Rep. Markwayne Mullin (R-OK) on Tuesday evening advanced to Oklahoma’s Republican Senate primary runoff on August 23 to replace retiring Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK).
Mullin reached the runoff with about 45 percent of the vote, according to the New York Times. In second place is former Oklahoma House Speaker T.W. Shannon with 17 percent of the vote. Mullin needed to win 50 percent of the vote to avoid a runoff with Shannon, who is leading third-place finisher Nathan Dahm by about six percent or 17,000 votes.
The winner of the likely runoff will face off against Kendra Horn, who served in Congress from 2019 to 2021. Horn lost to Rep. Stephanie Bice (R-OK) in her reelection campaign in 2020 by about five percentage points or 13,000 votes. Horn had previously flipped a +11 red district to claim the seat in the 2018 midterms.
Mullin announced his campaign in February, giving up his House seat to pursue the open senate seat. Mullin is a lifetime member of the NRA and opposes abortion, according to his website. He also supports completing the southern border wall and has pledged support for the America First agenda.
“Markwayne Mullin is fighting for President Trump, and against the liberal socialist policies of Nancy Pelosi,” his website reads.
Mullin’s successful campaign concentrated on protecting the Second Amendment and fighting the culture wars. During the campaign, Mullin issued an ad, “What a woman is,” highlighting Penn State swimmer Lia Thomas and transgender athletes in American sports.
Mullin is married with six children. He is also the owner of a plumbing company.
Follow Wendell Husebø on Twitter and Gettr @WendellHusebø. He is the author of Politics of Slave Morality.