Originally from Stillwater, but now living in Choctaw, Leisa Mitchell Haynes told KRMG she has wanted to be governor since the second grade.

“There was a lady running for lieutenant governor and I looked at her and I said, ‘she looks a little goofy to me, acts a little goofy, I think I can do a better job than that.” Mitchell Haynes said. “By third grade, God had told me I will be a governor.”

She said her life choices from that point on were made to reach her goal of becoming a governor.

Mitchell Haynes has a background in media and city government. She told KRMG she has a Bachelor’s in Communication from East Central University and worked as a Main Street Manager in Purcell and Shawnee.

She later worked in the Main Street program at the state Department of Commerce.

Mitchell Haynes said she liked her job in Shawnee so much that she put her gubernatorial aspirations on hold until 2023.

The number one issue Mitchell Haynes said she would address as governor is roads.

“I want to help the cities and counties fix these streets and bridges that have been left neglected.” Mitchell Haynes said.

The second item on her list is covering all overpasses with fencing. She cited incidents in which items were thrown from overpasses into traffic below, causing injuries.

She told KRMG she would want convicted rapists who targeted children, the elderly or people under anesthesia to face the death penalty.

Mitchell Haynes also said she would work to repair the State’s relations with Native American tribes.

“I consider the Native American tribes an asset to Oklahoma, I’m going to be a partner, not a problem.” Mitchell Haynes said. “I want them to know that I love them and I’m ending this war.”

Mitchell Haynes said she wants the citizens of Oklahoma to vote on whether to put The Lord’s Prayer in schools and she plans to make Bibles available in every school library.

On education, she said she would give every teacher and support staff a $10,000 raise and retirees a $5,000 raise.

She has other education plans, including sending Oklahoma’s top teachers to the top schools to observe and to Louisiana, a state she sees as a good model on how to improve education rankings.

On taxes, Mitchell Haynes said Oklahoma is falling behind as other states in the region lower their state income taxes.

“We should be able to lower it, probably at least by half,” she said of the personal state income tax.

For more on Leisa Mitchell Haynes, you can visit her campaign website here or listen to her full KRMG interview below.

Listen here