CARTER, Okla. (AP) — A Democratic Oklahoma City attorney is the latest candidate to announce his plans to challenge Republican James Lankford for Oklahoma’s U.S. Senate seat in 2022.
Jason Bollinger, 29, announced his candidacy Wednesday before a small group of supporters in his hometown of Carter in western Oklahoma.
Bollinger worked previously for the U.S. State Department in Washington before returning to Oklahoma City to practice law, according to a press release announcing his candidacy. It’s Bollinger’s first time running for political office.
Filings with the Federal Election Commission show Bollinger is the fifth challenger to file paperwork indicating plans to run against Lankford in 2022. Others include Republicans Jackson Lahmeyer of Owasso, Nathan Dahm of Broken Arrow and Joan Farr of Tulsa, and Democrat Bevon Rogers of Hugo.
Lankford, a former U.S. House member, was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2014 to fill the unexpired term of former Republican U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn. He was re-elected to a full term in 2016.
