Nathan Dahm
Chair of the Oklahoma Republican Party
Assumed office
May 6, 2023
Preceded byA.J. Ferate
Member of the Oklahoma Senate
from the 33rd district
Assumed office
January 8, 2013
Preceded byTom Adelson
Personal details
Born
Nathan Ryan Dahm

(1983-01-27) January 27, 1983 (age 41)
Broken Arrow, Oklahoma, U.S.
Political partyRepublican

Nathan Ryan Dahm (born January 27, 1983) is an American politician who has served as the Oklahoma State Senator for the 33rd district since 2012. Prior to holding office, Dahm worked as a missionary in Romania and was a Tea Party activist in Tulsa County. Dahm has thrice unsuccessfully sought federal office: first running for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district in 2010, then running for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district again in 2018, and then running for retiring senator Jim Inhofe's United States Senate seat in 2022. He is term-limited in 2024.

Early life and political activism

See also: 2010 United States House of Representatives elections in Oklahoma § District 1

Dahm was born in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma on January 27, 1983.[1] In 1994, his family moved to Romania as missionaries motivated by a desire to proselytize in a former communist country.[2] Dahm graduated from Abeka Christian Academy Home School in 2001.[3] After graduation, Dahm moved back to Romania to continue working as a missionary and later became dean of the Biblical school affiliated with his mission. He served as dean from 2003 to 2007.[2] He is fluent in Romanian.[4]

After returning to Oklahoma, Dahm was active in the Tulsa County Republican Party.[2] In 2008, Dahm filed to run for Oklahoma House of Representatives District 75, but was later struck from the ballot.[5][6] In 2010, he spoke at Tea Party rallies in Tulsa while campaigning for Oklahoma's 1st congressional district against incumbent John Sullivan.[7] During the campaign, Dahm supported abolishing the Department of Education.[8] Dahm placed 3rd in the six candidate primary, with Sullivan garnering a majority vote and avoiding a runoff.[9] The same year, he served as the vice-chair of the Tulsa County Alliance of Young Republicans and helped organize anti-abortion rallies in Tulsa.[10] On February 8, 2011, Dahm filed to run for Broken Arrow City Council. He withdrew his candidacy three days later.[11][12]

Oklahoma Senate

Nathan Dahm served in the 54th Oklahoma Legislature, 55th Oklahoma Legislature, 56th Oklahoma Legislature, 57th Oklahoma Legislature, and the 58th Oklahoma Legislature.

Election and first term

After the 2010 census, Oklahoma Senate District 33 was redistricted from Midtown Tulsa to Broken Arrow, creating an open seat.[13] In 2012, the first election after redistricting, Dahm filed to run in the new Oklahoma Senate district 33.[14] Four Republican candidates - Nathan Dahm, Cliff Johns, Don P. Little, and Tim Wright - filed for the office.[15] Tim Wright led with 38% of the vote in the primary over Dahm's 36%, but both advanced to the runoff.[16][17] Dahm won the runoff and the seat since no other party contested the race.[18] No Republican had won election in Senate district 33 since 1923.[19]

During the first session of the 54th Oklahoma Legislature in 2013, Dahm introduced numerous gun bills, including a bill penalizing the enforcement of federal government gun restrictions in Oklahoma[20] Dahm also introduced legislation in the Senate to penalize the enforcement of and nullify the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act in Oklahoma.[21]

In the second session of the 54th Oklahoma Legislature in 2014, Dahm introduced the "Piers Morgan Constitutional Right to Keep and Bear Arms Without Infringement Act" which would allow firearms to be openly carried without a permit. Talk show host Piers Morgan invited him onto Piers Morgan Live to debate the legislation.[22]

Dahm sponsored legislation in the Oklahoma Senate that would subject physicians performing abortions to felony charges and revocation of their medical licenses. It passed the Senate, 33–12, on May 19, 2016.[23][24] The bill was vetoed by Republican governor Mary Fallin.

Second term

In 2017, Dahm was rated the most conservative senator in the Legislature of Oklahoma by the Oklahoma Constitution, a conservative quarterly newspaper, and named “senate legislator of the year” by the Oklahoma Conservative Political Action Committee, a conservative think tank based in Oklahoma City.[25]

Third term

He was re-elected by default in 2020.[26]

In 2022, Senator Dahm sponsored Senate Bill 1166, which if passed would have prevented individuals charged for participation in the 2021 United States Capitol attack from being transported into or through Oklahoma.[27]

Dahm is an opponent of sanctuary city policies. He has sponsored legislation to ban sanctuary cities in Oklahoma twice. Once in 2020 and another time in 2021.[28][29]

Dahm has filed senate resolution 47, which could officially recognize June 14, as "President Donald Trump day". June 14 is Trump's birthday.[30] The bill never received a floor vote.[31]

In January 2023, Dahm filed a bill to declare a state of emergency and prohibit any medical entity that provides gender affirming healthcare from receiving any federal, state, or municipal funding whatsoever, even if the funding is not for said care.[32] Dahm was reported as stating that this was to "end the practice of gender destruction in our state".[33][34] He filed a resolution to prevent 100 Ukrainian troops from training in Oklahoma, saying locals could be killed by errant rockets, and that the Ukrainian troops' presence would bring "unaccountable spending, corruption, and potential money laundering." The resolution was condemned by the U.S. Senate Republicans.[35] Later he filed a bill to host peace talks for the conflict in Oklahoma.[36]

In March, he appeared on Jon Stewart's television show The Problem with Jon Stewart to debate gun control in the United States.[37] On May 6, 2023 he was elected to a two year term as the chairman of the Oklahoma Republican Party after defeating incumbent A.J. Ferate and former state senator Sean Roberts in the leadership election.[38]

2018 congressional election

Main article: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Oklahoma § District 1
Senator Dahm and his wife Christina as he announces his bid for US Senate, 2021.

On May 5, 2017, Dahm announced his candidacy for Representative of Oklahoma's 1st congressional district.[39] On June 28, 2018, he lost the Republican primary for the seat by garnering 20.2% of the vote. Dahm missed advancing to the runoff by 2%.[40]

2022 Senate election

Main article: 2022 United States Senate special election in Oklahoma § Republican primary

On September 28, 2021, Dahm announced his candidacy for the 2022 United States Senate election in Oklahoma, challenging incumbent Republican senator James Lankford.[41] On February 28, 2022, Dahm announced he would instead run in the concurrent special election for Jim Inhofe's open Senate seat, upon news of his resignation.[42] He placed third in the primary, as Markwayne Mullin and T. W. Shannon advanced to a runoff election.[43]

Electoral history

2010 Oklahoma's 1st congressional district Republican Primary results[44]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican John Sullivan 38,673 62.07%
Republican Kenneth Rice 10,394 16.68%
Republican Nathan Dahm 8,871 14.24%
Republican Patrick K. Haworth 1,737 2.79%
Republican Craig Allen 1,421 2.28%
Republican Fran Moghaddam 1,213 1.95%
Total votes 62,309 100%
2012 Oklahoma Senate district 33 Republican Primary results[45]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Wright 2,410 37.73%
Republican Nathan Dahm 2,284 35.76%
Republican Don P. Little 1,252 19.60%
Republican Cliff Johns 441 6.90%
Total votes 6,387 100%
2012 Oklahoma Senate district 33 Republican Runoff results[46]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nathan Dahm 2,419 53.88%
Republican Tim Wright 2,071 46.12%
Total votes 4,490 100%

Nathan Dahm was unopposed in the 2012 general election since no other party or independent filed for the race.

2016 Oklahoma Senate district 33 Republican Primary results[47]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nathan Dahm 3,994 63.81%
Republican Larry Curtis 1,654 26.43%
Republican Patrick Pershing 611 9.76%
Total votes 6,259 100.0
2016 Oklahoma Senate district 33 general election results[48]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Nathan Dahm 23,087 67.48%
Democratic Kimberly Fobbs 11,128 32.52%
Total votes 34,215 100.0
2018 Oklahoma's 1st congressional district Republican primary results[49]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Tim Harris 28,431 27.48%
Republican Kevin Hern 23,466 22.68%
Republican Andy Coleman 22,608 21.85%
Republican Nathan Dahm 20,868 20.17%
Republican Danny Stockstill 8,100 7.83%
Total votes 103,473 100.0

Nathan Dahm was unopposed for reelection in the 2020 Republican primary and general election.

2022 U.S. Senate special election Republican primary results[50]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Markwayne Mullin 156,087 43.6
Republican T. W. Shannon 62,746 17.5
Republican Nathan Dahm 42,673 11.9
Republican Luke Holland 40,353 11.3
Republican Scott Pruitt 18,052 5.0
Republican Randy J. Grellner 15,794 4.4
Republican Laura Moreno 6,597 1.8
Republican Jessica Jean Garrison 6,114 1.7
Republican Alex Gray (withdrew) 3,063 0.9
Republican John F. Tompkins 2,332 0.7
Republican Adam Holley 1,873 0.5
Republican Michael Coibion 1,261 0.4
Republican Paul Royse 900 0.3
Total votes 357,845 100.0

See also

References

  1. ^ "Oklahoma State Sen. Nathan Dahm - Biography | LegiStorm". www.legistorm.com. Retrieved March 6, 2022. (subscription required)
  2. ^ a b c "Senator Nathan Dahm". oksenate.gov. Oklahoma Senate. Archived from the original on June 26, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  3. ^ "Nathan Dahm's Biography". votesmart.org. Vote Smart. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  4. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (August 18, 2013). "Sen. Nathan Dahm of Broken Arrow fosters Romania-Tulsa ties in energy, agriculture". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  5. ^ "Candidates File For Office". Tulsa World. June 5, 2008. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  6. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (June 17, 2008). "GOP candidate withstands ballot challenge". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  7. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (April 3, 2010). "Tea Party in T-Town". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  8. ^ Canfield, Kevun (July 12, 2010). "Sullivan, other Republican candidates speak at Rotary meeting". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  9. ^ "Derby, Brinkley win legislative seats; Brogdon falls to Fallin in gubernatorial bid". Tulsa World. July 28, 2010. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  10. ^ Sherman, Bill (April 17, 2010). "In Brief". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on January 15, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  11. ^ "Long-time city councilor withdraws from race". Tulsa World. February 1, 2011. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  12. ^ Collis, Judy (February 10, 2011). "Dahm withdraws from city council race". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  13. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (April 8, 2012). "Filing period for all offices in Oklahoma begins Wednesday". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  14. ^ Burton, Josh (June 13, 2012). "Primary Election to decide county, state, federal candidates for general election". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  15. ^ Hoberock, Barbara (June 22, 2012). "Four Republicans to face off Tuesday for vacant Senate District 33". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  16. ^ Greene, Wayne; Hoberock, Barbara (June 27, 2012). "Crain turns back tea-party effort". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  17. ^ "State election results". Tulsa World. June 27, 2012. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  18. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (August 28, 2012). "Social conservatives defeat chamber-backed legislative candidates". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  19. ^ Greene, Wayne (July 22, 2012). "Political Report, Wayne Greene: Senate District 33 reflects Oklahoma's power shift". Tulsa World. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  20. ^ Krehbiel, Randy. "Bill would defy federal guns law Archived January 15, 2023, at the Wayback Machine," Tulsa World, January 18, 2013.
  21. ^ Greene, Wayne. "Bills seek opposite health law demands Archived January 15, 2023, at the Wayback Machine," Tulsa World, January 26, 2013.
  22. ^ Gold, Hadas (January 23, 2014). "State Sen. proposes 'Piers Morgan' gun bill". Politico. Archived from the original on January 24, 2014. Retrieved January 23, 2014.
  23. ^ Eckholm, Erik (May 19, 2016). "Oklahoma passes bill that would subject abortion physicians to felony charges". The New York Times. Archived from the original on March 2, 2017. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
  24. ^ "Bill Pulls Licenses of abortion doctors", San Antonio Express-News, May 20, 2016, p. A9
  25. ^ "Dahm named top legislator". Tulsa Beacon. October 19, 2017. Archived from the original on December 22, 2017. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  26. ^ Savage, Tres (2020). "More than 40 Oklahoma legislators re-elected by default". NonDoc.
  27. ^ "Sen. Dahm files bill prohibiting feds from transporting Jan. 6 political prisoners through Oklahoma | Oklahoma Senate". oksenate.gov. January 4, 2022. Archived from the original on October 1, 2022. Retrieved August 10, 2022.
  28. ^ "Oklahoma senator files bill again aimed at preventing sanctuary cities". January 26, 2021. Archived from the original on January 28, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  29. ^ "State senator files bill again prohibiting sanctuary cities in Oklahoma". January 26, 2021. Archived from the original on February 20, 2021. Retrieved February 20, 2021.
  30. ^ "Oklahoma State Senator seeks President Donald J. Trump Day". KFOR.com Oklahoma City. May 19, 2022. Archived from the original on May 22, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  31. ^ Bill Information Archived August 29, 2022, at the Wayback Machine, Oklahoma Legislature. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  32. ^ Senate Bill No. 250 of February 6, 2023. Oklahoma. Archived January 11, 2023, at the Wayback Machine
  33. ^ Vondale Foster, Miranda (January 10, 2023). "Oklahoma lawmaker files multiple bills to 'fight destructive woke gender ideology'". Archived from the original on January 12, 2023. Retrieved January 12, 2023.
  34. ^ "Sen. Dahm files legislation to fight destructive woke gender ideology". January 10, 2023.
  35. ^ "State senator fighting to stop Ukrainian troops to OK". KFOR.com Oklahoma City. January 11, 2023. Retrieved January 17, 2023.
  36. ^ "State senator fighting to stop Ukrainian troops training in OK now wants to host peace talks". KFOR.com Oklahoma City. January 18, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  37. ^ Krehbiel, Randy (March 3, 2023). "State Sen. Nathan Dahm spars with Jon Stewart over Second Amendment". Tulsa World. Retrieved April 12, 2023.
  38. ^ Forman, Carmen (May 6, 2023). "Broken Arrow state senator elected Oklahoma Republican Party chairman". Tulsa World. Retrieved May 7, 2023.
  39. ^ "Oklahoma State Sen. Nathan Dahm to Run for 1st District Seat Archived January 20, 2018, at the Wayback Machine", U.S. News & World Report, May 5, 2017
  40. ^ "Oklahoma Primary Election Results: First House District". The New York Times. June 28, 2018. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on April 24, 2021. Retrieved April 24, 2021.
  41. ^ "Broken Arrow State Senator Nathan Dahm will challenge Oklahoma U.S. Senator James Lankford". FOX23 News. September 29, 2021. Archived from the original on May 20, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  42. ^ "St. Senator Nathan Dahm enters the race for U.S. Senate". KFOR.com Oklahoma City. February 28, 2022. Archived from the original on March 9, 2022. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  43. ^ "Oklahoma U.S. Senate Special Primary Election Results". The New York Times. June 28, 2022. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on August 11, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  44. ^ "SUMMARY RESULTS Primary Election — July 27, 2010". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on August 6, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  45. ^ "JUNE 26 2012 OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD Official Results". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on August 7, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  46. ^ "AUGUST 28 2012 OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD Official Results". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on January 15, 2023. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  47. ^ "JUNE 28 2016 OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD Official Results". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on December 1, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  48. ^ "JUNE 28 2016 OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD Official Results". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on December 1, 2022. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  49. ^ "JUNE 26 2018 OKLAHOMA STATE ELECTION BOARD Official Results". oklahoma.gov. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on May 30, 2021. Retrieved August 11, 2022.
  50. ^ "June 28 2022". okelections.us. Oklahoma State Election Board. Archived from the original on August 22, 2022. Retrieved June 29, 2022.
Categories