Associated Press

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A political newcomer buoyed by tea party enthusiasm knocked off a five-term incumbent congressman from Tulsa in Oklahoma's top political story of 2012.

In a hard-fought Republican primary, 37-year-old Navy pilot Jim Bridenstine captured 54 percent of the vote over U.S. Representative John Sullivan in the June primary and then coasted to a general election victory in November.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The board of directors of SandRidge Energy Inc. is asking shareholders to reject a proposal to oust the board.

The Oklahoma City-based company said in a regulatory filing Thursday that the proposal by TPG-Axon would force SandRidge to offer to buy back all its outstanding at a cost of $4.3 billion. The filing says SandRidge would also lose $775 million in available borrowing.

The board also called TPG-Axon — which owns about 6.7 percent of SandRidge stock — an "opportunistic investor with short-term interests."

BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Energy companies behind the oil boom sweeping the Northern Plains increasingly are turning to trains to move their crude across the U.S. The move comes as plans for the Keystone XL pipeline to Texas stall and existing pipelines in hubs like Cushing, Oklahoma can't keep up with demand.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Reconstruction work on the main runway at Tulsa International Airport is set to resume next week.

Airport officials say it's the third phase of a $55 million project to completely reconstruct the airport's nearly 10,000 feet of runway. It was last reconstructed 30 years ago.

Airport officials say commercial flights will operate on the airport's crosswind runway. Officials say passengers may see delays or cancellations when weather conditions — including high winds and low visibility — prohibit the use of the crosswind runway.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — Some economists estimate Oklahoma will begin the new year on stronger footing than many other states that are yet to recover from the recession.

They say the state's prosperous energy industry, coupled with a low unemployment rate and growth of manufacturing jobs, helped set Oklahoma apart this year.

The improving financial picture means Gov. Mary Fallin will have more money to work with as she crafts a budget for the upcoming fiscal year — nearly $215 million more than last year, according to early revenue estimates.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Oklahoma City gun dealers say there has been a sharp spike in sales in the past two months.

H&H Shooting Sports Complex President Miles Hall told The Oklahoman says some customers are worried about tighter gun regulations while others want to be armed against people who commit mass shootings.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — The Oklahoma Department of Health says the state has recorded its first flu death of the season.

The department says the death occurred in Tulsa County between Dec. 19 and Christmas Day.

Officials did not release specific details about the person who died but said it was someone between the ages of 19 and 64.

The health department says the state has reported 75 hospitalized cases of influenza since Sept. 30. More than a quarter of those cases were reported in the past week.

TULSA, Okla. (AP) — A Tulsa man accused in a deadly April shooting spree has been bound over for trial on unrelated charges alleging he assaulted a jail guard.

Jake England was charged after he allegedly elbowed and cursed a guard as he was being taken to his cell at the Tulsa jail from the recreation yard on November 1st. Online court records indicate he was ordered to trial Thursday after a preliminary hearing.

MIAMI, Okla. (AP) — An Illinois man who has received a mental health examination in connection with an alleged plot to attack dozens of northeastern Oklahoma churches with Molotov cocktails will be back in court next month.

Ottawa County Assistant District Attorney Becky Baird said Thursday that 23-year-old Gregory Arthur Weiler the Second of Elk Grove Village, Illinois will return to court on January 8th for a mental competency hearing.

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Internal documents and emails show Oklahoma State University officials fretted about the school's public image as details emerged about the sexual assaults of several male students on campus.

The documents obtained by The Associated Press through an open records request show university attorneys also maintained it was appropriate to withhold details of the alleged attacks from police.