DEMOCRATS just won a longtime Republican House seat in Norman in a special election, showing they have the political wind at their backs in Oklahoma. Since April 2015, Democrats have won four of five special elections in seats previously held by Republicans.

There are many explanations for these outcomes, and several bear noting. Despite their large majorities in the House and Senate, Republicans shouldn't simply shrug off the results.

Raw vote totals are revealing. In House District 46, Democrat Jacob Rosecrants ran in the November 2016 general election and last week's special election. In November, he drew 7,201 votes and lost in a landslide. Tuesday, he drew just 3,176 votes but won in a landslide.

That occurred because the number of votes cast for a Republican candidate in the district plummeted 81 percent, falling from 10,988 in November to 2,081 this time around.