Oklahoma Judge Denies State’s Request to Stop National Guard COVID-19 Vaccine Mandate

National Guard troops walk past a recruitment sign for the Army National Guard in Washington, on Jan. 19, 2021. Nathan Howard/Getty Images

An Oklahoma federal judge on Tuesday ruled against an attempt from the state to block the Department of Defense’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate for National Guard members.

U.S. District Judge Stephen Friot rejected a motion from Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt (R), Attorney General John O’Connor, and sixteen Oklahoma Air National Guard members for a preliminary injunction to the mandate, saying the plaintiffs’ claims were “without merit,” and thus the motion would be denied.