OKLAHOMA CITY — Sitting in his cluttered office inside the state Capitol, Oklahoma Gov. Brad Henry becomes a bit wistful as he reflects back on his nearly 20 years of service to the state.
With his eight years in the governor's mansion quickly coming to a close, the term-limited Democrat says he's still not sure what his next career move will be, only that he doubts he'll find a job he enjoyed as much as his current one.
"It's almost a little cruel to have served eight years as governor and just be 47," Henry said during a recent interview with The Associated Press. "If I were 67, maybe I could sit back and just espouse philosophy or something, but my wife desperately wants me to get a good job."
Finding a good job shouldn't be hard for Henry, an attorney who has enjoyed tremendously high approval ratings, even in a state that trended Republican throughout his administration.
Henry's journey to the governor's mansion was an unlikely one.
Although he came from a well-known political family, the state senator from Shawnee wasn't on anyone's radar before he pulled two of the greatest political upsets in Oklahoma history in 2002. First, he knocked off Oklahoma City businessman Vince Orza in a Democratic runoff after receiving only 28 percent of the vote in a four-candidate field.
Next, he narrowly defeated former NFL star Steve Largent, a popular Republican congressman, with just 43 percent in a three-way general election that included Tulsa attorney Gary Richardson, who ran as an independent and bitterly attacked Largent during the campaign.
"Brad Henry is not an accident, but like every election it's a product of circumstances," said Keith Gaddie, a political science professor at the University of Oklahoma. "Everything came together for the rural Democrats, who had one last chance to take a ride in an open seat governor's race, and they took advantage of it."
With Democrats controlling both chambers of the Oklahoma Legislature during his first two years in office, Henry was able to push through several key initiatives to Oklahoma voters that he cites among his greatest accomplishments — a tobacco tax to fund health care, and a state lottery and a tribal gaming compact that provided two new funding streams for education.
He also worked to increase teacher pay, implement all-day kindergarten and expand early childhood education programs.
"The things that we did in education, I think, will have a lasting positive impact on our state for years to come," Henry said. "I'm very proud of the overall education agenda we've had."
And while Henry doesn't shy away from the moniker of "education governor," he managed to ruffle the feathers of some in the education community earlier this year when he opposed a state ballot question that would increase funding for common education to a regional average. While Henry said he supported the goal, he said the proposal would prove too costly for the rest of state government.
"That was a hard thing to do, because I have so many friends in education who were on the other side, but it was the right thing to do, and I firmly believe that," Henry said.
While Henry remains popular in Oklahoma, the Democratic Party has continued to lose its power in the state. When Henry first took office, Democrats controlled both the House and Senate, but the GOP took over the House in 2004 and the Senate in 2008. In this year's elections, every Democrat-held statewide office on the ballot went Republican.
Henry said his job description as governor didn't include doing more to help his party politically.
"I don't have a partisan agenda. I have an Oklahoma agenda, and that's how I've tried to govern for eight years," Henry said. "I know people think the governor is the head of the party and I'm supposed to be the cheerleader for the party. That's just not my belief.
"I think once you're elected, you have to put aside the partisan labels, roll up your sleeves, work with everybody, and do the best you can to help Oklahomans and help our state."
Even those on the other side of the aisle were quick to praise Henry for his bipartisan approach to governing.
"He and I had different views on policies and priorities, but I always found him to be agreeable," said former Senate President Pro Tem Glenn Coffee, an Oklahoma City Republican who negotiated budgets with Henry over the last two years. "He worked effectively at finding ways to compromise and come to the middle to get things done."
Gaddie, the political science professor, likened Henry's governing style to that of a successful poker player — careful, cautious and analytical.
"If he has a chance to score big, he's all in and scoring big," Gaddie said. "Otherwise, he's minimizing his losses."
Henry will be known for his many political accomplishments, but part of his legacy also will be his judicial appointments. During his eight years in office, he appointed more than 70 judges across the state, including five of the nine Oklahoma Supreme Court justices. He may also appoint a sixth, following the death of Justice Marian Opala in October.
