Forrest Welch Bennett
Assistant Minority Leader of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
In office
January 2021 – January 2023
Preceded byShane Stone
Succeeded byMelissa Provenzano
Assistant Minority Floor Leader of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
In office
January 2019 – January 2021
Succeeded byJohn Waldron
Member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives
from the 92nd district
Assumed office
November 17, 2016
Preceded byRichard Morrissette
Personal details
Born (1989-08-13) August 13, 1989
Bartlesville, Oklahoma, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationUniversity of Oklahoma (BA, MPA)

Forrest Welch Bennett (born August 13, 1989) is an American politician who has served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from the 92nd district since 2016.[1][2]

Early life

Bennett was born on August 13, 1989, in Bartlesville, Oklahoma, to Kevin and Cindy Bennett.[3] He graduated from Bartlesville High School in 2008 and enrolled at the University of Oklahoma.[3] While at OU, Bennett was involved with student government, including the Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature,[4] and ran for OU student body president in 2011.[5] He graduated from OU with a bachelor's degree in political science in 2012 and completed his master's in public administration in 2016.[6] Following graduation, Bennett worked for a political consulting firm[3] and the public education advocacy group Stand For Children.[7][3]

Political career

In 2016, Bennett was one of three Democratic candidates who filed in Oklahoma House District 92 to replace Richard Morrissette, who could not run for re-election due to term limits.[8] During the campaign, Bennett made headlines for having his vehicle stolen while campaigning.[9] After securing his party's nomination, Bennett defeated Republican challenger Joe Griffin to win his seat.[10]

Bennett ran unopposed for re-election in 2018.[11]

Personal life

Bennett has two brothers, and stated “(g)rowing up as the middle child among three brothers has definitely helped me to understand the importance of compromise and negotiation.”[3] Bennett is married to OKCPS board member Meg McElhaney[12]

Election Results

2016 Oklahoma House District 92 General Election November 8, 2016
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Forrest Bennett 3,263 60.54
Republican Joe Griffin 2,127 39.46

References

  1. ↑ "Forrest Bennett wins seat in diverse House District 92". Newsok.com. 2016-11-08. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  2. ↑ "Representative Forrest Bennett". Okhouse.gov. Retrieved 2019-03-29.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Bartlesville man runs for legislature in OKC". Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise. 2016-01-24. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  4. ↑ "THE UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA OKLAHOMA INTERCOLLEGIATE LEGISLATURE DELEGATION". Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  5. ↑ "UOSA candidates Forrest and Katherine discuss goals". 2011-03-07. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  6. ↑ "Bennett to take Bartlesville heritage to Capitol". 2016-12-27. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  7. ↑ "Bennett's past connection to controversial Common Core group draws questions". 2015-06-03. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  8. ↑ "Two Oklahoma House candidates have arrest records". 2016-06-27. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  9. ↑ "Candidate for Oklahoma house representative has car stolen while campaigning". 2016-05-02. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  10. ↑ "Oklahoma 92nd District State House Results Forrest Bennett Wins". 2017-08-01. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  11. ↑ "Governor's Race Tops Oklahoma Candidate Filings". 2018-04-13. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  12. ↑ "Oklahoma City School Board appoints newest member". 2019-11-22. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
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