Michael Duncan

The end of the Edmondson name in Oklahoma politics

Drew Edmondson ended his political career last night, also likely marking the end of a 57-year period of Edmondsons to serve in elected office in Oklahoma. He narrowly lost the Democratic Party nomination for governor to Lt. Gov. Jari Askins. Edmondson said he will finish his current term as Attorney General and will not seek another political office.

I camped out at the Edmondson election-night watch party in Oklahoma City and took some photographs for this photo essay of the night:

Election Night Photography

Edmondson was a young assistant district attorney in Muskogee County in 1982 when I first met him. I was also fortunate to meet and write news stories then about his father, former U.S. Congressman Ed Edmondson (the brother to the late J. Howard Edmondson, former governor of Oklahoma).

In an era of TV sound-bite politics, Drew Edmondson is a bit old school. His oratory always reminded me of the Little Giant of Little Dixie, Speaker of the House Carl Albert, with his masterful choice of words delivered with vigor. I don’t know that Carl would have been so successful in today’s world. We seem to look for warm and fuzzy platitudes from our candidates. TV spots with flags waving in the background are more the norm than are stump speeches.

Maybe that is also why Edmondson fell about 1,500 votes short of getting the party nomination. He might have been tough enough to do the job — as his campaign signs said — but he came across as perhaps too tough or too weathered (meaning past his prime) to be the “new guy” in the governor’s mansion.

Actually, the “new guy” in the governor’s mansion will be a gal — either Askins or Republican nominee Mary Fallin. As one gal friend texted me last night (saying I was at the wrong watch party), “It’s a chick night”.