Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) announced on March 11, 2026, that he will run to represent Oklahoma in the U.S. Senate in 2026 rather than for another term in the U.S. House of Representatives. 

On March 4, 2026, President Donald Trump (R) announced that he was nominating incumbent Sen. Markwayne Mullin (R-Okla.) to serve as Secretary of Homeland Security. If the U.S. Senate confirms Mullin, Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) must appoint someone to serve the remainder of Mullin’s term, which ends on Jan. 3, 2027. The appointee must sign an affidavit stating that they will not run for the seat this year, leaving it open.

As of March 10, 2026, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the seat as Solid Republican. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Republican.

On his campaign, Hern posted on X, “I grew up on an Air Force base, worked my way through school, built businesses, and served Oklahoma in Congress. Now I’m ready to fight for Oklahoma in the Senate.”

In 2018, Hern ran for his first term in the U.S. House in Oklahoma’s 1st Congressional District, after then-incumbent Rep. Jim Bridenstine (R-Okla.) announced he would not seek re-election. Hern defeated Tim Gilpin (D) in the general election 59% to 41%. Leading up to the general election, Bridenstine resigned to serve as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in Trump’s first term. The timing of the resignation allowed then-Gov. Mary Fallin (R) to appoint Hern to serve the remainder of Bridenstine’s term following the general election.

Hern won re-election in 2020 by 31 percentage points, in 2022 by 27 percentage points, and in 2024 by 26 percentage points.

As of March 10, 2026, independent race forecasters The Cook Political Report and Inside Elections have rated the 2026 general election for the district as a Solid Republican. Sabato’s Crystal Ball rated it Safe Republican.

As of March 11, 2026, Hern is one of 66 members of the U.S. Congress — 10 U.S. Senate members and 56 U.S. House members — who have announced they will not seek re-election to their current seats in 2026. 

Of the 56 U.S. House incumbents who are not seeking re-election:

• Twenty-eight — 13 Democrats and 15 Republicans — are retiring from public office.
• Sixteen — seven Democrats and nine Republicans — are running for the U.S. Senate.
• Eleven — one Democrat and 10 Republicans — are running for governor.
• One Republican is running for state attorney general.

Compared to the last four election cycles, there were 42 retirement announcements at this point in 2024, 45 in 2022, 34 in 2020, and 46 in 2018. 

Between January 2011 and March 2026, Ballotpedia tracked 354 announcements by U.S. House members that they would not seek re-election. January had the highest number of members announcing they would not run for re-election at 61. The fewest announcements took place in June at 15.