Oklahoma's next U.S. senator can be sworn in right after results are certified, attorney general says

OKLAHOMA CITY (Oct. 31) — Whoever wins Oklahoma's open U.S. Senate seat on Tuesday will not have to wait until January to take office, Attorney General Gentner Drummond concluded in a formal opinion released Thursday.

The seat has been held by appointed Sen. Alan Armstrong since March, when Markwayne Mullin resigned to become U.S. secretary of homeland security. Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed Armstrong a day later. As state law requires, Armstrong pledged not to run for the seat.

Drummond's opinion says the Nov. 3 winner is elected both to the six-year term starting Jan. 3, 2027, and to the weeks left in the current term. Armstrong's appointment ends when the new senator takes the oath, not when the term expires. Once the State Election Board certifies results, the opinion says, the governor must send the winner's election certificates to the U.S. Senate without delay. Certification is set for Nov. 10, OK Politics Today reported.

"Oklahoma law and the U.S. Constitution point to the same answer: the voters fill this seat," Drummond said in a statement.

The opinion answered separate questions from Stitt and Senate President Pro Tem Lonnie Paxton. It sides with Republican U.S. Rep. Kevin Hern, the GOP nominee, who argued in September that the winner should be seated as soon as results are certified, according to OK Politics Today. Armstrong had maintained his appointment ran through January.

Hern's campaign said the opinion confirmed its reading of state law. Armstrong's office and Stitt's press secretary both said they were reviewing it.

Starting early could give the winner a seniority edge over senators who arrive with the new Congress in January, which can matter for committee assignments. Hern faces Democrat N'Kiyla Jasmine Thomas, Libertarian Sevier White and independents Ron Meinhardt and Curtis Stinnett. The opinion applies to whoever wins.

The U.S. Senate has the final say on seating its members. The attorney general's opinion guides state officials but does not bind the Senate.