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Democratic hopeful Abby Broyles is in the running for a seat on the United States Senate and she made an appearance in Bartlesville on Tuesday night.

The Washington County Democratic Party hosted Broyles during their Candidate Forum at the Tower Center at Unity Square. Broyles said she is running against Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe because she believes he is no longer up for the job. She said Sen. Inhofe is completely out of touch with every day Oklahomans and the realities they face when it comes to health care and education.

Familes have gone through so much during the pandemic, and Broyles said Sen. Inhofe has been completely absent this year. She said there has been no leadership from Sen. Inhofe.

Broyles said Oklahoma needs a Senator that is going to get up each and every day and work across the aisle to get things done for Oklahoma. She said Oklahoma does not need a Senator that is part of the partisan gridlock that keeps work from being done. 

When looking at Oklahoma's response to the coronavirus, Broyles said the response we need is real leadership. She said we need to get things done in Oklahoma like expanding rural broadband to ensure that our kids have access to the internet so they can do their homework from home. She said we also need to ensure that our healthcare workers have everything they need to treat patients.

The case numbers, Broyles said, are not going to go down with a complete lack of leadership. Broyles said her opponent has been absent from everything. She said Sen. Inhofe said the coronavirus pandemic was a hoax months ago.

Broyles said Oklahoma could have had a handle on the coronavirus a long time ago. She said Sen. Inhofe knew how serious the pandemic could be in January, but did nothing but sell his stock and bring President Donald Trump to Tulsa for a campaign rally and a photo op.

During the event, Broyles also gave her stance on police reform. Broyles said she does not support dismantling police departments. She said she supports the meaningful conversations that are happening right now when it comes to police reform.

These conversations to Broyles are a step towards preventing a few bad apples from entering law enforcement. Broyles said Sen. Inhofe will not say "Black Lives Matter," but she will. She said it is not an "Us versus Them" issue, but rather a time where leadership needs to call out racial injustice when it occurs.

Broyles said certain leaders are calling out racial injustice when they see it, but Oklahoma Sen. Jim Inhofe is not.

Broyles will face off against Sen. Inhofe in the General Election on Tuesday, Nov. 3rd.