Republican candidate found dead

A father running for office in Oklahoma has been found dead.

On Thursday, the body of Barry Christian, 54, was found inside his vehicle at a wildlife refuge near Erick, a small city in Western Oklahoma, just a few miles east of the Texas panhandle.

'We are still not sure of everything that happened.'

Christian was reported missing on Wednesday after he failed to appear for a scheduled meeting. He was last seen on Tuesday in Sayre, Oklahoma, about 15 miles from Erick.

The Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation confirmed that Christian was running for the state Senate, and it seems his campaign was active at the time of his death. His Facebook account posted an invite to a meet-and-greet at a rattlesnake festival in Mangum on Saturday.

State election records confirmed that on April 2, he filed to run as a Republican for Senate District 38. On his campaign website, Christian portrayed himself as a pro-Trump "conservative" who supported the First and Second Amendments and opposed open borders and abortion.

Christian's name will still appear on the ballot for the Republican primary race in June. There are two other candidates in the race, though the incumbent, state Sen. Brent Howard (R), is not one of them. Howard announced last year that he would not seek a third term, NonDoc reported.

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Like most of the state, the 38th Senate District is overwhelmingly Republican. President Donald Trump carried some counties in Southwest Oklahoma by upwards of 75% in 2024.

While the political race will carry on, the Christian family is shattered by the loss of Barry, according to a statement from daughter Brooklyn:

Please pray for our family and friends. Our world is upside down right now. We are still not sure of everything that happened, so please act with grace and treat my dad’s legacy with dignity. We’re extremely grateful for everyone who assisted in the search efforts, and all of the media outlets that shared his information. I know there will be lots of people devastated by his passing.

A cause of death has not yet been determined, and the OSBI is still actively investigating this case. When reached for comment, the agency directed Blaze News to its social media page.

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