N'Kiyla Thomas is running as the Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate in Oklahoma. She faces Republican Kevin Hern. Norman voters will decide between the two in the Tuesday, Nov. 3, general election.
Thomas, 31, is a nurse and citizen of the Chickasaw Nation who was born in Ardmore. She won the Democratic primary runoff in August, becoming what NonDoc described as Oklahoma's first "democratic socialist" nominee. Thomas has said she self-identifies as a democratic socialist but is not a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, according to NBC News. She has also said she does not support defunding the Defense Department.
Thomas has said she is running a grassroots campaign that is AIPAC and corporate PAC free, according to her campaign's Instagram account.
Candidate information
- Party: Democratic
- Office sought: U.S. Senate, Oklahoma
- Age: 31 (as of August 2026)
- Birthplace: Ardmore, Oklahoma
- Tribal citizenship: Chickasaw Nation
- Family: Military spouse; her husband was stationed near Fort Campbell in the Kentucky/Tennessee area
- Education: High school diploma, Ardmore High School
Experience
Thomas's background includes work as a nurse, community health worker and stay-at-home parent, according to Ballotpedia and BallotReady.
On the issues
The following positions are drawn from Thomas's campaign website and her statements to news outlets. All are the candidate's own claims.
Healthcare: Thomas says she supports Medicare for All and wants to protect and expand the Affordable Care Act. She says she would expand rural healthcare, including OB-GYN access, pediatric specialists and emergency services. She says she supports restoring Roe v. Wade federally and protecting women from prosecution for miscarriage or pregnancy complications.
Economy and labor: Thomas says she supports a living-wage minimum wage, paid family and medical leave, and pilot programs for a 32-hour, full-pay workweek. She says she favors strong price-gouging protections and strong protections against exploitative landlords. She has proposed a Credit Renewal Act to reset credit every five years.
Military and veterans: As a military spouse, Thomas says she would push to ensure fair military pay that reflects real family costs, fix inaccurate housing and subsistence allowance calculations, and expand childcare access during deployments.
Environment: Thomas says she would strengthen the Clean Water Act, protect tribal water sovereignty and hold polluters accountable.
Education and social services: Thomas says she supports universal, affordable childcare, including 24/7 options. She says she would reduce class sizes, expand early intervention, and reduce overreliance on standardized testing. She also says she supports federal foster care oversight standards and foster-to-family transition support.
The candidate's full policy platform is available at jasmineforok.com/policies.
Candidate positions were drawn from Thomas's campaign website and news coverage of her campaign. The Norman Chronicle did not interview the candidate for this profile.
