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Report Shows Some Candidates Donated Big To Their Own Campaigns

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Janet Barresi
Oklahoma Department of Education

While national groups like governors' associations were among the top donors for state-level elections across the country in 2014, in Oklahoma it was candidates themselves who spent the most money trying to win elections last year.

A new analysis from the Washington-based Center for Public Integrity shows the top single donor to a state-level election in Oklahoma was former Republican State Superintendent Janet Barresi, who gave $1.3 million to her own unsuccessful re-election campaign.

A distant second on Oklahoma's list was former Republican state Sen. Cliff Branan, who spent about $350,000 on his failed bid for a seat on the Oklahoma Corporation Commission.

The other top Oklahoma donors were the Chickasaw Nation with $310,000, Labor Commissioner Mark Costello with $275,000 and Republican state Senate candidate Joe Howell with $203,000.

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