From springtime to winter: The ’92 and ’94 elections and the impact on Oklahoma politics

Abstract

The 1992 election was one in which the Democrats were competitive in almost all elections in the state of Oklahoma, yet the 1994 election was one that the Oklahoma Democrats have yet to recover from. This paper analyzes those two elections and the time span in between to determine the cause of the Democratic Party's precipitous decline in Oklahoma. The paper determines that there was a populists' backlash against the Democratic Party during the 1992 to 1994 time span. This form of populism, which is cultural, has remained a primary explanation for the failures of Democrats in Oklahoma. Also the built-in demographic advantages for Republicans put the Democrats in an increasingly minority status that does not appear to be changing.