Part 4: Conflicts of Interest and Donors — Who Does Kevin Hern Really Work For?
Introduction
Kevin Hern likes to present himself as a businessman-turned-statesman who understands the challenges of ordinary Oklahoman because he grew up in a poor family. But his record in Washington tells a different story. On the Ways and Means Committee, Hern writes tax and budget legislation that often benefits the wealthy, corporate donors, and even the companies he trades stock in. These may be legal practices, but they create glaring conflicts of interest and leave voters wondering: is Hern really representing District 1 or his and his donors’ interests?
Stock Trades and Conflicts of Interests
Hern is not just active in the stock market — he is one of the top traders in Congress, regularly ranking in the top 10 for both the number and total value of trades. In 2023 alone, his disclosed transactions totaled over $15 million, spanning industries like energy, finance, and healthcare — the very sectors lobbying his committees.
While legal, this creates a glaring conflict of interest: Hern can write or block legislation that directly influences the companies he invests in. For constituents, that raises a simple question — whose bottom line is he protecting, District 1 families or his own?
Dependence on Out of State Donors
Follow the money, and the story gets worse. In the 2023–24 cycle, PAC money made up 68.49% ($1,520,964) of Hern’s campaign receipts, while small-dollar grassroots donations were just 1.64% ($36,443). That means nearly every dollar Hern raises comes from somewhere other than the people he represents. By comparison, Senator James Lankford gets about 16% of his funding from individual in-state donors — nearly ten times more than Hern. Other Oklahoma members of Congress also report far higher levels of home-state support, making Hern an outlier in how little he relies on his own constituents.
Hern does receive small direct contributions from District 1 businesses (for example, Williams Companies gave ~$10,000 via its PAC plus ~$6,600 through affiliated employees in the 2023–24 cycle). He also reports a small pool of local individual donors. Together, all other local contributions — corporate affiliates plus individual donors — add up to well under 1% of his total fundraising. The overwhelming bulk of Hern’s campaign cash still comes from out-of-district PACs, industry associations, and wealthy donors, many of whom have business before the Ways and Means Committee he sits on.
On top of that, much of the money flowing into Hern’s race comes through Super PACs, where donors are not required to disclose their names. That means Oklahomans have no way of knowing who is bankrolling Hern’s campaign, what industries they represent, or what they expect in return.
Why PACs Matter
The dominance of PAC money in Hern’s fundraising isn’t an accident — it’s the result of the 2010 Supreme Court decision in Citizens United v. FEC. That ruling allowed corporations, unions, and wealthy individuals to spend unlimited sums through PACs and super PACs. The effect has been to amplify the voices of out-of-state donors while drowning out the local constituents members of Congress are supposed to represent.
For District 1, the record shows Hern’s votes seem to reflect the priorities of corporate boardrooms and national industry groups far more than the everyday needs of families in Tulsa, Broken Arrow, or Owasso.
Selling Out Working Families
Consider the contrast: Hern supports cutting Title I funding, SNAP benefits, and IRS enforcement of wealthy tax cheats, while fighting to preserve tax loopholes and corporate breaks. The trade-off is obvious — working families in District 1 lose resources, while corporations and his high-net-worth donors gain.
It may be legal, but it isn’t right. When a Congressman protects loopholes for the rich while raising costs for everyone else, he is choosing sides. And Hern has chosen to side with wealth over the majority of the people living in his district.
Conclusion
Kevin Hern’s record of active stock trading, donor-driven priorities, and committee votes that align with corporate interests shows a pattern: he is representing the wealthy few, not the 90% of families in District 1. Constituents deserve a representative who writes legislation for them — not one whose financial and political ties raise constant questions about divided loyalties.
💡 Series Recap:
Part 1: Citizen Well-Being — Healthcare, Nutrition, and Education
Part 2: Fiscal Mismanagement — Deficit, Stagflation, and Lost Credibility
Part 3: Veterans and Seniors — Undermining Benefits and Retirement Security
Part 4: Conflicts of Interest and Donors — Who Hern Really Works For
👉 You can read all parts at wlangdon.substack.com. Subscribe for free to get notified when new articles are posted.