J.C. Watts may run for governor in Oklahoma
For several months now, there has been speculation that former Oklahoma Congressman J.C. Watts would be running for the Republican nominee for Oklahoma governor. Several people said it looked like he was in campaign mode when showed up at the Oklahoma Republican State Convention on April 18. From NewsOK:
“I’m just being open to listening to old and trusted friends who understand Oklahoma values and understand my values and understand who we are as a Republican Party and where we want to go with the party,” said Watts, a former star quarterback at the University of Oklahoma and the first black elected to a statewide office in Oklahoma. “I think I can draw that conclusion over the next four or five weeks.”
If he chooses to run, J.C. Watts will be the third Republican to announce for the race, along with U.S. Rep. Mary Fallin from Oklahoma City and State Senator Randy Brogdon from Owasso.
Originally from Eufaula, Oklahoma, J.C. Watts was a star quarterback for the University of Oklahoma and after graduating from college and playing in the Canadian Football League until 1986, he was elected to the Oklahoma Corporation Commission in 1990. This made him the first African-American to be elected to statewide office in Oklahoma. He ran for Congress in 1994 and was reelected for three subsequent terms, winning by ever increasing vote margins. While in Congress, Watts was a dedicated conservative and there are those who will tell you he declined to run for reelection in 2002 because he felt the Republican Party was off message and had strayed from the principles he stood for. During the 2008 presidential race, Watts caught some flak for his consideration of Barack Obama for President. Although I don’t think he actually voted for Obama, I think I can understand how his frustration with the Republican Party could have led him to do so, especially considering the fact that Obama is our first African-American President.
As an Oklahoman and a Republican, I have yet to decide who I will support for Governor in 2010, but I hope I can research each candidate and come to a conclusion. If you read my blog and you are from Oklahoma as well, maybe we can come to this decision together, even if we choose different candidates. What are your thoughts?
I thought a Huckabee/Watts ticket for the Presidency would have been fantastic. I’d like to see JC run for Governor and step back into the political spotlight. Being a Governor would only increase Watts’ later political equity.
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Kerry,
As I said in the article, I haven’t decided who I will support, but I do hope Watts runs. If nothing else, it will put the Oklahoma governor’s race in the national spotlight. I do think he would make a credible candidate.
Yes, I think a Huckabee/Watts ticket would be great also.
Here’s a post from Mike McCarville regarding the report that J.C. was supporting Obama… and here’s the response J.C. sent out later that day after the AP article broke. So, to clear things up, J.C. Watts did not support Obama.
I’m supporting State Sen. Randy Brogdon for Governor, in the primary. However, I do realize that the likelihood of a Brogdon victory over Mary Fallin and J.C. Watts is slim. Any one of the candidates will make a great governor, and there are many pluses to all three of them. Rumor has it that a really big name in Oklahoma Republican politics is pushing J.C. to run…
A Governor J.C. Watts would be a great spokesman for the Republican Party and conservatism in general, and a good counter-balance to Barack Obama.
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My first inclination is to support Watts, but I need to do some research on the other two candidates and see what I come up with. As you said, it sounds like all three of them would make a good governor. I am afraid however, that it will be hard to compete with the money Drew Edmondson has already raised.
Educate me, who’s Drew Edmondson?
OneMom’s last blog post..Update to Friday Flyer
Drew Edmondson is our current Attorney General in Oklahoma and has been since 1994. He is a Democrat who has a long history in Oklahoma politics, both personally and from his family. He has a lot of name recognition and he will be hard to beat.
Drew Edmondson is a liberal Democrat from, as Larry said, one of the major political families in Oklahoma.
I personally feel that Drew Edmondson will fall to Jari Askins in the Democrat primary. I would prefer facing Edmondson in the general – he’s not as well liked, and there’s much more baggage with him than with Askins.
McCarville reports that <a href=’http://wwwtmrcom.blogspot.com/2009/05/attorneys-fuel-edmondson-campaign.html’<Mary Fallin is raising more money per day than any of the candidates in the field.
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