STILLWATER, Okla. (The Oklahoma Post) January 28, 2026
If you want to understand Oklahoma House District 35, do not start with cable news. Start with a faucet.
Luke Kruse, a strapping 40-year-old Democratic nominee in the Feb. 10 special general election for House District 35, told The Oklahoma Post that as he has knocked doors across the district, people keep bringing up an issue that would sound almost fictional in Edmond or Tulsa.
Will my toilet flush this morning? Will the water be safe enough to drink out of the tap? My kid needs a job, where do they apply?
Kruse, a longtime educator who lives outside Morrison, is running to fill the seat vacated after Rep. Ty Burns resigned, which triggered the special election calendar that ran through a Dec. 9 Republican primary, a Jan. 13 runoff, and now the Feb. 10 general election.
I already know about Morrison folks. You had me at hello. Start with 1994, when I shared a room at all-state week with Morrison’s quarterback Cody Elwood. He ran 8-man football. I was the lineman other teams had nightmares about (for blocking, not talent). Cody was a great guy. Together we were magic, which is to say neither of us got kicked out. Morrison makes that kind of people; balancing, wholesome, honest, the type who expect their government to work as hard as they do.
On the ballot opposite Kruse is Republican nominee Dillon Travis, a Pawnee County farmer and rancher who won the Jan. 13 Republican runoff and advanced to the general election. The Oklahoma Post requested an interview with Travis for this story and has not received a response as of publication. (If the campaign replies, we will respond.)
Kruse’s pitch: less culture war, more county road
Kruse’s campaign bio sells him as the kind of public servant who has worked nearly every job connected to a school and a small town. Teacher, coach, bus driver, community volunteer. His campaign theme is not complicated.
Fix the basics, invest in public education, support families, keep rural Oklahoma moving.
In the interview, Kruse described District 35 as geographically large and deeply rural, with needs that are different than metro districts. He said he was “incredibly blessed that this campaign came whenever gas prices were around 2 bucks,” joking that “I’m not sure we would have survived if they would have been $3.50” because the district is big enough that a full tank disappears fast.
The key point, though, was what he says voters are asking him to fix. Infrastructure, yes, but not just potholes. Water systems, reliability, and the kind of public works that are so basic they are invisible in cities until they break.
“Can you do anything about the water?” Kruse said voters ask at the door. The question comes up repeatedly in places like Ralston, where basic infrastructure that metro areas take for granted is an everyday concern.
That is the first jab at the broken system. In 2026, there are Oklahomans who think of government the way you think of oxygen: only when it is missing. If your town is wondering whether it can safely drink its own water, you are not arguing about politics, you are arguing about civilization.
Schools as the backbone, and the tradeoffs nobody likes to admit
Kruse returned repeatedly to the idea that rural public schools are the backbone of community life. Friday nights, school events, the village raising the kids, neighbors knowing neighbors. He talked about the difference between teaching at a large 6A school and teaching at a smaller school where it is harder for a student to disappear into the crowd.
He also did something candidates rarely do. He admitted the tradeoffs.
Small schools can feel like family. They can also lack programs. Choir, theater, and certain electives can be hard to offer at scale. Big schools can offer more, but the size can overwhelm some families and some kids.
That kind of answer is not flashy. It is also the kind of answer that sounds like someone who has actually been in the building, not just in the talking points.
Consolidation, overhead, and the word “I don’t know”
On school district consolidation, Kruse did not plant a flag. He acknowledged that people in education circles talk about administrative overhead and whether small districts can share costs. He also said he has not seen a plan that cuts costs without cutting the thing that makes small towns work: community identity.
His bottom line was honest, and politically risky in the modern era.
“I don’t know.”
He said consolidation might reduce some overhead, but he does not want to lose what makes Oklahoma, Oklahoma: those smaller communities built around local schools. “I just haven’t seen the right plan that makes me happy with that,” Kruse said.
If you are looking for the second jab at the broken system, it is this. We have a state that debates education like it is a sport, but we do not provide enough practical planning support to help communities evaluate options with real data and real models. That leaves candidates in the position of saying “I don’t know” when they should have access to state level research, cost studies, and operational comparisons that are easy to understand.
Tribal nations and representation
Kruse also emphasized that District 35 includes significant tribal communities, including the Pawnee Nation, and parts of the Osage Nation and the Otoe Missouria Tribe. He said whoever holds the seat needs to keep tribal sovereignty and tribal citizens in mind.
Data centers: cautious optimism, and a warning about who pays
On data centers, Kruse took a cautious position. He sees potential upside: property tax base, job creation, and skilled trades work. He also said he is worried about the downsides, especially utility impacts.
He raised concerns about electric costs rising for ordinary residents through supply and demand pressures, and he flagged water consumption as a question mark, particularly if water use is not managed responsibly.
Then he drew a line that will resonate with anyone who has watched rural communities asked to “partner” with billion dollar companies.
“If Google needs bigger infrastructure in terms of power lines being run, I don’t want that paid for by the taxpayer. I want Google to pay for those sort of things,” Kruse said.
He also made a broader point that deserves airtime: if data centers and AI expansion are simply a fast lane to replace human jobs, he is against it. He referenced recent Paycom layoffs where roughly 500 positions were eliminated before Christmas, replaced by AI. “If we are just using data centers to replace human jobs, well then I definitely don’t like that,” Kruse said.
That is jab number three at the system, and it is aimed at the right target. Oklahoma has been trained to celebrate announcements, not outcomes. We cut ribbons. We do not always ask who pays long term, who benefits long term, and who gets stuck holding the utility bill.
Foster care
On foster care, Kruse’s public platform emphasizes support for foster families. In the interview, he described groups he works with as “a community of local churches that meets the need of newly fostered kids,” explaining that when children are removed from homes, they often arrive without basic necessities. “If they were removed with cause, need help, and they didn’t bring with them toiletries or a bed or a dresser, then that gets pushed out to the local community churches,” he said, and churches are able to help those foster care families.
When asked about broader adoption oversight concerns and allegations of coercion or fraud, Kruse said he did not know the details of what was being referenced and invited a separate conversation to learn more, while emphasizing that his experience with Project 111 or individual churches is practical support, not legal process. I have to tell you this, I believe this gent. Grace given. This shows you his answer in face of a tough question. I do want to get into the financial aspects and OKDHS involvement at some point with both candidates.
That answer may frustrate some voters who want every candidate to have a complete policy position ready to go. It also signals something useful for readers.
Kruse is not presenting himself as a guy who knows everything. He is presenting himself as a guy who will show up, listen, and do the homework.
What we know about the opponent, and what we do not
Republican nominee Dillon Travis advanced to the Feb. 10 general election after winning the Jan. 13 GOP runoff. His campaign describes him as a sixth generation Oklahoman, farmer and rancher from Maramec, and owner of Southern Plains AG-CO, an agricultural business serving farmers across multiple states.
The Oklahoma Post requested an interview with Travis for this story and has not received a reply. If that changes, we will publish his answers alongside Kruse’s, in the same format, on the same issues.
Because voters deserve more than yard signs
Here is the deal, District 35. You are about to hire someone. Not to be your best friend, not to post your favorite slogans, not to “fight” in a way that somehow never fixes the roads. You are hiring someone to do the least glamorous work in the world: making sure the basics work.
So ask the annoying questions. Ask who pays. Ask what gets cut. Ask what comes first. Ask what happens after the ribbon cutting when the electric bill shows up wearing a tuxedo and a smirk.
Writing By: Robbie Robertson | Editing by Robbie Robertson
Sources
Primary Source:
- Interview with Luke Kruse conducted by Gregory Moyer, The Oklahoma Post, January 28, 2026
Election Information:
- Oklahoma State Election Board, “2025 Special Election State Representative, District 35 Candidates,” October 2025
- Ballotpedia, “Oklahoma House of Representatives District 35,” accessed January 2026
- Oklahoma Voice, “Special election set for soon-to-be vacant Oklahoma House seat,” September 12, 2025
Election Results and Coverage:
- NonDoc, “Dillon Travis wins HD 35 Republican runoff, to face Luke Kruse in general election,” Tristan Loveless, January 13, 2026
- NonDoc, “Travis, Waters advance to Republican runoff in HD 35 special election,” December 9, 2025
- NonDoc, “Dillon Travis, Mike Waters tout rural bonafides in HD 35 Republican runoff,” January 7, 2026
- Oklahoma Voice, “Two Republican candidates head to runoff in House special election,” December 11, 2025
Candidate Background:
- Luke Kruse for State House campaign website (kruseforok.com)
- Stillwater News Press, “Lifelong educator, only Democrat in HD 35 race shares campaign goals,” January 3, 2026
- NonDoc, “House District 35: Vacant seat draws 5 Republicans, 1 Democrat for special election,” Matt Patterson, October 8, 2025
- Northern Oklahoma College faculty directory
District Information:
- Oklahoma House of Representatives, District 35 official page
- NonDoc, “Focusing on rural issues, 5 Republicans campaign for HD 35 special election,” November 29, 2025
Dillon Travis Background:
- Southern Plains AG-CO company website (southernplainsagco.com)
- The Oklahoma Constitution, “Special Election for State House District 35 Draws Six Candidates,” 2025
- Oklahoma Voice, “Five Republicans, one Democrat running to fill vacancy in Oklahoma House,” October 14, 2025
Project 111:
- 111Project.org official website
- Oklahoma Department of Human Services, “111Project launches CarePortal in Oklahoma County to help children in foster care,” April 21, 2016
- The Oklahoman, “Nonprofit aims to connect 1,000 churches with Oklahoma foster families who need help,” August 27, 2024
Former Rep. Ty Burns:
- Oklahoma Voice, “Oklahoma lawmaker resigns following guilty plea to domestic violence charges,” August 30, 2025
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