Animal fighting on the ballot in runoff elections

A pro-cockfighting organization is actively supporting at least two candidates for the Oklahoma Legislature, providing endorsements and campaign contributions.

August 22, 2024‍

When Oklahoma voters go to the polls August 27 to decide state legislative runoff primary elections, they may not realize their votes could send pro-animal fighting candidates to the state capitol.

State Senate District 33 candidate Shelley Gwartney and Oklahoma House District 50 candidate Stacy Jo Adams, both Republicans, have been endorsed by the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission, an organization of animal fighters who want to decriminalize their illegal activity by influencing state lawmakers. The candidates have also received political contributions from individuals in the cockfighting community.

Kirkpatrick Policy Group calls on constituents in both districts to turn out and vote against these candidates, sending a message that politicians who associate with animal fighting loyalists should not serve in state government.  

Gwartney attracted to animal fighters’ ‘stories of injustice’

Seeking to succeed term-limited Senator Nathan Dahm in a district that covers parts of Tulsa and Broken Arrow, Gwartney has expressed sympathy for animal fighters and their “stories of injustice due to … corruption within our criminal justice system,” according to a statement released by the nonprofit Animal Wellness Action.

In November 2023, Gwartney attended an Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission legislative rally in McAlester. The group purports to advocate for the rights of gamefowl farmers—not animal fighting—but cockfighting T-shirts and paraphernalia were on display, and several speakers openly endorsed cockfighting, said Kevin Chambers, Oklahoma state director for Animal Wellness Action. “Based on my involvement in working to dismantle animal fighting operations over forty years, I believe the barbaric practice of cockfighting has no place in Oklahoma,” said Chambers. “Support for cockfighting and the supplying of fighting roosters for cockfighting—perhaps one of the most reprehensible forms of animal cruelty—is disqualifying for public office.”

According to The Humane Society of the United States, “cockfighting is an age-old practice in which two or more specially bred birds, known as gamecocks, are placed in an enclosed pit to fight for the primary purposes of gambling and entertainment. A typical cockfight can last anywhere from several minutes to more than half an hour and usually results in the death of one or both birds.” Sometimes, gaffs (sharp knives) are attached to the roosters’ legs to make them more lethal. Organized cockfights are often associated with other criminal activities such as drug trafficking, illegal gambling, gang activity, and illegal weapon sales.

Anthony Devore, president of the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission, gave Gwartney’s campaign a $1,000 contribution in November 2023, according to campaign finance reports filed with the Oklahoma Ethics Commission. In December 2023, Gwartney touted her endorsement by the cockfighters’ group on her campaign Facebook page, Chambers said.

Gwartney—who says she does not support animal fighting—nonetheless defends the cockfighting community, saying that local law enforcement is harassing breeders.

Oklahomans voted to make cockfighting illegal in a 2002 statewide ballot initiative.

Gwartney will face Broken Arrow businesswoman Christi Gillespie in the Senate District 33 Republican runoff primary. The winner of the election will oppose Democrat Bob Willis of Broken Arrow in the November 5 general election.

Animal fighters support Stacy Jo Adams

Republican Stacy Jo Adams of Duncan is running to succeed outgoing Representative Marcus McEntire in House District 50, which covers Jefferson County and parts of Stephens County in southern Oklahoma. Stacy Jo Adams and her husband, gamefowl breeder Ricky Lynn Adams, live on a ranch in the district. Aerial photos of the ranch, provided to Kirkpatrick Policy Group by Animal Wellness Action, show orderly rows of what appear to be rooster huts lining the property.

Stacy Jo Adams has also received support from cockfighting proponents, including a $2,300 campaign contribution on June 7 from rooster farmer and cockfighter Jason Fincannon of Sand Springs, according to ethics reports. The Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission endorsed Adams on its Facebook page in April. In March, her campaign received $500 in political donations from John Gilby, one of seven men arrested and charged with felonies following the bust of a large cockfighting derby in rural Carter County in June 2023.

During that bust, the Carter County Sheriff’s Office seized a trailer outfitted with built-in cages containing roosters that was registered to Ricky Adams. More than eighty people attended that cockfight, according to reports, many of them running into the woods once law enforcement arrived. At the scene, deputies found fighting pits, dead roosters, drugs, cash, ledgers to track bets, and weapons. Chance Campo, a former Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission leader, was also charged with felony cockfighting for his involvement in the event but struck a plea bargain with prosecutors and was convicted of the misdemeanor charge of “spectating a cockfight.”

After Kirkpatrick Policy Group published a story in June about Stacy Jo Adams’ link to cockfighting, the candidate responded on social media, claiming her husband had loaned his trailer to a friend and wasn’t involved in the animal fighting event.

In 2022, Ricky Adams gave a contribution to a political action committee formed by the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission to influence state politics. The Oklahoman reported in 2023 that the Oklahoma Gamefowl Commission PAC had donated more than $70,000 to state lawmakers “in a push to decrease penalties” for cockfighting. The newspaper also noted campaign finance reporting irregularities by the group.

Stacy Jo Adams’ opponent in the House District 50 Republican runoff is Andrew Aldridge, state director of Peer Resolution for Oklahoma Students, a program that teaches youth to deal with conflict in a positive way. With no other candidates in the race, the election will determine the winner of the seat.

State voters oppose cockfighting

A survey of 500 statewide registered voters in March 2023 showed that Oklahomans overwhelmingly oppose cockfighting and believe the blood sport should remain illegal, according to pollster Pat McFerron of Sooner Survey. “There are few issues that unite Oklahomans more than their belief that cockfighting should be illegal,” said McFerron. “Not only do Oklahomans want cockfighting to be illegal, but they want it to be a felony.”

The polling numbers were consistent across all demographics, including men and women, Republican and Democrats, and urban and rural voters. “Fully 77 percent of voters say they are at least inclined to vote against anyone advocating for a lower criminal classification for cockfighting while only 11 percent say they would vote for such a candidate,” said McFerron.

The poll results showed that only five percent of voters would “definitely” vote for a candidate who wants to decriminalize cockfighting to a misdemeanor, while 52 percent said they would “definitely” vote against that candidate. “Any candidate for office that toys with the idea of permitting cockfighting to occur without the risk of a felony is at odds with voters,” McFerron said.

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