Randy Brogdon was the only Republican challenger to Mary Fallin’s nomination for Governor in 2014. That has now changed. Brogdon sent an email to backers of his campaign yesterday announcing his intent to drop outo the the governor’s race to seek the Senate seat being vacated by current Senator Tom Coburn.
In this letter, he writes about the dilemma he faced in making the decision to switch gears at this point in the race. He had been hesitant to go to Washington, but after considering it and talking to many people, he felt that he could do more for the cause of liberty if he were in Washington.
With Randy’s departure from the governor’s race, we are left with only three candidates. Incumbent Republican Mary Fallin, Democratic Joe Dorman, and Independent Richard Prawdzienski. Of the three left, only Richard has been actively engaged in changing Oklahoma’s harsh ballot access laws.
Full text of the letter below.
Dear Friend:
In the next day or two, I will announce publicly that I have filed the necessary paperwork to run for U.S. Senate. But before I alert the media, I want you to know what led me to make this decision, and to ask you for your help to get started.
The last several weeks have produced a number of unexpected twists and turns in the political landscape in Oklahoma. After informing friends on Christmas that I was planning a run for governor in 2014, I began working to assemble a statewide campaign organization toward that end. As I was assembling my campaign team, Tom Coburn announced he was resigning from the U.S. Senate two years before the end of his term. Of course, I spoke with Senator Coburn to express my gratitude for his years of service, and to tell him I’ll be praying for his health.
Within hours of Senator Coburn’s announcement, I began receiving encouragement from supporters throughout Oklahoma to run for Tom’s seat in the U.S. Senate instead. I was hoping to have the opportunity to support Congressman Jim Bridenstine in that race, but Jim decided to stay put in his congressional seat, and I had to respect his decision. After all, Jim is doing a fantastic job in the House of Representatives.
After learning of Jim’s decision to remain in the House, I began to take the encouragement to run for Senate more seriously. I wasn’t immediately compelled to run for Senate because I have never had any personal ambition to go to Washington. After all, I love Oklahoma, and I enjoy living here with my family and friends.
I know the greatest harms to our liberty and prosperity are being inflicted upon us by politicians in Washington, D.C. So that’s where some of the greatest opportunities are to fight for our freedom and our future.
As I contemplated my dilemma, someone asked me an important question. He said, “Do you want to spend the next four years trying to stand up to the overreach of the federal government from Oklahoma, or do you want to spend the next two to eight years changing it from the inside?”
That question did the trick. From that point forward, I knew what I had to do.
I traveled to Washington to visit with like-minded organizations and legislators in an effort to gather as much information as I could before making the switch official. Those meetings confirmed my thinking, as well as the desire many of my supporters had expressed, for me to run for U.S. Senate instead.
When I got back to Oklahoma, I prayed, I talked it over with my wife and family and I made up my mind to run for Senate. Since then, I’ve been working through a number of administrative tasks to transition over to a federal campaign. I’ve been “chomping at the bit” to hit the campaign trail!
Now, with your help, we’ll begin an aggressive battle to convince Oklahomans to send a fighter to Washington – – rather than just another “good guy” who’ll support the debt growth shell game perpetuated by the Republican Establishment.
While my opponents in this race will have millions of dollars in financial support from special interest groups who support more debt for America, what I have is you.
My ability to communicate with grassroots Oklahomans who know runaway debt is destroying our country will hinge largely your willingness to back my campaign.
You know you can count on me to fight against the debt in Washington. I know I can count on you to get me there to fight it.
With your help, I will work very hard to advance our shared values of fiscal responsibility, limited government and freedom from the regulatory overreach perpetuated by Washington, D.C. There are a variety of ways you’ll be able to help. But right now, I’m working to build the war chest I’ll need to run radio and television ads throughout Oklahoma, especially in the final weeks of the campaign. I must have the money to run those ads, so I simply have to have your help.
Would you please click here to make a generous contribution of $25, $50, $100 or even $1,000 toward my campaign? I need your help today because the special primary election is only weeks away. I appreciate any amount of support your can provide.
Along with making a contribution, please follow me on Twitter @RandyBrogdon and “like” my campaign page on Facebook at Facebook.com/RandyBrogdon.
Let’s work together so I can join Senators Ted Cruz, Mike Lee and others fighting for our freedoms in Washington. You will be a big reason I was able to get there. Thank you in advance for your generous support!
Yours for Liberty,
Randy Brogdon
I still have to wonder if there was some sort of backroom deal made here. Was there some sort of promise made to him, possibly by someone within the Fallin camp, or somebody else within the Republican Party, to keep Mary from having to run in a primary? Seems awfully convenient for him to just switch gears like this.
Randy, send me your snail mail address as I have the speakers schedule for 2015 townhall meetings to send to you. Many thanks. Catherine White