Kendra Horn concedes to Stephanie Bice in Oklahoma, flipping seat back to GOP

Rep. Kendra Horn (D) on Wednesday morning conceded to state Sen. Stephanie Bice (R) in the hotly contested race to represent Oklahoma’s 5th District in Congress, returning a previously red seat to the GOP.

Bice’s victory means Republicans will take back control of the Oklahoma City-area district after Horn flipped the seat in 2018, becoming the first Democrat to win it since the 1970s.

The congresswoman-elect has served as the assistant majority floor leader and chair of the Finance Committee in the Oklahoma state Senate. Her website describes her as “pro-life conservative” who has  been endorsed by the National Rifle Association.

Horn, a moderate Democrat, is a member of the Blue Dog Coalition and chairs the Space and Aeronautics subcommittee on the House’s Science, Space and Technology Committee.

In 2018, Horn had a surprise victory over then-Rep. Steve Russell (R).

This year, The Cook Political Report, an election forecaster, had determined that the race between Bice and Horn was a toss-up.