While Oklahoma has been solid red for decades, the possibility of Hillary Clinton as the Democrat Nominee in 2016 should give Oklahoma Democrats a ray of hope. Not that she could turn OK blue necessarily, but instead simply not being a drag for Democratic State House and Senate candidates.
In 2008, Hillary easily won the multi-way Democratic presidential preference primary race in Oklahoma with over 228,000 votes and 55% of the vote. The Clinton brand is still popular among conservative Democrats in rural Oklahoma (a place Obama is not) and she would certainly prove popular in the growing progressive pockets around Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
It’s something Oklahoma Republicans should watch closely as the Hillary 2016 talk heats up. The pendulum can swing back quickly, even in the reddest of the red, and the OKGOP should take note.
Major Democratic donors sign on to help Hillary Clinton in 2016
Washington Post
Philip Rucker, May 28, 2013
Hillary Clinton may be far from making a decision about another presidential campaign, but three heavyweight Democratic fundraisers have signed on to help raise money for the Clinton-for-president cause.
Susie Tompkins Buell, a San Francisco philanthropist and co-founder of the Esprit clothing line, and Steve and Amber Mostyn, Houston trial lawyers who helped bankroll a pro-Obama super PAC last year, are leading the fundraising efforts Ready for Hillary.
The pro-Clinton super PAC launched its National Finance Council on Tuesday and named Buell and the Mostyns founding members. Ready for Hillary, begun earlier this year by Clinton supporters, is urging the former secretary of state and first lady to run for president in 2016, and is trying to assemble a grassroots coalition on her behalf.
“Ready for Hillary is the wisest investment right now for anyone who wants Hillary Clinton to be the next president,” Buell said in a statement. “Its founders are innovative and dedicated; they are building a massive grassroots movement of Hillary supporters across all 50 states to show Hillary how ready the nation is for her to be president.”
Hillary Could Make OK Dem’s Competitive in 2016