A crowded field of political hopefuls representing three parties have declared their intention to run for governor of Oklahoma eight months in front of the April 2018 filing deadline.
Six Republicans, three Democrats and three Libertarians have declared, with more potential names considering a run:
Declared Republican candidates:
• Mick Cornett, Mayor of Oklahoma City
• Gary Jones, Oklahoma State Auditor and Inspector
• Todd Lamb, Lieutenant Governor of Oklahoma
• Gary Richardson, former United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma, nominee for OK-02 in 1978 and 1980, and
independent candidate for Governor in 2002
• Dan Fisher, former Oklahoma representative
• Kevin Stitt, CEO of Gateway Mortgage Group
Declared Democratic candidates:
• Drew Edmondson, former Attorney General of Oklahoma and candidate for
• Governor in 2010
• Scott Inman, Minority Leader of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
• Connie Johnson, former State Senator and nominee for the U.S. Senate in 2014
Declared Libertarian candidates:
• Rex Lawhorn, telecommunications technician
• Joe Moldonado (aka Joe Exotic), zookeeper
• Chris Powell, candidate for Oklahoma County Clerk in 2016
The Libertarian candidate will be included on the general election ballot due to Gary Johnson’s showing in the 2017 presidential election. This will be the first time since 1998 that the third party’s candidate will be secured a place on the final ballot.
Voting in the 2018 election will be held in June for the primaries and on November 6, 2018, for the general election.
