6 Republicans, 3 Democrats in Oklahoma 5th District race

Oklahoma City (AP) — Nine candidates will square off next week for the Democratic and Republican nominations to replace Republican 5th Congressional District Rep. James Lankford, who is stepping down after two terms to run for the U.S. Senate. Here are the candidates:

DEMOCRATS

Name: Tom Guild
Age: 60
Hometown: Edmond

Background: Retired university professor who taught political science and legal studies for 27 years. He ran unsuccessfully for the 5th District in 2010 and 2012 as a Democrat. A former Republican activist, he unsuccessfully ran three times for Corporation Commissioner as a Republican.

Platform: "I'll be able to work with people of various ideologies."

Name: Leona Leonard
Age: 43
Hometown: Seminole

Background: Works as an advocate for seniors. She also works with veterans and people with disabilities.

Platform: "I'd like to do something for the people, help them out."

Name: Al McAffrey
Age: 66
Hometown: Oklahoma City

Background: U.S. Navy veteran and former Oklahoma City police officer who was first elected as a state representative in 2006. At the time, he was the first openly gay person ever elected to the Oklahoma Legislature. He was elected to the state Senate in 2012.

Platform: "I want to represent the district like I have as a senator and a state representative."

REPUBLICANS

Name: Patrice Douglas
Age: 51
Hometown: Edmond

Background: Member of the three-member Corporation Commission, which regulates public utilities and the oil and gas industry. She previously worked in her family's sheet metal business, served as president of a community bank and was elected mayor of Edmond before she took her statewide seat on the Corporation Commission.

Platform: "Jobs and debt. We have to increase one and decrease the other."

Name: Shane Jett
Age: 39
Hometown: Tecumseh

Background: Former member of the Oklahoma House who stepped down in 2010 after three terms to run unsuccessfully for the 5th District. He is an officer in the U.S. Navy Reserve who does consulting work for businesses, American Indian tribes, nonprofits and universities.

Platform: "No one's talking about what it takes to get businesses. Business development is something I focused on."

Name: Clark Jolley
Age: 43
Hometown: Edmond

Background: Chairman of the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. He was elected to the state Senate in 2004, and has twice been re-elected to his Senate seat in the conservative Oklahoma City suburb.

Platform: "I have a proven track record of doing the things that Washington needs to do."

Name: Steve Russell
Age: 51
Hometown: Oklahoma City

Background: Retired Army lieutenant colonel who served in the state Senate from 2008 to 2012 after a more than 20-year Army career that culminated with the U.S. invasion of Iraq. He wrote the book, "We Got Him," about his unit's role in the hunt for and capture of Saddam Hussein.

Platform: "Can we put a leader in Congress that is experienced, that knows how to solve problems and will put the nation before themselves?"

Name: Harvey Sparks
Age: 37
Hometown: Oklahoma City

Background: Minister who has pastored churches in Norman, Oklahoma City and Tulsa. He most recently served as a staffer for first-term U.S. Republican Rep. Jim Bridenstine of Tulsa.

Platform: "I do come at this from a ministry standpoint."

Name: Mike Turner
Age: 27
Hometown: Oklahoma City

Background: Elected to the Oklahoma House as a Republican in 2012. He holds degrees in mechanical and electrical engineering and provides technical advice to inventors and startup manufacturing companies. His family has owned a trucking company for four generations.

Platform: "They get an independent, aggressive, watchdog who will serve the constituents and not feather his nest."

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The Gayly – June 21, 2014 @ 1:10pm