Aaron Forst, an Owasso childcare business owner, defeated incumbent state Sen. Dana Prieto by more than 30 points in the Senate District 34 Republican runoff on Aug. 25, winning about 66% of the vote.

Forst, 43, will face Democrat Amy Hossain in the Nov. 3 general election for the seat covering east and north Tulsa neighborhoods, Owasso and Sperry. Little public information is available about Hossain's platform.

The lopsided result capped a rapid reversal. In the June primary, Prieto finished just 115 votes ahead of Forst in a four-way field, taking 29.4% to Forst's 27.3%. But more than 70% of Republican primary voters chose someone other than the incumbent, a signal Forst cited heading into the runoff.

"Our incumbent is not present and does not work for the people of this district," Forst said in an Aug. 17 Tulsa Flyer preview of the race.

Forst owns Granny & Dot's Early Childhood Development Center in Owasso with his wife, Adrienne. A former EMT and biomedical engineer, he centered his campaign on cross-party collaboration, particularly on childcare policy he framed as a workforce issue.

The policy achievement he points to most is House Bill 2778, which he helped shape with Rep. Suzanne Schreiber, D-Tulsa. The law exempts low-income childcare workers who qualify for a subsidy from paying a copay, giving them an incentive to stay on the job. It carried an $11.5 million budget impact and passed with a veto override.

Prieto was absent from the HB 2778 vote. Forst said Prieto told him he opposed the measure because a Democrat was involved.

Prieto, 69, co-founded the Oklahoma Freedom Caucus in September 2024, a faction considered the furthest-right group at the state capitol. He won the SD 34 seat in 2022 after redistricting reshaped the district, defeating then-incumbent Democrat J.J. Dossett.

Despite their clash over bipartisanship, the two candidates agreed on backing private school tax credits, bolstering trade programs in high schools, protecting gun rights and championing parental rights. Both are anti-abortion Christian conservatives.

Forst's endorsements included the Tulsa Fraternal Order of Police, firefighters associations in Tulsa and Owasso, OKBizPac, the Oklahoma Second Amendment Association, Moms for Liberty and Mental Health Now. He also signed the Taxpayer Protection Pledge from Americans for Tax Reform.

The Nov. 3 general election is the next milestone for the district.