There are two Senate races in Oklahoma this year. Sen. James Inhofe (R) is running for re-election and faces minimal opposition. Sen. Tom Coburn has announced his retirement, and there is a special election for the remaining two years of his term. This is a safe Republican seat and the competitive race was in the primary.
The two frontrunners were Rep. James Lankford and former state House Speaker T.W. Shannon.
BIPAC and much of the Oklahoma business community coalesced behind Lankford with Shannon gaining support from national Tea Party groups, Sen. Ted Cruz, and others - though local tea parties had supported Lankford in the past and were split in the primary.
In what had been forecast as a close race with a likely runoff if neither candidate cleared 50% in the six candidate field, Lankford engineered a 23 point victory, avoiding a runoff with over 57% of the vote to 34% for Shannon.
House
OK-5: With Rep. James Lankford (R) seeking the open Senate seat, the 5th district had a crowded primary, with six Republicans running. As with the Senate race, no candidate received over 50% of the vote, and this race will go into a runoff on August 26.
The top two vote getters were Oklahoma Corporation Commissioner Patrice Douglas with 25% and former state Sen. Steve Russell with 27%.
This is a safe Republican district and whoever wins the runoff is likely to win the seat.