The polls have closed on three legislative races to fill vacant seats in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, including one in Oklahoma City that will now be held by a former district judge.

House lawmakers finished this year’s session with empty seats after three members resigned to take other jobs. The seats were filled in special elections held in Oklahoma County and the Tulsa area. The state Senate filled its own vacancy in May with the election of Republican Bryan Logan, who is the new state senator for a district in eastern Oklahoma.

The political balance of the Oklahoma House of Representatives won’t change much, if at all. Each of the winners during the Tuesday, June 10 election are the same party as their predecessor, meaning neither party lost a seat. The special election leaves the House with 81 Republicans and 20 Democrats.

Former district judge elected representative in Oklahoma City

Former District Judge Aletia Haynes Timmons was victorious in the special election to fill a seat vacated in April by recently elected Oklahoma County Commissioner Jason Lowe.

Timmons defeated JeKia Harrison in the Democratic primary with 59% of the vote, according to results posted by the Oklahoma State Election Board.

This primary was a winner-take-all election. No Republicans or independents filed for the open House of Representatives seat. District 97 includes portions of far northeast Oklahoma City, plus the metro-area communities of Spencer, Lake Aluma and Forest Park. The district also includes voters in parts of Jones and Midwest City.

Timmons, 64, was an elected Oklahoma County district judge for about a decade before she retired from the position in March. Before joining the bench in 2014, she was an attorney working on civil rights and employment law, and also worked for a time in the Oklahoma County District Attorney’s Office.

Timmons is a graduate of OKC’s John Marshall High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in political science at Oklahoma State University. She obtained her law degree from the University of Oklahoma College of Law.

Harrison, 35, has worked at the Oklahoma State Capitol as a legislative assistant for Tulsa state Rep. Meloyde Blancett. Harrison previously worked as child welfare specialist for the Oklahoma Department of Human Services and also owns a political campaign consulting business called Pen 2 Paper Consulting.

Urban Tulsa seat decided during June 10 special election

House District 71 is a sliver of land along the Arkansas River in south Tulsa. The seat became vacant after the resignation of Democratic state Rep. Amanda Swope, who left state government to work for the city of Tulsa.

In the district’s special election, Democrat Amanda Clinton won by a wide margin over Republican attorney Beverly Atteberry. Clinton secured 85% of the votes.

Clinton, 46, runs a public relations firm and is an adjunct professor at Oklahoma State University. She also sits on boards for Planned Parenthood and the OSU Foundation Board of Governors. Clinton previously said she’s an advocate for reproductive health freedom, access to medical care, clean water and minimizing “state Superintendent Ryan Walters’ impact on public schools.” She is also active in tribal policy.

“District 71 deserves leadership that shows up, speaks truth, and fights like hell for working people, and that’s exactly what I plan to do,” Clinton said in a news release celebrating her victory.

Although once a Republican stronghold, District 71 has been held by a Democrat since 2018.

More: One election may have reshaped Oklahoma Senate GOP’s politics. Could it shift even further right?

Longtime Republican seat in Owasso up for grabs

Owasso pastor and Republican nominee Kevin Wayne Norwood was victorious in House District 74.

Norwood defeated Democrat Amy Hossain with about 65% of the vote.

The district straddles Tulsa and Rogers counties in northeastern Oklahoma. Voters have elected a Republican in that district for 25 years. The seat became vacant in December when Mark Vancuren took a job in Tulsa County government.

Norwood, 58, is a pastor and works with community initiatives like Keep Owasso Beautiful and Owasso Cares. Norwood has said he wants to build a vibrant economy, safer communities and strong infrastructure and to give Oklahomans tax relief. His priorities also include revitalizing community main streets, and he criticized the “green energy grift” on his website.

Hossain, 50, is the chief human resources officer Tulsa’s Domestic Violence Intervention Services. She is also the president of the nonprofit Khan Ohana, which works to “break the cycle of poverty among college students.”

It was a rookie year to remember for Lily Pederson and Elle Mueller on the University of Oklahoma women’s gymnastics team. The freshmen helped lead the Sooners to their seventh NCAA title back in April. 

“I knew it could be achievable, but I didn’t know freshman year, right out of the gate,” Mueller said.

“Being able to have two people from the same state, and two friends being able to go to the same college, and accomplish both of our dreams and goals, it’s amazing,” Pederson said.

Pederson grew up competing for Flips Gymnastics in White Bear Lake, Minnesota, and Mueller at Twin City Twisters in Champlin, Minnesota. The two often competed against each other as kids.

“So literally we’ve known each other since we were so young, to now we’re teammates at OU, so now it’s so cool that both of us from Minnesota are now at the number one college,” Pederson said.

Now, these northerners are creating names for themselves in the Southeastern Conference (SEC). 

“Yeah, we’re really proud. I mean, we get made fun of for our accents sometimes, but it’s fine, it’s totally fine,” Pederson said, laughing.

It was a rare experience for two freshmen to contribute in big ways at the Division I NCAA Nationals. Mueller competed on the floor, earning a 9.90, and again on the vault, earning a 9.98 for the Sooners.

“I wasn’t competing for myself anymore, I was competing for my team because we all wanted to win that national championship,” Mueller said.

Pederson competed on the beam, vault and bars at nationals. She rebounded from a fall on the beam in the semifinals in a huge way, earning a 9.9375 after nailing her dismount when it mattered most.

“On day two, I completed the best beam routine I’ve had in my life. I had the best score I’ve ever had,” Pederson said. “It was such an amazing feeling, and knowing everyone believed in me and was confident in me, like the celebration after, it was a feeling like no other. I was feeling all the emotions and it’s a feeling I’ll never forget.”

No matter how big the wins are now and in the future, these gymnasts are always thankful for where the love of this sport started.

“[It] keeps me humble and keeps me to myself and reminds me of how far I’ve come,” Mueller said.

The Sooners had a nearly undefeated season and won the SEC for the first time in this conference.

“They play a full 48 minutes and you can’t just throw the first punch,” said Gilgeous-Alexander. “You’ve got to try to throw all the punches all night.

“That’s what we did. We threw enough punches tonight to get a ‘W’.”

Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA’s Most Valuable Player, added five rebounds and eight assists.

The Thunder’s Jalen Williams scored 19 points, Aaron Wiggins had 18 and Chet Holmgren recovered from a disappointing six points in game one to score 15 points with six rebounds.

The Pacers’ Tyrese Haliburton was limited to 17 points, three rebounds and six assists.

“It’s still a race – first to four,” he said. “We are going to our home court tied 1-1.”

Haliburton walked out of the post-game news conference with a slight limp.

Seven Pacers players scored in double figures, including Myles Turner with 16 points and Pascal Siakam with 15.