Rep. Kevin Hern, the Oklahoma Republican who built a business empire under the golden arches before winning a seat in Congress, cruised to victory in the state's Senate primary on June 16, earning the right to call himself the first "McSenator" in American history.
Hern, 64, carried President Trump's endorsement and the backing of Senate GOP leadership into a race he dominated from the start. The four-term congressman won with 68 percent of the vote, as projected by the Associated Press, clearing the 50-percent threshold needed to avoid a runoff. In deep-red Oklahoma, the primary win all but guarantees him a seat in the upper chamber.
The seat opened when Sen. Markwayne Mullin left to become Trump's Secretary of Homeland Security. Gov. Kevin Stitt appointed energy executive Alan Armstrong to fill the remaining months of Mullin's term, but state law barred Armstrong from running for a full six-year term, setting the stage for Hern's bid.
Hern's biography reads like a case study in private-sector grit. He once owned 18 McDonald's franchises around Tulsa, spending nearly 35 years in the business before liquidating his holdings by 2021. His most recent financial disclosure puts his net worth at a minimum of $110 million, wealth he built one franchise at a time before entering politics in 2018.
He has never been shy about the connection. In a 2018 Fox News op-ed written as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez was rising to national prominence, Hern leaned into the comparison between his own path and hers:
"People call me the 'McCongressman' and trivialize my real-world experience because it's tied to the golden arches. It doesn't bother me because the McDonald's franchise program helped me realize my American Dream."
He added in the same piece that he had embraced the nickname "Big Mac" and liked to share his "secret sauce" for success. The self-deprecating humor masked a serious point: that running a franchise operation with hundreds of employees and millions in revenue is a better apprenticeship for public office than most career tracks in Washington.
When Hern made a bid for House Speaker after Kevin McCarthy's ouster in October 2023, he delivered cheeseburgers to Republican colleagues while courting their votes. The bid failed, but the gesture stuck. Now, as he prepares for a general election, the New York Post has dubbed him the future "McSenator", a title he seems unlikely to resist.
The president's influence in this race was swift and decisive. Trump endorsed Hern within 48 hours of his entering the Senate contest, Fox News reported, calling him "strongly supported by the fiercest MAGA Warriors in Oklahoma." Trump said Hern would be an "outstanding" senator and declared he "WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!"
That endorsement effectively cleared the field. Hern's most serious potential GOP rivals stayed out of the race entirely, AP News reported, a testament to Trump's continued role as Republican kingmaker in primary contests.
Hern also secured endorsements from Senate Majority Leader John Thune and NRSC Chairman Tim Scott of South Carolina. Bernadette Breslin of the National Republican Senatorial Committee framed the candidacy in terms that tied Hern directly to the president's own brand:
"Kevin Hern is ready to bring his entrepreneurial spirit and work ethic to the Senate, and, like President Trump, he proudly has McDonald's on his résumé."
That line was no throwaway. Trump famously worked a drive-thru shift at a Pennsylvania McDonald's during the 2024 campaign, and at a McDonald's Impact Summit last November, he called both Hern and Rep. Chuck Edwards of North Carolina, who owns six McDonald's franchises, "warriors." Trump deadpanned at the summit: "I've gone there a couple of times."
The result in Oklahoma stands in contrast to a rare Trump endorsement defeat in an Iowa GOP governor's race, underscoring that the president's primary track record remains formidable even if it is not perfect.
Hern wasted no time signaling his legislative priorities. In his victory remarks, he pointed to the SAVE America Act, legislation aimed at tightening voter eligibility verification, as a top concern among Oklahoma voters.
"They're saying we need to work on, you know, the SAVE Act. I mean, this is time and time again."
He also credited the endorsement directly to his record: "The president endorsed me in the first 48 hours because of the work I've done over the last eight years." Hern currently serves as House Republican Policy Chair, the fourth-highest role in House GOP leadership, a perch that gave him visibility on the national stage and credibility with the conservative base.
After his win, Hern struck a confident tone about November and beyond. "We have a lot of friends in a lot of different states, including blue states," he said.
The chain of events that created this opening began in March, when Mullin was confirmed as DHS Secretary by a 54, 45 Senate vote. National Review reported that Gov. Stitt moved quickly to appoint Armstrong, the executive chairman of Williams Companies, a natural gas pipeline operator. Stitt praised Armstrong as "a strong business leader who understands the power of free markets and limited government."
Armstrong, a political newcomer, was barred by state law from seeking a full term. That legal quirk guaranteed an open primary, and Hern, already a known quantity in Oklahoma Republican circles, jumped in.
Oklahoma state law also allows the November winner to assume the vacated seat immediately, the Washington Examiner noted, meaning Hern could take office as early as fall if he wins the general election. He would then serve a full six-year term. For a party focused on maintaining and expanding its margins in Congress, the speed matters.
Hern's departure from the House will trigger its own scramble. Jackson Lahmeyer, a pastor and "Pastors for Trump" founder, had been vying for Hern's House seat but suspended his campaign last month over allegations involving a sexting scandal with a former Miss Oklahoma. The race for Hern's district remains unsettled.
In the Senate, Hern would join a chamber where Trump has aggressively worked to shape the Republican caucus. The president's reported courtship of Sen. John Fetterman and his endorsements in competitive primaries across the country reflect a broader strategy to stock the upper chamber with allies who will advance his agenda without hesitation.
Hern fits the mold. He is a businessman, not a career politician. He built something tangible before he ran for anything. He chaired the Republican Study Committee, the largest conservative caucus in the House, and has been a reliable vote on spending restraint, border security, and deregulation.
The broader primary landscape this cycle has shown Trump's grip on Republican nominations remains strong, even as Democrats fight their own internal battles over progressive versus establishment candidates in Senate primaries elsewhere. In Oklahoma, there was no such drama. Trump picked his man, the voters agreed, and the field cleared.
Hern himself put it plainly during his earlier, unsuccessful bid for House Speaker, speaking on Fox News Channel's Cavuto Live:
"People want to be heard, and I spent time listening to people, learning that almost 35 years in the McDonald's business. And people want to be valued in their opinions."
It is a simple insight, the kind you learn behind a counter, not behind a lectern. Whether that sensibility translates to the Senate remains to be seen. But Oklahoma voters decided they'd rather send a man who built 18 franchises from scratch than another politician who never signed the front of a paycheck.
Washington could use more people who know what it costs to make a payroll, and fewer who have never had to.
