Latest news with #OklahomaCountyElectionBoard
Yahoo
21-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Who's afraid of Oklahoma voters? The lawmakers who represent them
Voters wait in line outside the Oklahoma County Election Board on Oct. 30. (Photo by Emma Murphy/Oklahoma Voice) Oklahoma lawmakers are clearly scared to death of their constituents, and who could blame them? After all, voters in recent years have forced our lawmakers to come face-to-face with the terrifying reality that average Oklahomans can band together to circumvent the Legislature's will and force the passage of new progressive laws and block boneheaded conservative policies. In short, by taking matters into their own hands by expanding Medicaid access for the working poor and reducing the state's over-incarceration rates through criminal justice reforms, voters have repeatedly been serving lawmakers an unwanted reminder that the influence of rural Oklahoma is dwindling as the state's population continues to shift to more politically diverse urban centers. I can understand how that must be a scary prospect for a Republican-led governing body whose members typically take immense pride in thinking up conservative policies. And, I suspect that's probably why lawmakers continue to monkey around with Oklahomans' constitutionally guaranteed right to put their own proposed laws or constitutional amendments on the ballot. It's already an uphill battle to qualify measures for the ballot considering the enormous signature collection requirements — over 92,000 for a statutory change and over 172,000 for a constitutional amendment — and the 90-day window to gather those. But just when you think it can't get any worse, Republican lawmakers, led by House Speaker Kyle Hilbert and Sen. David Bullard, are telling us to hold their beer. In case you're not familiar with the idiom, it's what people say when they're about to do something extremely foolish that they'll likely regret later. Oklahoma lawmakers are plowing ahead with a bizarre — and likely unconstitutional — scheme that seeks to disproportionately inflate the influence of rural voters at the expense of urban and suburban ones. They want to cap how many people living in each county can sign petitions. At most, that means only 20.8% of signatures can come from one county, which potentially disenfranchised tens of thousands of their constituents. And, among other things, their latest scheme also prevents people who live outside the state from working here to collect signatures, requires them to only be paid by Oklahoma entities and allows an appointed bureaucrat with no legal experience to decide how ballot summaries should be worded. Supporters say these changes will ensure rural voters have a bigger say on what's included on the ballot by forcing signature collectors to visit rural communities. Critics argue it attempts to dilute the influence of those living in urban counties. Whatever the reasoning, the entire concept is an expensive lawsuit waiting to happen. Taxpayers should expect to foot that bill because the moment Gov. Kevin Stitt's pen turns this into law, our state is going to get sued for violating people's constitutional rights. And, they should. Last time I checked, we lived in a state where every citizen is worth the same regardless of where they live. It's mindboggling to argue that rural perspectives are worth more in a state where about 50% of the population lives in urban areas. And, I've always lived with the philosophy that the more choices we have on the ballot, the better for our democracy. Voters, after all, deserve choice because they aren't stupid. I may not agree with every ballot measure, but I respect my neighbor's ability to put it up for a vote. Unfortunately, I don't think many of our lawmakers have that same philosophy. Let's be honest, how often do we hear Republican legislators insult our intelligence by insisting that we don't know what is best for ourselves or we didn't understand what we voted for. Lawmakers always think they know what's best for us — until voters are given the power to put some of those crazed ideas in their proper place — the trash can. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
01-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
What to know before you vote for local elections Tuesday
OKLAHOMA CITY (KFOR) – Voting opens for some local elections Tuesday morning. Here's what to know before you vote. According to the Oklahoma County Election Board, voting begins at 7 a.m. and ends at 7 p.m. The busiest times of day are before work, after work and during lunch. Oklahomans will be voting for mayoral races in multiple cities as well as races for school board and city council members. Remember to bring a form of identification when you go to vote. You can bring a valid photo ID, photo ID card or you can vote a provisional ballot. Also, voters should not wear or bring anything that advocates for or against a candidate or issue on the ballot, that would be considered electioneering. To find your county election board or designated polling place, visit Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
12-02-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Oklahoma County District 1 Democratic primary: Lowe wins
State Rep. Jason Lowe of Oklahoma City won the Democratic special primary in the race for the unexpired term for District 1 Oklahoma County commissioner in Tuesday's voting and will face independent Jed Green in the April 1 special general election, according to the Oklahoma County Election Board. Lowe, who took mostly generous donations from former and present Democratic Party officeholders, as well as several political action committees, faced former state lawmaker Anastasia Pittman and Midwest City Council Member Sara Bana in the primary race to replace former Commissioner Carrie Blumert, who resigned last fall. The results were: Lowe: 4,244, or 40.63%. Pittman: 3,315, or 31.73%. Bana: 2,887, or 27.64%, Lowe said he had listened to "thousands and thousands" of voters in District 1 and heard their concerns about the controversial new jail site at 1901 E Grand Blvd., the lack of mental health care services and "roads and bridges." Those local issues and others important to District 1 will be his priority as he campaigns until the general election. Bana ran mostly against the new county jail site, the conditions of the present jail and what she considers the misuse of American Rescue Plan Act funds to pay for the jail Behavioral Care Center, which broke ground on Jan. 31. More: Criminal justice reform, new OK County jail hailed at mental health center groundbreaking She also said she planned to prioritize expanding resources to eastern Oklahoma County, improving mental health services and addressing the county's financial challenges. Bana also emphasized her experience as a Midwest City Council member and human rights activist. Lowe said he supported the use of ARPA money to build the Behavioral Care Center, but that the county needs to make the jail complex fit the southeast OKC/Del City area. Lowe campaigned saying he would concentrate on economic development in underserved areas of the county, infrastructure, including roads and drainage, and public health. Pittman, who served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives for eight years and the Oklahoma Senate for four years, emphasized her experience in public service, legislation, education, mental health and community advocacy. Pittman said she also supported use of ARPA funds for the jail Behavioral Care Center. She planned to emphasize affordable housing and homelessness prevention; economic development and small business support; streamlining regulations to attract more investments; and infrastructure and public transportation. Staff writer Richard Mize covers Oklahoma County government and the city of Edmond. He previously covered housing, commercial real estate and related topics for the newspaper and starting in 1999. Contact him at rmize@ This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: OK County commissioner District 1 primary election results: Lowe wins
Yahoo
09-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
How much money have county commissioner candidates raised? A look at financial reports
Nothing extraordinary, no known big-money donors or unusually large expenditures were listed in financial reports filed by candidates for the unexpired term of Oklahoma County commissioner District 1, although one candidate seems to have the support of the Democratic Party establishment. State Rep. Jason Lowe, D-OKC, took mostly generous donations from former and present Democratic Party officeholders, as well as several political action committees, according to filings with the Oklahoma County Election Board. Lowe faces former state lawmaker Anastasia Pittman, and Midwest City Council Member Sara Bana in the Democratic primary election Tuesday to replace former Commissioner Carrie Blumert, who resigned last fall. The winner will face independent Jed Green in the general election April 1. Pittman had not filed contributions and expenditures since Jan. 31, a report for the fourth quarter of last year, according to the Oklahoma County Election Board. Nor had Green filed any reports. Following are highlights from reports filed by the candidates. More: Meet the candidates for Oklahoma County Dist. 1 commissioner: Bana, Green, Lowe, Pittman According to the county Election Board: Friends of Sara Bana 2025 reported almost $8,000 in contributions in the fourth quarter, and $1,000 so far this year. PAC contributions: None. The largest donation from an individual was $1,000. Particularly prominent donors: longtime human rights activist Nathanial Batchelder, $10; activist Christopher Johnston, $100; activist Sean Cummings, $1,000; and Bana herself, $1,000. Loans: Bana's campaign took a loan of $100, but records provided by the Election Board don't identify the lender. The campaign had spent $1,821 by the end of last year, leaving $5,030. Expenditures were mostly for postcards and printing. The largest was $1,058 to Bags Inc. in Oklahoma City for yard signs. According to the county Election Board: Jason Lowe for Oklahoma County Commissioner 2025 reported $56,465 in contributions in the fourth quarter, and $21,125 so far this year. PAC contributions: $500 from the Oklahoma Building and Construction Trades PAC; $2,000 from the Greater Oklahoma City Chamber PAC; $2,500 from the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers PAC; and $3,000 from the Plumbers and Pipefitters Local No. 344 PAC. The largest donation from an individual was $3,300. Particularly prominent donors: former Oklahoma Gov. David Walters, $100; former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson, $250; State Rep. Mickey Dollens, $250; former Gov. Brad Henry, $500; former State Rep. Collin Walke, $500; Jim Roth, former public official and former dean of the Oklahoma City University School of Law, $1,000; the Rev. John Pettis, $2,000; and real estate developer Susan Binkowski, $3,300. Loans: Lowe loaned his campaign $15,000 in October and another $8,000 last week. The total of $23,000 amounts to about 30% of his campaign chest of nearly $80,000. The campaign had spent $67,655 by the end of last week, leaving $9,934. Expenditures were mostly for political consulting, marketing and campaign materials from OKC's Bison Strategies LLC, totaling $73,518. According to the county Election Board: Anastasia Pittman for Oklahoma County Commissioner District 1 reported $3,630 in contributions in the fourth quarter of last year. She had filed no report this year. PAC contributions: None. The largest donation by an individual was $500, contributed by Reiko Jenkins of Manassas, Virginia, and Carol Knight and Cam Cox, both of Oklahoma City. Particularly prominent donors: None. Loans: Pittman loaned her campaign $1,640. The campaign had spent $2,586 by the end of last year, leaving $3,975. Expenditures were mostly for printing, office supplies and campaign materials. The largest was $608 to Postcards Direct in Oklahoma City. More: Three Democrats, one independent, file to run for District 1 Oklahoma County commissioner Staff writer Richard Mize covers Oklahoma County government and the city of Edmond. He previously covered housing, commercial real estate and related topics for the newspaper and starting in 1999. Contact him at rmize@ This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Oklahoma County commissioner District 1 candidates campaign reports
