A recent poll shows only 39 percent of Oklahomans would definitely vote to reelect U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe right now.
The poll, commissioned by Daily Kos, also shows state Sen. Andrew Rice (D-Oklahoma City), who is running against Inhofe this year, lacks name recognition. More than half of the Oklahomans polled—52 percent—have no opinion of Rice, for example.
Overall, the poll shows Rice trails Inhofe by a 53 to 33 percent margin, but Inhofe’s reelect numbers are "remarkably low" and Rice’s name recognition problems can be solved through grassroots support and advertising. Rice has also been traveling the state in recent months and will continue to do so.
More than 50 percent of the Oklahomans polled indicated they would either "consider someone else" or vote to "replace" the 73-year-old Inhofe, suggesting the state’s voters are tired of Inhofe’s grandstanding on issues like global warming and his staunch support of the full Bush agenda on the economy, the Iraq occupation and basic civil rights.
The largest obstacle facing the Rice campaign is the state’s biased, right-wing corporate media, which is led by The Oklahoman. The state’s largest newspaper refuses to cover in any depth Inhofe’s infamous world reputation as a Washington obstructionist on pressing contemporary issues—the environment and the economy—and his ties to special interest lobbying groups. He is one of the most reviled politicians in the world because of his outrageous remarks on climate change, but The Oklahoman, and especially its so-called Washington "correspondent" Chris Casteel, gives him a free ride.
Unfortunately, other state media outlets—in an era of diminishing advertising revenue and declining readership and viewership—often take the newspaper’s lead on issues because of low staffing, general laziness and the lack of sensationalism in routine political coverage.
So how does Rice overcome this obstacle? It is obvious Rice must go around the corporate media in order to get his message out. The state’s progressive blogosphere can help out here. Progressives must continue to pressure The Oklahoman to cover the election fairly and allow consistent dissenting views to the right-wing mantra—the dead ideologies of the GOP—on its editorial page. Rice should continue to travel the state, especially targeting the Tulsa area and southeastern sections of the state.
As the election nears, Rice's story and message will surely get more recognition. The young state senator decided to get into politics after his brother was killed in the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Center, and he wants to help change the partisan political climate in Washington. He is one of the brightest, most articulate political leaders in Oklahoma right now. He and his physician wife, Apple, represent a new era in Oklahoma politics. This election, the poll shows, is definitely in play.
(This is cross posted on Okie Funk: Notes From The Outback.)