Politics a source of pride in Pottawatomie County

Friday, January 3rd 2003, 12:00 am

By: News On 6

SHAWNEE, Okla. (AP) _ Once known mainly for its American Indian heritage and as the birthplace of astronaut Gordon Cooper, Pottawatomie County now has a new source of pride _ politics.

Gov.-elect Brad Henry and Lt. Gov. Mary Fallin were born and raised in the central Oklahoma county, population 65,521.

Henry, his wife, Kim, and their three daughters still live in the county seat, Shawnee, 37 miles southeast of Oklahoma City. He represented the area as a state senator for 10 years.

Outgoing Auditor and Inspector Cliff Scott, who is retiring after 20 years, lives just south of Shawnee near Tecumseh. His replacement, Jeff McMahan, a 14-year employee of the auditor's office, also lives in Tecumseh.

They join a growing list of homegrown politicians who have risen to statewide prominence, a list that includes former Attorney General Robert Henry (Brad's cousin), former state House Speaker Steve Lewis and the late Congressman Tom Steed.

Why so many have been promoted to statewide service has become the focus of good-natured speculation.

``I think it has something to do with the water,'' quipped Scott, who moved to Pottawatomie 27 years ago.

``It may be just that the name of the county is so long,'' said Brad Henry, whose neighbors sometimes abbreviate the name to simply ``Pot'' to save time.

``We've been joking about the power and influence of Pottawatomie County,'' said Fallin, whose father, the late Newt Copeland, and mother, Mary Jo Copeland, are former Tecumseh mayors.

Folks who call the county home believe the statewide success of local candidates has to do with the kind of people who live around here.

``They're not arrogant. They're not self-centered. They're just good, down-to-earth people,'' said Frank Oliver, owner of Hardesty's Grocery in Shawnee, where shoppers talk politics while squeezing the melons.

``People in here take their politics pretty serious.''

Carl O'Donnell, 65, of Shawnee, pondered the county's political success while leaning over a produce cooler.

``I don't think it's the county. I think we're just tired of what we had,'' said O'Donnell, whose blue jacket bore the patch of his employer _ Tecumseh Public Schools.

``Pot County is a strong Democratic county. But we've had some Republicans come out of this county,'' he said.

Politics is a favorite pastime in Pottawatomie, especially statewide politics.

``It's like a good-natured rooster fight,'' said Jack Brown, 81, of Tecumseh. ``Somebody's going to get killed, but let's enjoy it while it's happening.''

Brown, clad in a brown coat, cap and gloves to guard against a winter chill, said his is a close-knit, family-oriented community where people attend church on Sundays and believe in good government.

``It's a way of life,'' he said. ``It's a good place to live.''

``Maybe people just take an active part in their government,'' said Marion Reimers of Shawnee. The growing number of statewide officials elected from Pottawatomie reflects the pride and interest residents take in their local government, he said.

``Maybe they don't want to just talk about it. Maybe they want to do something about it,'' Reimers said.

Like many residents, Reimers personally knows the governor-elect, having taught with Henry's wife at Shawnee High School.

``Excellent person,'' he said. ``She'll make a great first lady. And she meets the public well. She always wears that smile.''

``Everybody in town knows Brad,'' Oliver said. ``That's the thing about living in a small town. Everybody knows what everybody else is doing. We buy the newspaper to see who got caught.''

Henry's election and the success of others in statewide elections is also a source of pride to members of the Citizen Pottawatomie Nation, for whom the county is named and one of three Oklahoma Indian tribes that maintain offices there.

Tribal offices for the Pottawatomie, which means ``people of the place of fire,'' are located along Gordon Cooper Drive, named for the Shawnee native who was one of the nation's first seven astronauts.

``The fact that it's Pottawatomie County is very meaningful to us,'' said Rocky Barrett, tribal chief and a member of the Oklahoma Indian Affairs Council.

Barrett said his and other Oklahoma tribes banded together to support Henry's candidacy.

``This is the largest tribal effort I can recall for any candidate for governor,'' he said. ``This time we united for a common good.''

Those who have used the county as a political springboard say its uncomplicated lifestyle and the friendliness of its people are its biggest assets.

``I still stop in the little convenience stores and get a diet coke and a fried burrito,'' Henry said.

``We do tend to get out and interact a little more. I think that's one of the reasons we were successful, simply because I connected with people. People realize that I'm just like them. I'm approachable.''

``I saw a lot of the human side of Oklahomans,'' Fallin said. ``It instilled in me a value system of wanting to serve other people and the importance of being involved in the community.''

``You've got some people there who are well-informed, but they're very, very opinionated,'' Scott said. ``As a general rule, the folks at the end of the mail route aren't that off base.''