together we can make a difference.”
Chris White
Age: 34
Profession/Occupation: According to his interview with radio station KKBI, Chris White is a former county commissioner for McCurtain County.
Platform: White is endorsed by Make Oklahoma Healthy Again PAC, and on May 22, he announced on Facebook his endorsement by the Oklahoma 2nd Amendment Association.
“It is a fundamental truth that the most important thing standing between the people and the government is the right to bear arms,” White said in the post announcing his endorsement. “Our founding fathers knew this, and so do I. I’m thankful for the endorsement and stand ready to vote to defend our gun rights here in Oklahoma.”
White also supports tribal sovereignty and working together with the Choctaw Nation to better HD 1.
“I don’t have a problem working with our tribes. I want to partner with them. I want to see us have game and fish compacts with them that work well. I don’t want to see us at war with them over things like that,” he wrote. “We have an opportunity to make our state greater, and we have a good partner in our 39 tribes.”
At the forum, White delivered an opening statement that outlined a litany of concerns.
“For too long in our state’s capitol, we have had a small group of leaders from urban Oklahoma who have made most of the decisions for rural Oklahoma without any regard to the effect that they’ve had on our lifestyle here in southeast Oklahoma. We have increasing taxes, deteriorating infrastructure, a failing education system, failing services statewide, and overall, an attitude by the people that’s not too fond or favorable of our state government anymore,” White said. “We’ve seen corporations move into Oklahoma, promise to put people to work and then leave us with the bag holding the bill. We’ve had promise after promise on our education system that’s yet to come through. We keep throwing money at problems that never seem to get better. The only thing that gets bigger or better is the amount of money that they spend on them.”
Links: Facebook
