Early voting is under way in southern Oklahoma as voters in House District 49 decide between two hometown candidates from Kingston. The district, which spans portions of Carter, Love and Marshall counties, will be represented by either Republican incumbent Josh Cantrell or Democrat Dusty Jo Jones.
Candidate backgrounds and priorities
Josh Cantrell is running for a third term in the state House. He told voters, “We still have a lot of work to do at the state, I still have a lot of work that I need to complete.” Cantrell highlighted his focus on public‑school safety and teacher retention. He authored House Bill 3885, which would have imposed stricter disciplinary measures for violent student behavior and provided additional protections for teachers. Although the bill did not advance to the Senate, Cantrell said he will continue to fight for policies that keep classrooms safe and support educators.
“Violence in schools isn’t anything we can accept, especially when the violence is directed toward the teachers or staff of the schools. We have enough trouble keeping teachers in the state of Oklahoma,” Cantrell said.
Dusty Jo Jones entered the race as a Democrat and a cancer survivor who wants to restore the district’s economic vitality. She recalled growing up in the area when “we had a lot of good jobs here, there were businesses, we were in the upper quartile in education.” Jones said her platform centers on bringing back those opportunities and improving health‑care access for rural residents.
“Personally, I drive almost three hours sometimes for health‑care and I just feel like that’s hard for people, especially in the rural areas where there’s no hospitals,” Jones explained, emphasizing the need for more local medical services.
Election logistics
Early voting ends Saturday at 2 p.m. Polls will reopen for Election Day on Tuesday, with voting hours from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Voters can find polling locations on the Oklahoma State Election Board website. Results are expected to be reported Tuesday night.
Final messages to voters
Both candidates offered personal appeals to the electorate. Cantrell urged voters to “search your own soul, search your own belief system and find a candidate that best matches your belief system.” Jones responded, “Let’s get people in there who want to do the job and want to be proud of Oklahoma.”
The race reflects the broader concerns of rural Oklahomans—school safety, job creation, education quality and health‑care accessibility—issues that will shape the district’s future regardless of which candidate wins.
Original reporting: KXII News 12 (Gray) — read the source article.
