U.S. House, Oklahoma 4th Congressional District · Election November 3, 2026 · Updated
Who should I vote for in Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District?
Tom Cole has the strongest record in Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District. Tom Cole scores 73 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 9, 2026. Tom Cole's highest marks are relevant experience and command of the job. Rocco Bonacci (1 of 15 criteria) and Mitchell Jacob (6 of 15 criteria) have too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Independent
Rocco Bonacci
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 1 of 15 criteria
- Character
- NR
- Qualifications
- 25
- Performance
- NR
Republican · incumbent
Strongest record
Tom Cole
73 / 100
Public evidence on 13 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 44
- Qualifications
- 85
- Performance
- 88
Democratic
Mitchell Jacob
Not enough public record for a score
Public evidence on 6 of 15 criteria
- Character
- 50
- Qualifications
- 50
- Performance
- NR
The good, the bad and the unresolved
The record
The notable facts of each candidate's public life, each tied to a source and confirmed to be this person. Unresolved matters are labeled with where they stand and do not move a score.
Rocco Bonacci
No notable items confirmed in news archives or public documents.
Tom Cole
- On the record2021-01-06
Voted Yea on the objections to Arizona and Pennsylvania electoral votes on Jan. 6 and 7, 2021.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 10, 2021, House Clerk Roll Call 11, 2021
- Credit2026
Is the lead House sponsor of the bipartisan Truth and Healing Commission on Indian Boarding School Policies Act of 2026.
Source: NonDoc, June 1, 2026
- Credit2023 to 2026
Exceeded expectations on the Center for Effective Lawmaking score in the 118th Congress, ranking third among Republicans, and sponsored 24 enacted bills, including fiscal 2026 appropriations acts.
Sources: Center for Effective Lawmaking House dataset, GovTrack, enacted legislation
- Credit2023
Ranked 46th of 436 House members on the Lugar Center Bipartisan Index for 2023, in the top quarter.
Source: Lugar Center and McCourt School Bipartisan Index, House Scores
Mitchell Jacob
No notable items confirmed in news archives or public documents.
Who they are
Character
Integrity
Tells the truth, keeps their word, and takes no private gain from public office.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Annual financial disclosure for 2025 filed July 24, 2026 after an extension; his periodic transaction reports from 2022 to 2026 were filed within the 45-day window. No House Ethics Committee matter or FEC administrative fine found.
Sources: House Clerk financial disclosure, Filing ID 10077471, House Committee on Ethics site search, FEC administrative fines search, committee C00379735
Mitchell Jacob. Campaign reports are on file with the FEC through Sept. 30, 2026, and a House candidate financial disclosure is on file with the Clerk. No FEC administrative fine found.
Sources: FEC candidate page, House Clerk candidate financial disclosure, Filing ID 10076963, FEC administrative fines search, committee C00914135
Courage
Takes a stand that costs them something, including telling their own side no.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. No public record found.
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Accountability
Owns mistakes, answers hard questions, and works in the open.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Holds telephone town halls with district constituents; no 2026 general election debate or recent in-person town hall record found.
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Temperament and judgment
Steady under pressure, decides on evidence, and treats opponents and staff with respect.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Former Oklahoma secretary of state and state senator, in Congress since 2003, with no censure, reprimand or House Ethics Committee matter found.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Tom Cole, House Committee on Ethics site search
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Fidelity to the oath
Uses power inside its limits: accepts certified results, obeys court rulings, follows the rules of the office.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Voted Yea on the January 2021 objections to the certified electoral votes of Arizona and Pennsylvania.
Sources: House Clerk Roll Call 10, Jan. 6, 2021 (Arizona objection), House Clerk Roll Call 11, Jan. 7, 2021 (Pennsylvania objection)
Mitchell Jacob. Served five and a half years in the Army, reaching sergeant and deploying to southern Syria. No official finding of misuse of office found.
Source: Campaign site
What they bring
Qualifications
Relevant experience
Has done work that prepares them for this specific office.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. In the U.S. House since January 2003; earlier Oklahoma secretary of state and a state senator.
Source: Ballotpedia, Tom Cole
Mitchell Jacob. Army cryptologic linguist and sergeant, former stockbroker and banker, and a public defender in Cleveland County since earning his law degree in 2025. Has not held elected office.
Command of the job
Knows the issues and knows what the office can and cannot do.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Chairs the House Appropriations Committee; 24 bills he sponsored were enacted, including the fiscal 2026 appropriations acts.
Source: GovTrack, committee membership
Mitchell Jacob. Publishes positions on the federal debt, education, immigration, health care and criminal justice, mostly in general terms.
Source: Campaign site
Communication
Explains plainly, persuades, and listens.
Rocco Bonacci. Has not completed Ballotpedia's 2026 survey, and no campaign website or published issue statement was found.
Source: Ballotpedia, Rocco Bonacci
Tom Cole. Offers an e-newsletter, weekly columns and chats, telephone town halls and issue pages. Has not completed Ballotpedia's 2026 survey.
Sources: Office site, home page, Office site, Telephone Town Halls, Ballotpedia, Tom Cole
Mitchell Jacob. Completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024 and 2026 and publishes plain-language position statements.
Sources: Ballotpedia, Mitchell Jacob, Campaign site
Roots in the constituency
Lives there, knows the people, and is funded by them.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Fifth-generation Oklahoman and Chickasaw Nation citizen who has represented the area in state and federal office since the 1980s. FEC by-state totals show about 30 percent of itemized contributions by state from Oklahoma ($643,076 of $2,118,541).
Sources: NonDoc, June 1, 2026, FEC contribution totals by state
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Management
Can build and run an organization.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Chairs the House Appropriations Committee and co-founded a political and market research firm. Campaign reports are on file with the FEC with no administrative fine found.
Sources: NonDoc, June 1, 2026, FEC candidate page, FEC administrative fines search, committee C00379735
Mitchell Jacob. Campaign reports are on file with the FEC with no administrative fine found.
Source: FEC administrative fines search, committee C00914135
What they deliver
Performance
Results
Turns ideas into outcomes.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Legislative Effectiveness Score of 5.414 in the 118th Congress against a benchmark of 2.721, exceeds expectations, ranked third in his party. Primary sponsor of 24 enacted bills.
Sources: Center for Effective Lawmaking House dataset, 93rd to 118th Congress, GovTrack, enacted legislation
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Showing up
Does the basic work of the job.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Missed 326 of 15,180 roll call votes, 2.1 percent, from January 2003 to September 2026.
Source: GovTrack, missed votes
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Constituent service
Solves problems for the people they represent.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Keeps three district offices, in Ada, Lawton and Norman, and holds telephone town halls. No published casework totals found.
Source: Office site, home page
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Coalition building
Wins support beyond their own faction.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. Lugar Center Bipartisan Index score of 0.69947 in the latest posted House scores (118th Congress, 2023), ranked 46 of 436, in the top quarter. Lead House sponsor of the bipartisan Indian boarding school commission bill.
Sources: Lugar Center and McCourt School Bipartisan Index, House Scores, NonDoc, June 1, 2026
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
Stewardship of public money
Treats tax dollars as someone else's money.
Rocco Bonacci. No public record found.
Tom Cole. No public record found.
Mitchell Jacob. No public record found.
How to read this
Each criterion is scored 0 to 4 against the written rubric in the Ballot Standard. NR means no record: there is no reliable public evidence either way, so the criterion is left out and never counts against the candidate. A total is published when at least 8 of 15 criteria have evidence.
A sitting officeholder has a longer public record than a first-time candidate, so the two totals rest on different amounts of evidence. Read the count of criteria beside each score. Low marks require an official finding or a primary record. Allegations and opinion are not used.
No policy position is scored. Evidence checked October 9, 2026. Campaigns and readers can send a correction with a public source to tpg@thepoliticalgroup.com.
Questions
Who should I vote for in Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District?
Tom Cole has the strongest record in Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District. Tom Cole scores 73 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, as of October 9, 2026. Tom Cole's highest marks are relevant experience and command of the job. Rocco Bonacci (1 of 15 criteria) and Mitchell Jacob (6 of 15 criteria) have too little public record to score. Every score comes from public records on character, qualifications and performance, the same way for every party.
Who is running in Oklahoma's 4th Congressional District in 2026?
Rocco Bonacci (Independent), Tom Cole (Republican, incumbent), Mitchell Jacob (Democratic). The general election is November 3, 2026.
Is Rocco Bonacci a good candidate for Congress?
Rocco Bonacci has public evidence on 1 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
Is Tom Cole a good candidate for Congress?
Tom Cole scores 73 out of 100 on the Ballot Standard, with public evidence on 13 of 15 criteria: character 44 of 100, qualifications 85 of 100, performance 88 of 100. The standard measures character, qualifications and performance, not policy positions.
Is Mitchell Jacob a good candidate for Congress?
Mitchell Jacob has public evidence on 6 of the 15 Ballot Standard criteria, short of the 8 needed for a score. The evidence that exists is shown on the scorecard. No record never counts against a candidate.
How is the strongest record decided?
The candidate with the highest Ballot Standard score has the strongest record. Each of 15 criteria on character, qualifications and performance is scored 0 to 4 from public records and established reporting, the same way for every party. No policy position is scored, and unresolved accusations never move a score.
More on this race: every Oklahoma race scored, the trailing candidate's path to victory, and the Oklahoma 2026 election guide. Independent scorecard by The Political Group, not affiliated with any candidate or party.