Joy Hofmeister, the Democratic nominee for governor, correctly says that Oklahoma has higher violent-crime rates than NY and California, and Kevin Stitt says that's "not true" and then bizarrely asks the crowd if they believe it's true.

I somehow don't think the embarrassing Stitt will still be laughing after November 8 when he loses in deep-red Oklahoma.

Source: Washington Post

In a debate Wednesday night between Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R) and his Democratic challenger, Joy Hofmeister, the governor took issue with Hofmeister pointing out — accurately — the state’s violent crime problem.

“So let’s talk about facts: The fact is, the rates of violent crime are higher in Oklahoma under your watch than in New York or California,” said Hofmeister, who is Oklahoma’s superintendent of public instruction. “That’s a fact.”

Stitt interrupted twice to protest that it wasn’t true. The moderator said that would need to be fact-checked.

What was not shown at the debate was that Hofmeister was correct. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Oklahoma has a homicide rate of 9 deaths per 100,000, compared with California’s rate of 6.1 and New York’s rate of 4.7.

A month ago this race was rated "SAFE" for Republicans. Not anymore.