Adam Pugh officially entered the race for Oklahoma state superintendent Wednesday, filing his candidacy and launching a statewide campaign centered on stronger schools, teacher support, parent involvement, and accountability. No Oklahoma education campaign is complete without the words “parents,” “accountability,” and “students first” getting repeated often enough to qualify as a new state slogan. Pugh said he wants to bring leadership from his background in the military, business, and the Senate to Oklahoma schools, with a focus on giving every student a better opportunity to succeed.

Pugh said his campaign will focus on four main priorities: recruiting and retaining teachers, expanding educational opportunities, giving parents more influence and school options, and making sure more education dollars actually make it into classrooms instead of disappearing into the black hole known as bureaucracy. He said Oklahoma teachers deserve support and flexibility, while parents deserve transparency and choices when it comes to their children’s education. Pugh also pointed to his record in the Senate, where he has worked on teacher pay, literacy programs, and policies designed to give schools more flexibility in meeting local workforce needs.

Edmond resident Pugh has served in the Oklahoma Senate since 2016 and currently chairs the Senate Education Committee. A former Air Force officer and small business owner, he said he would bring conservative leadership and fiscal discipline to the superintendent’s office, two phrases that get used so often in Oklahoma politics they may eventually need their own reserved parking spaces at the Capitol. Pugh and his wife, Sarah, have three children in public schools, and he said he hopes to earn voter support ahead of the June 16 election.