2004 United States Senate election in Oklahoma
Open-knowledge reference entry
The 2004 United States Senate election in Oklahoma took place on November 2, 2004. The election was concurrent with elections to the United States House of Representatives and the presidential election. Incumbent Senator Don Nickles decided to retire instead of seeking a fifth term. Fellow Republican Tom Coburn won the open seat. This was the last open-seat Oklahoma U.S. Senate race until 2026, and the last election for this seat in which the Republican nominee did not win every county.
Democratic primary
Candidates
Brad Carson, U.S. representative
Carroll Fisher, Oklahoma insurance commissioner
Monte E. Johnson, attorney
Jim Rogers, perennial candidate
W. B. G. Woodson
Polling
Results
Republican primary
Candidates
Bob Anthony, Oklahoma corporation commissioner
Tom Coburn, former U.S. representative
Kirk Humphreys, former mayor of Oklahoma City
Jay Richard Hunt, activist
Campaign
Humphreys, the former mayor of Oklahoma City, ran for the United States Senate with institutional conservative support, namely from Senators Don Nickles and Jim Inhofe, as well as former Congressman J. C. Watts. However, Coburn received support from the Club for Growth and conservative activists within Oklahoma. Humphreys noted, "[Coburn is] kind of a cult hero in the conservative portion of our party, not just in Oklahoma. You can't get right of the guy." Much of Coburn's celebrity within the Republican Party came from his tenure in Congress, where he battled House Speaker Newt Gingrich, who he argued was moving the party to the center of the political spectrum due to their excessive federal spending. Coburn's maverick nature culminated itself in 2000 when he backed conservative activist Alan Keyes for President rather than George W. Bush or John McCain.
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