He’s lovin’ it.
President Trump-endorsed Oklahoma Rep. Kevin Hern handily won his primary Senate, putting him on track to be sworn in as a “McSenator” — after banking millions during a career running McDonald’s franchises.
A past chair of the conservative Republican Study Committee in the House, Hern, 64, once owned 18 McD’s franchises around Tulsa.
And he has a whopper of an account balance to show for it — he is worth at least $110 million, according to his most recent financial disclosure.
He liquidated his franchise holdings by 2021.
If he wins in November, there will be a fast food-savvy lawmaker in each chamber, which could help ease the perpetual hot side-cool side dynamic in the Capitol.
House Rep. Chuck Edwards (R-NC), who owns six McDonald’s franchises, once gave Trump a French Fry Certification Pin. Trump called both men “warriors” at a McDonald’s Impact Summit last November. “I’ve gone there a couple of times,” Trump dead-panned about the restaurant.
Hern, who was elected in 2018 and still holds his seat following his June 16 primary win, has no beef with opponents goofing on his long association with McDonald’s.
“People call me the ‘McCongressman’ and trivialize my real-world experience because it’s tied to the golden arches. It doesn’t bother me because the McDonald’s franchise program helped me realize my American Dream,” he wrote in a 2018 op-ed for Fox News in response to the sudden rise of Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) from bartender to lefty political star.
“I’ve embraced the nickname ‘Big Mac’ and I share my ‘secret sauce’ to success with anyone who wants to listen,” he added.
“Kevin Hern is ready to bring his entrepreneurial spirit and work ethic to the Senate — and, like President Trump, he proudly has McDonald’s on his résumé,” said Bernadette Breslin of the National Republican Senatorial Committee.
Hern again cited his customer-focused fast food experience when making a run for Speaker during the shambolic House Republican effort to oust Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) and find a replacement. “People want to be heard, and I spent time listening to people, learning that almost 35 years in the McDonald’s business,” Hern told Cavuto Live at the time on Fox News Channel. “And people want to be valued in their opinions.”
He delivered a pair of cheeseburgers to each Republican in a ploy for support, but failed in his effort.
Trump occasionally devours McDonald’s Big Macs and Filet-0-Fishes and famously worked a Drive-Thru shift at a Pennsylvania McDonald’s during the 2024 campaign.
Trump said he would be an “outstanding” senator and “WILL NEVER LET YOU DOWN!” when he endorsed him in March.
Gov. Kevin Stitt (R-Okla.) picked energy exec Alan Armstrong to fill the remaining nine months of Sen. Markwayne Mullin’s term when he became Trump’s Secretary of Homeland Security in March.
Hern, who is running for a seat likely to stay in Republican hands, would super-size that tenure and get a full six-year term if he beats whichever Democrat prevails in a runoff.
A pastor vying for the House seat suspended his campaign last month over a sexting scandal with a former Miss Oklahoma after making the runoff.
