There are three declared candidates to become the next state representative from Oklahoma House of Representatives District 44. All three are democrats, and all three are OU students.
Matthew Hecox, Isaiah McCaslin and Emily Virgin will be splitting time between the classroom and the campaign trail during the coming semester as they look to replace state Rep. Bill Nations (D-Norman), who cannot stand for re-election because he is term limited.
“I probably won’t have much of a personal life, but that’s OK,” said Virgin, first-year law student.
AGE — NOTHING BUT A NUMBER
McCaslin, public policy junior, is the oldest of the trio at 25. Hecox, history senior, is 22, and Virgin is 23.
All three acknowledged their ages might be an issue for voters, especially if an older, more experienced candidate enters the race.
“I think that’s going to be something that some people question,” McCaslin said. “They’ll worry about my credibility. That’s why I’m going to be very active in getting to know the voters. My experiences so far have taught me a great many things.”
McCaslin was born in Tulsa and lived in Midwest City before moving to Los Angeles after high school to do humanitarian work there and in east Africa. He returned to Oklahoma and started taking classes part time at OU in 2004.
Since then, he’s taken time off from school to take a cycling tour to New Orleans and train for the Army Reserve. He’s also worked as an intern in the Norman City Manager’s office and served on the Norman Sustainability Network’s steering committee.
Hecox pointed out youth can be an advantage, as well.
“I’m sure people will [consider age an issue], but at the same time, a lot of great things were accomplished by young people,” he said. “Google was started by young people. Bill Gates started Microsoft when he was young. [OU President] David Boren ran for political office when he was still in law school.”
Hecox is a Norman native who graduated from Norman High School. Both of his parents were teachers in the Norman Public School district.
“I’m from Norman,” Hecox said. “I’m never going to do anything to harm this city. I’m obviously going to do everything I can to benefit not only the city, but the state. People can just go ahead and say age is a factor, that I don’t have experience. But, really, nobody I’m going to run against will have experience in the state Legislature, either.”
Virgin also grew up in Norman but lived in the Noble Public School district and graduated from Noble High School. Her grandfather is George Skinner, Cleveland County Commissioner from District 2.
“I’ve been involved in politics pretty much my whole life,” she said. “My family’s been involved in public service as long as I can remember.
“When you grow up around something, that’s what you end up loving, and it’s really just what I feel called to do. It’s my passion.”
Virgin graduated from OU last May with a bachelor’s degree in political science. She also worked as an equipment manager for the OU football team. She cited Kenneth Corn and Ryan Kiesel as examples of people who successfully ran for the Oklahoma House of Representatives while still in school at OU.
“Those guys have really set the bar high,” she said. “But they’ve shown you can do it, you can win and you can do a great job doing it.”
CHALLENGES
All three candidates will have obstacles to overcome to convince voters they are ready for the seat.
Hecox was arrested and charged with drunken driving Dec. 31 by OUPD. He would not discuss the arrest with The Daily, but did send a statement via e-mail about the incident.
“I made an out of character error in judgment by drinking and driving,” he stated. “I know this type behavior is unacceptable, not only for the office I am seeking, but as a community member in Norman. I am currently dealing with this issue, and I truly appreciate the support from my family, friends and the community of Norman.”
In his statement, he also said he believed he was the right person to represent Norman and District 44.
Democratic partisans might also take issue with Hecox’s prior voter registration as a Republican, a status he held until at least 2008, according to oklahomadata.com. He also worked for Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Cole from Oklahoma’s 4th District, which includes Norman.
“I’ve always been a moderate,” Hecox said. “I’m a Native American. And a chance to work in an office with the only Native American in Congress was a great honor, not only for me, but my family.
“And that is why I did it, and I learned numerous things from him. And, he’s a good man.”
Hecox said he is a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Tribe.
McCaslin also is a newcomer to the Democratic Party, as he said he was registered as an independent until recently.
“That is not a reflection of any sort of ambivalence about my convictions or my values,” he said. “There are a lot of people in my generation, I’ve found, that don’t find their identity in the two-party system. They’re deeply passionate about their communities, and they want to do best in their homes and where they’re from.”
And, at least relative to lifelong Norman residents Hecox and Virgin, he’s a newcomer to the area, having lived here for six years.
“I’ve been actively involved in the community,” he said. “Working with the city manager’s office has been an excellent education in learning about what people care about here.”
Virgin will be balancing her campaign with the demands of the first year of law school. This semester, in addition to class work, she’ll also be preparing for the law school’s moot court competition, an endeavor required of all first-year law students.
“Trust me, that’s a concern of mine,” she said. “But I feel like I have the background to be able to do it.
“I was working close to 40 hours a week [as an equipment manager], pretty much full time, and also balancing school with that.”
Virgin also said if she wins the primary, she might take the fall semester off from school to run in the general election. If elected, she said she would take spring semesters off to devote her full attention to the Oklahoma legislative session, which runs from February until May.
McCaslin said he will remain a part-time student, and if he “felt like [his] schedule was going such that [he] would have to take semester off, that’s fine.”
He also said the unit he serves with in the Army Reserve has a “fairly low” chance of being deployed.
ISSUES:
THE BUDGET
Through the first six months of Oklahoma’s 2009-2010 fiscal year, Oklahoma’s general revenue collations are more than $750 million below budget estimates, according to the State Treasurer’s office.
This has resulted in a 10 percent cut in allocations to state agencies.
“The solution is smarter government [and] prioritizing agency spending,” McCaslin said. “[We] probably need to tap into the Rainy Day Fund. It probably needs to happen. If there’s ever been a rainy day, it’s probably right now. And identifying and selecting tax exemptions that have been created over the last many years that serve smaller interests.”
Oklahoma’s Rainy Day Fund contained nearly $600 million at the end of 2009.
McCaslin also wants the legislature to take a longer look at the state budgeting process to avoid future revenue shortfalls. He favors a proposal made by Democratic gubernatorial candidate Jari Askins that would dedicate every other legislative session solely to approving the state budget.
Virgin also favors tapping the Rainy Day Fund and using federal stimulus money remaining from 2009. There is nearly $600 million in unused stimulus money for Oklahoma.
Hecox said he was confident Oklahoma’s budget problems would be fixed over time.
“Hopefully our elected leaders will take care of that in the near future,” he said. “And, if not, that’s something the future legislatures will have to address.”
EDUCATION
All three candidates said funding education would be a large plank in their platforms.
“We’ve got to be able to provide our students the best teachers possible, the best updated technology possible, the best books we can get our hands on possible,” Hecox said. “And also find more creative ways to teach them.”
Virgin said she will focus on education because so many people in District 44 rely on OU for their livelihoods. She said it is also important to keep the cost of tuition low.
“Tuition concerns are ... very pressing on students, and I understand that,” she said. “Everybody who’s been a student does. But at the same time, I know that President Boren and the administration are doing all that they can.”
THE CAMPAIGN
McCaslin and Virgin have registered their campaigns with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission, while Hecox said he was in the process of doing so. McCaslin hosted his first fundraiser Friday, while Virgin said she would begin knocking on doors and other campaign activities during spring break.
The primary is July 27, and candidates can declare their intentions to run until June 9. The general election is Nov. 2.
• Information from the Associated Press was used in this report
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williamcombs 2 years, 4 months ago
Hey, Hecox, drop out. You got a DUI. It's over. And wipe that smug look off your face.