Oklahoma’s Tulsa-based 1st District at first glance does not look like fertile territory for a Democrat to challenge an entrenched Republican incumbent; its PVI is a deep red R+12.7, and it went to Bush by the lopsided margin of 65-35 in 2004. Its incumbent, Rep. John Sullivan, has won by comfortable margins But earlier this month, one Democrat with a pocketful of dreams and a fistful of dollars stepped up to try her hand at the district:
The latest wealthy, long-shot Democrat to promise an upset is Tulsa technology company CEO Georgianna Oliver, who is vowing to oust Rep. John Sullivan (R-Okla.) in the overwhelmingly conservative 1st district by perhaps spending in excess of $1 million of her own money.
“All I can tell you is what she told me, and that is that the money will be there. So I believe she has a very strong commitment,” said Don Hoover, Oliver’s media consultant.
So what’s the plan? Running to the right, of course:
Oliver’s plan, according to a memo her campaign prepared to explain how she can beat Sullivan, is to run as a “conservative” Democrat. She was a House aide for then-Rep. Bill Brewster (D-Okla.) and has been active with the Tulsa League of Women Voters, although this is her first run for political office.
Oliver bases her viability largely on the fact that Sullivan has had minimal competition since winning the 1st district in a 2002 special election, and on the strong performance of Democrats who have won the seat in their bids for state office. In 2006, Gov. Brad Henry (D) won the district with 61 percent of the vote.
Democratic candidates for state attorney general, state treasurer and state school superintendent also won the district that year.
It’ll be a tough row to hoe in a district where Republicans outnumber Democrats by 42,585 voters, and one where no Democrat has been elected to the House since James Robert Jones’ final term in 1984. But if Oliver intends to self-fund her race, she won’t have to contend with the Millionaire’s Amendment any longer.
Any Democrat stepping up to challenge an entrenched incumbent is a good thing, and Oliver’s candidacy could prove helpful to Andrew Rice’s Senate campaign against Jim Inhofe. We’re seeing a lot of credible candidates step up in surprising places (TX-07, SC-01 and SC-02, to name but a few) this year, which is a great sign of something big forming.
On the web:
Georgianna Oliver for Congress
You say she will run “to the right” and that threw me off for a minute. To the right of the Repub? Crazier than crazy? More corrupt than the Culture of Corruption? Or what does that mean?
Ah, well, one second close reading, she’s going to run “as a conservative Democrat.” That’s not so bad now. Like Childers in Mississippi’s First district special election, candidates in red states need to run as conservatives. And that’s O.K. with me.
In fact, the current crop of crazy and corrupt Repubs has made a liberal like me feel downright conservative. I believe if we go to war, we should raise taxes to pay for the war. We should closely monitor private contractors and punish corruption. We should hold public officials accountable, and no one should be above the law. We should follow the Constitution and 200 years of tradition by keeping government out of religion and religion out of government, out of our bodies, and out of our bedrooms. These are among other conservative stands I personally believe in.
I wish Ms Oliver all the best of luck.
and she and Rice will be a good team. If she can be competitive in Tulsa, she has a shot and can uptick the turnout for Rice (Inhofe is from Tulsa, and not well-liked there).
And Obama will be strong in Tulsa.
that Dems are doing OK at the state level in that district (according to the excerpt: Gov, state attorney general, state treasurer and state school superintendent), but are doing terribly at the Federal level (Congress & POTUS)?
and I just told her about this. She hasn’t responded to my e-mail yet. I wonder what district she lives in…