Voter guide: State Senate District 15 candidates for Cleveland County, Norman

Six Republicans and one Democratic candidate are campaigning for the Oklahoma State Senate District 15, representing Cleveland County and Norman, for the primary elections on June 18. 

Incumbent Rob Standridge (R-Norman) is not seeking re-election, due to reaching his term limit. He has served as a member of the Senate since 2012.

If no candidate attains more than 50% of the votes, the top two will face each other in a runoff election on Aug. 27. The Republican nominee will advance to the Nov. 5 election to face current Norman Ward 6 Councilmember Elizabeth Foreman, the only Democrat seeking the Oklahoma State Senate seat.

Kyle Chapman - Republican

According to his campaign website, Chapman was part of the U.S. Army and was on active duty for about seven years.

Two weeks after leaving active duty, Chapman enrolled at OU College of Law and graduated in 2021. In 2023, he also graduated from Ranger school.

He has been working as an attorney at his own law firm, Chapman Law.

Tommie Herell - Republican

Herell was born and raised in Purcell and is the chief development officer at AquaNyx Midstream water management company. He also serves on the executive committee for the Petroleum Alliance of Oklahoma.

According to his campaign website, Herell’s campaign focuses on the fight for conservative values, tackling inflation, growing jobs and opportunities, improving education and defending the state’s energy sector.

Robert Keyes - Republican

Keyes is the president and CEO of Associated Environmental Industries and serves as the Norman stake president for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“I believe Oklahoma’s best days are ahead of us — but only if we have the right leaders at the State Capitol,” Keyes wrote on his campaign website.

Kelly Lynn - Republican

Lynn was born in Poteau and served as an enlisted soldier for three years before being deployed to combat unit in Afghanistan in 2017, according to his campaign website. 

Lynn has also served as the municipal judge at Dibble and is currently the lead counsel for Bethesda Inc., the leading provider of counseling services to child sexual assault victims in Oklahoma.

Lynn also served as Ward 3 Councilmember for the Norman City Council from 2021 to 2023, when he was asked to step down from his position after being found illegally holding dual office after being sworn in as Wewoka’s municipal judge.

Brandon Nofire - Republican

Born and raised in eastern Oklahoma, Nofire served four years in the U.S. Marines as an avionics tech.

Nofire attended OU to play football but his journey was interrupted after sustaining an injury that caused him to stop playing, leading him to make the difficult decision to leave school and transition into the workforce. 

According to his campaign website, Nofire has worked in the aerospace industry with roles at Tinker AFB and General Atomics in Palmdale, California. He also attained the position of lead technical specialist at Booz Allen Hamilton and participates in organizations like PikeOff OTA, Central Foodbank of Oklahoma and Habitat for Humanity.

Lisa Standridge - Republican

Standridge is a health care professional, earning her doctoral degree from the OU College of Pharmacy.

According to her campaign website, Standridge and her husband, incumbent Rob Standridge, bought a pharmacy in Blanchard called Drug & Gift. They have served the city, and other surrounding areas, for the past 29 years.

Currently, Standridge helps manage a second pharmacy in Norman, which services statewide including Noble, Moore and Oklahoma City.

Elizabeth Foreman - Democrat

Foreman has over a decade of expertise in private and public sector budgeting as well as in public administration, law enforcement, public education and health care, according to her campaign website.

She graduated from OU with a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a master’s degree in public administration. Foreman is pursuing a doctorate in administration and leadership from Southern Nazarene University and teaches part-time at Oklahoma City Community College.

Foreman has acted as Ward 6 councilmember for the Norman City Council since July 2020. She is a member of the Oklahoma Municipal League, former chair of the Norman Historic District Commission and former editorial board member for the Norman Transcript.

This story was edited by Taylor Jones. Avery Avery copy edited this story.