Stephanie Bice
Stephanie Bice, a Republican who has represented Oklahoma's 5th congressional district since 2021, seeks re-election in 2026 against Democrat Jena Nelson, a former Oklahoma Teacher of the Year.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
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- Born
- November 11, 1973
- Birthplace
- Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
- Education
- Putnam City High School
Oklahoma State University (bachelor's degree in marketing)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Stephanie Bice was born on November 11, 1973, in Oklahoma City to Paula Sue Vanhooser, an American, and Hosein "Joe" Asady, who is half Iranian and half Pakistani and came to California from Zahedan, Iran, via Karachi, Pakistan, at a young age to study computer science.
She graduated from Putnam City High School in Oklahoma City and then earned a bachelor's degree in marketing, with a minor in international business, from Oklahoma State University.
Bice spent eight years working in financial oversight, business strategy and marketing for her family's technology company in Oklahoma City, and she later served as vice president of business development at a boutique digital marketing agency in the city.
She married Geoffrey Bice in 1996, and the couple have two daughters and live in Edmond, Oklahoma.
Career
Stephanie Bice entered elected office in 2014, when she won a seat in the Oklahoma Senate representing the 22nd district, which she held until 2020.
In 2016 the Senate Republican Caucus elected her Assistant Majority Floor Leader, and she sponsored State Question 792, which overhauled Oklahoma's liquor laws, as well as SB 142 on the use of antipsychotic drugs in nursing homes.
In 2020 she ran for Oklahoma's 5th congressional district, finishing second to Terry Neese in the June 30 Republican primary, defeating Neese in the runoff and then defeating Democrat Kendra Horn, who had won the seat in 2018. Bice is the first Iranian-American elected to Congress.
She won re-election in 2022 and 2024, and in the House she serves on the Committee on Appropriations and the Committee on House Administration, where she chairs the Subcommittee on Modernization.
2026 race
The 5th district is based in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, and Stephanie Bice won re-election there in 2024 with 60.7% of the vote.
After Senator Markwayne Mullin was appointed secretary of homeland security, she considered a run for the U.S. Senate, and on March 13, 2026, she announced she would seek re-election. Bice drew no Republican primary challengers.
Her Democratic opponent is Jena Nelson, the 2020 Oklahoma Teacher of the Year, who won the Democratic primary with 56.7% of the vote over ironworker Trey Martin. Independents Robert Henri and Austin Nieves are also on the ballot for the general election on November 3, 2026.