State Sen. Dewayne Pemberton announces he will not seek reelection

State Sen. Dewayne Pemberton (R-Muskogee) has announced that he will not be seeking a third and final term in the State Senate. He will serve out the rest of his term, which ends in November.

First elected in 2016, Pemberton represents Senate District 9, which is comprised of portions of Muskogee and Cherokee counties, including the county seats of Muskogee and Tahlequah, as well as towns like Fort Gibson, Oktaha, Taft, and Braggs.

Voter registration in SD9, as of January 15th, was 42.62% Republican, 38.17% Democratic, 18.3% registered Independent, and 0.91% Libertarian. In 2020, Pemberton defeated his Democratic opponent by a vote of 58.11% to 41.89%.

Candidate filing for this open seat will be April 3rd to 5th.