The 57-year-old career woman, who now serves as the state’s lieutenant governor, has never been married or had children. And as this historic race between two women candidates for the state’s top office nears its conclusion, that gap in her biography is attracting increasing attention…

Several other women in public life, including Republicans, objected. “I don’t understand why that’s important,” said Brenda Reneau, a Republican and former state labor commissioner, questioning why a candidate’s husband and children were worth stressing in a gubernatorial debate. “Is she going to bring them to work? I’ve never found one thing while I was in office that I needed experience in being married and having children.”

State Sen. Judy Eason McIntyre, one of 17 women serving in Oklahoma’s legislature, also said Fallin’s comment seemed like a “cheap shot.” McIntyre, a Democrat, said Askins’ unmarried status “doesn’t have anything to do with anything.”