Wes Watkins

Wes Watkins, a former U.S. congressman from Oklahoma who spent time in office as both a Democrat and a Republican, died March 26, 2025 of cardiac arrest in Stillwater, Oklahoma at the age of 86.

After spending time in the Oklahoma National Guard, Watkins launched his political career in 1974, when he won a seat in the state senate. He ran for Congress in 1976, winning as a Democrat and serving in that capacity through 1991. He launched two unsuccessful bids for governor, one as a Democrat in 1990 and another as an independent in 1994. Frustrated by what he perceived as a lack of support from Democrats, in 1996, when he once again ran for Congress, he did so as a Republican. He won, beginning a second tenure in the House that lasted until his retirement in 2003.

"Wes was a remarkable man and had a brilliant career in Congress, serving on two of the House's most powerful committees, the Appropriations Committee and the Ways and Means Committee," Congressman Tom Cole said on Facebook. "I never worked for a more popular figure in a congressional district or a harder working man or a more energetic and effective campaigner than Wes. He was an institution in southeast Oklahoma, serving his constituents ably, honorably, and tirelessly throughout his political career. Wes Watkins may have changed political parties, but he never changed his political principles. He also never lost his passion for public service or let down the people he worked so hard to represent."

(Image: AP Photo)