Gubernatorial candidate Jake Merrick and lieutenant governor candidate JJ Humphrey addressed supporters during a recent campaign stop, outlining their positions on government oversight, education, property taxes, marijuana regulation and state agency reform.

The event included opening remarks from Merrick, followed by an extended address from Humphrey, who focused heavily on allegations of corruption within state government.

— Merrick: “Family First” Campaign

Merrick, a former state senator and pastor, introduced himself by sharing his personal background, including his education at Dallas Baptist University and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and his family’s adoption experience through Oklahoma’s Department of Human Services (DHS).

He described his campaign as “family first,” emphasizing parental authority, opposition to abortion and protection of homeschooling freedoms in Oklahoma.

Merrick said Oklaho‑ma is among the freest states for homeschool families and expressed opposition to addition‑al regulation or govern‑ment funding tied to homeschool oversight.

He also criticized DHS, alleging systemic corruption and calling for what he described as a “massive dismantling” and restructuring of the agency. Merrick refer‑enced reports of agen‑cies requesting fund‑ing without providing itemized breakdowns and said he supports a state-level review of government spending similar to the federal “Doge” effort.

— P roperty Tax Reform During a ques‑tion- and-answer ses‑sion, Merrick addressed concerns about elim‑inating or reducing property taxes.

He said he supports removing property taxes on homesteaded property once it is paid off, arguing that home‑owners should not risk losing property due to unpaid taxes.

Merrick acknowl‑edged concerns about replacing lost revenue and discussed poten‑tial options including phased elimination, sales tax adjustments, or structural reforms at the county level. He also expressed support for reducing or eliminating the state income tax.

Merrick raised con‑cerns about foreign ownership of Oklahoma land, stating that loop‑holes still allow foreign entities to purchase property in the state.

He also criticized what he described as abuse of eminent domain au‑thority by state agencies and energy developers.

— M arijuana Regulation When asked about Oklahoma’s medical marijuana system, Mer‑rick said he does not support undoing le‑galization but believes additional regulation is necessary.

He cited concerns about overproduction, ease of obtaining medi‑cal cards, foreign owner‑ship in grow operations and the sale of synthetic substances such as kra‑tom in gas stations. He said marijuana can have medical benefits but must be properly regu‑lated.

— H umphrey focuses on corruption claims Lieutenant governor candidate JJ Humphrey, a current state represen‑tative and former law enforcement officer, de‑voted the majority of his remarks to allegations of corruption across multi‑ple state agencies.

Humphrey said his priority is exposing and addressing what he described as misuse of public funds within DHS, the Department of Corrections, the At‑torney General’s office and other state agencies.

He referenced:

• Allegations of unac‑counted DHS funds

• Concerns about De‑partment of Corrections contracts and compen‑sation decisions

• Questions about broadband funding dis‑tribution • Allegations related to state procurement prac‑tices Humphrey said he is seeking the office of lieutenant governor rather than state audi‑tor because he believes the position would give him a stronger platform to influence Senate op‑erations and state over‑sight.

He characterized him‑self as a candidate will‑ing to confront lead‑ership and challenge existing structures with‑in state government.

— Themes of the Evening Throughout the event, both candidates empha‑sized: • Reducing govern‑ment size and spending

• Increasing transpar‑ency and audits

• Protecting parental rights

• Restructuring state agencies

• Limiting foreign land ownership

• Addressing property tax reform The meeting conclud‑ed with informal discus‑sion between attendees and candidates.