Oklahoma official's GOP primary loss shows political potency of native land issue

Kaelan Deese

July 05, 06:00 AM July 05, 06:00 AM

Oklahoma Attorney General John O'Connor knows how concerns over who has jurisdiction of native lands can swing an election.

O'Connor lost his bid for a full term as Oklahoma's top law enforcement officer on June 28 to Republican challenger Gentner Drummond, an attorney in private practice, a rancher, and an Air Force veteran. O'Connor's loss came about 11 months after being appointed state attorney general by Republican Gov. Kevin Stitt to replace an incumbent who resigned the office.

The attorney general GOP primary was one of the starkest tests yet about the political potency of an issue that the Supreme Court has wrestled with repeatedly in recent years. But it won't be the last. The issue is likely to come up repeatedly ahead of Aug. 28 GOP runoffs for an open Senate seat and an eastern Oklahoma House seat most directly affected by the Supreme Court's jurisprudence concerning tribal lands.

HIGH COURT ALLOWS OKLAHOMA TO PROSECUTE NON-NATIVE CRIMINAL OFFENDERS ON TRIBAL LANDS

The Supreme Court's 2020 decision in McGirt v. Oklahoma reinforced that much of Oklahoma was, legally, Indian country. The 5-4 ruling meant many crimes were beyond the reach of the state and its laws. Then, last week, the Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling in Oklahoma v. Castro-Huerta, reinstated a piece of Oklahoma’s pre-McGirt power over this territory by upending the law on Native American reservations throughout the country.

The rulings have roiled Oklahoma politics. And O'Connor lost his bid to keep the attorney general's office against a GOP primary rival touting himself as more pro-tribe. Drummond, who avoided a runoff by capturing just over 50% of the Republican primary vote, argued that he would fortify the state’s relationship with tribes in the wake of the McGirt decision.

Oklahoma's population has about 523,360 Native Americans, about 13.36% of the statewide population, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Drummond, in his attorney general bid, argued that Oklahomans deserve an attorney general "who will sit down with our Native brothers and sisters and work toward a solution on McGirt."

And in his victory speech on June 28, Drummond touted restoring Oklahoma's relationship "with our native friends," which drew praise from tribal leaders.

"We are pleased to see so many Oklahoma voters demonstrate they understand the importance of having an attorney general who respects tribal sovereignty," said Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma Chief Gary Batton. “We expect the next attorney general will be someone willing to engage in constructive dialogue with the Tribes as our governments work together to protect public safety and enforce the law."

Drummond, who lost a 2018 primary runoff race for the same post by just 271 votes, is expected to win his attorney general bid in November in this deep red state, as is the Republican nominee in the open-seat race to replace Sen. Jim Inhofe, who, at age 87, is leaving office in January 2023 with four years left in his six-year Senate term. The same is true for the Republican nominee in the 2nd Congressional District race to replace Rep. Markwayne Mullin, who is seeking the Senate seat. In the race for the eastern Oklahoma seat, former state Sen. Josh Brecheen faces state Rep. Avery Frix for the GOP nomination.

In the Senate contest, Mullin, a member of the Cherokee Nation, faces former state House Speaker T.W. Shannon, a member of the Chickasaw Nation.

Mullin, in a May interview with the Washington Examiner, said that as a House member since 2013, he has spoken with tribal officials "hundreds of times" about their concerns.

"And what they'll tell you is that 'Well, we have an open-door policy,' but no one's walking through the door. So someone's going to have to extend that olive branch," Mullin said in an interview on May 12.

Shannon, too, told the Washington Examiner in May that Native American concerns would be a big part of his job as a federal legislator.

"Oklahoma has a great heritage that involves Native Americans, and we have a great history of working and compacting and finding solutions," Shannon said.

OKLAHOMA SENATE REPUBLICAN FIGHT HEADS TO RUNOFF BETWEEN MULLIN AND SHANNON

In both the Senate and House Republican runoffs, candidates know the Native American vote can be crucial to winning. It's a political lesson O'Connor found out the hard way in his bid for a full term as Oklahoma attorney general. Drummond's victory could be attributed to his support in rural counties, particularly in eastern Oklahoma, despite O'Connor's support from voters in two of the state's largest counties.

"Vote against politicians who consider tribal sovereignty a 'threat,'" Cherokee Nation Principal Chief Chuck Hoskin Jr. argued in a late May op-ed.