Paxton To Lead Senate as New Pro Tem; Legislative Session Begins With Focus On Policy, New Ideas

For the first time in a decade, a new face will lead from the Senate floor as work for the 2025 legislative session begins.

Sen. Lonnie Paxton, (R-Tuttle), was elected as the next Senate Pro Tem, succeeding Sen. Greg Treat, who terms out this month. Paxton will serve alongside new leadership in the state House.

Bill filing for the 2025 session begins tomorrow, and even under new leadership, state senators say they remain focused on policies to benefit Oklahomans.

“A lot of new ideas coming in, so we’re gonna kind of spend the next few months flushing those ideas out,” Paxton said.

Treat, in his final year as Pro Tem, emphasized government transparency, a priority Paxton hopes to continue. “That was step one,” Paxton said. “Now we need to go in there and see what worked well, maybe some things that didn’t work really well.”

As policy discussions begin, Paxton noted that he intends to lean on the Senate Republican caucus. “Being the Pro Tem designate, I haven’t really focused a lot on what I wanted. I feel like now I need to be focused on what the caucus wants as a whole,” he said.

Paxton is passionate about public education, economic development, and infrastructure. “For example, just taking roads. Safe roads save lives. I don’t think we could ever put enough money into building roads,” he said.

He will be joined across the rotunda by House Speaker Designee Kyle Hilbert, who shares a common goal. “Overall we have the same goal. We want to make Oklahoma a better place to live,” Paxton said.

With a unified Republican caucus in the 60th Legislature, Paxton sees strong collaboration ahead. “This is a caucus that is willing to get together, wants to grow, and we have a lot of common goals,” he said.

Additionally, Sen. Julia Kirt, the new Democratic leader in the Senate, expressed her enthusiasm for the upcoming work, stating she is excited to “roll up her sleeves and get to work.”