Voters should give close look to Oklahoma runoff candidates

We encourage citizens to not only go to the polls, but also research their choices. Runoffs provide primary voters a valuable opportunity to reassess candidates.

For example, GOP candidate Ed Moore is seeking election to Shawnee's state Senate seat. Moore once served a single term in the state Senate where he was absent for 71.7 percent of votes in 1984. Today he calls that “a boycott of the legislative practice.” In subsequent races, Moore's candidacy has been opposed by GOP state senators who served with him and Republican Party county chairs. In 1992, a preacher accused Moore of stealing a mailing list from his organization to use for Moore's fundraising efforts. It's up to voters to evaluate those allegations and past behavior.

Likewise, state Rep. Charles Key, R-Bethany, is in a GOP runoff for Oklahoma County court clerk. Key has long argued the federal government had previous knowledge of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. His conspiracy theory took him places few would go, including a Missouri gathering where neo-Nazi and racist pamphlets were sold. Key's use of a state computer and state credit card for an “independent investigation” of the bombing raised ethics concerns.