Oklahoma House Speaker T.W. Shannon (R-Lawton) to Run for U.S. Senate

Rarely does Peanut Politics venture outside of Georgia, but in this case it's different.

Shannon with wife and family

Oklahoma's Republican House Speaker T.W. Shannon will run for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated early by U.S. Sen. Tom Coburn tomorrow at a series of events scheduled out in Oklahoma

The 35-year-old from Lawton joins two-term U.S. Rep. James Lankford in the race for the state's first open U.S. Senate seat since 2004.

A member of the Chickasaw Nation, Shannon was the first African-American and the youngest speaker of the Oklahoma House when elected last year.

Shannon is a 6th generation Oklahoman and 3rd generation Lawtonian. T.W. is an enrolled member of the Chickasaw Nation. He is a former Congressional Staffer having worked for U.S. Representatives JC Watts and Tom Cole.