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In The Know is your daily briefing on Oklahoma policy-related news. OK Policy encourages the support of Oklahoma’s state and local media, which are vital to an informed citizenry. Inclusion of a story does not necessarily mean endorsement by the Oklahoma Policy Institute. Some stories included here are behind paywall or require subscription. Subscribe to In The Know and see past editions.
Correction: The Number of the Day has been updated on this web page to reflect a different calculation for voter turnout.
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New from OK Policy
Oklahomans made their voices heard. The next step belongs to all of us: Voters rejected SQ 845 and SQ 847, preserving existing safeguards for judicial independence and local control. But rejecting these proposals doesn’t mean the underlying problems have disappeared. Oklahomans still need affordable housing, meaningful property tax relief, and courts they can trust. Those priorities deserve attention long after Election Day.
New and returning lawmakers have an opportunity to pursue solutions that address rising costs, protect local decision-making, and strengthen public trust. The next step belongs to all of us. Stay informed, ask questions, and hold elected leaders accountable for delivering solutions that make a meaningful difference.
Make plans to join us on March 10 for OK Policy’s Day of Action at the Oklahoma Capitol, and follow OK Policy for the facts and analysis you need to stay engaged in what happens next.
Election News
Voters reject SQ 845’s JNC reforms, SQ 847’s property tax cap change: Oklahoma voters rejected a pair of state questions Tuesday that were placed before voters by the Legislature. [NonDoc]
- State Question 847, which sought to limit property tax growth, fails Oklahoma general election vote [Oklahoma Voice]
- State questions: Changes to judicial nominations, property tax cap fail to earn voter approval [Tulsa World]
- Oklahomans reject changes to property tax calculations and judicial nominating process [Tulsa Flyer]
- State Question 847 fails as Oklahoma rejects property tax change [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma SQ 847 fails, keeping current caps on property value increases [News 9]
- Voters give thumbs down to Oklahoma Legislature’s attempt to reform judiciary selections [Oklahoma Voice]
- Did SQ 845 pass? Oklahoma voters asked to change how judges are picked [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma SQ 845 fails, keeping current judicial nominating rule [News 9]
To see the unofficial results for all Oklahoma elections, visit the Oklahoma State Election Board’s results page
Congressional Election Results
- As Bice slips past Nelson, Republicans maintain all of Oklahoma’s federal posts [NonDoc]
- Hern defeats Thomas in race to become Oklahoma’s next U.S. senator [The Oklahoman]
- Hern elected to U.S. Senate, with Tedford to succeed him in Congress [Tulsa Flyer]
- Republican Stephanie Bice beats Jena Nelson in tight 5th District race [The Oklahoman]
- Tedford wins closest CD 1 election in more than 40 years [Tulsa World]
Statewide Election Results
Governor, Lieutenant Governor
- New slate of 8: Mazzei defeats Munson, Republicans sweep statewide offices [NonDoc]
- Oklahoma Election Results: Republicans maintain hold on state despite national blue wave [KGOU]
- Mike Mazzei clears path to Oklahoma governor’s mansion [KOSU]
- Trump-backed Mike Mazzei wins Oklahoma governor’s race [Tulsa World]
- Mike Mazzei, with Trump’s backing, continues GOP dominance in Oklahoma governor win [Oklahoma Voice]
- Mazzei maintains GOP streak in decisive win for Oklahoma governor [Tulsa Flyer]
- Mike Mazzei wins Oklahoma governor’s race, ending Munson’s bid [The Journal Record]
- Oklahoma voters tap Trump-backed candidate to serve as next lieutenant governor [Oklahoma Voice]
- Trump-backed candidate sweeps Oklahoma race for lieutenant governor [The Oklahoman]
State Constitutional Offices
- Republicans Sweep Oklahoma’s Statewide Offices. Democrats Find a Silver Lining in the Legislature. [Oklahoma Watch]
- Oklahoma Republicans sweep statewide races for attorney general, treasurer and all commissioner seats [Tulsa Flyer]
- Republican Robert Franklin elected Oklahoma state superintendent [Oklahoma Voice]
- Republican Robert Franklin wins Oklahoma superintendent race with pledge to put teachers first [Tulsa Flyer]
- Republican Robert Franklin secures victory as Oklahoma’s next state superintendent [KGOU]
- Franklin bests Marshall in race for state superintendent [Tulsa World]
- Voters decide new Oklahoma state superintendent in 2026 election [The Oklahoman]
- Echols takes Oklahoma attorney general’s race [Oklahoma Voice]
- Jon Echols defeats Nick Coffey in Oklahoma attorney general race [The Oklahoman]
- Jon Echols wins state attorney general race to succeed Gentner Drummond [Tulsa World]
- Byrd defeats Libertarian to win Oklahoma state treasurer [Oklahoma Voice]
- Trump-backed ‘MAGA warrior’ takes Oklahoma state treasurer race [The Oklahoman]
- Sullivan wins Oklahoma insurance post, vows to tackle soaring premiums [The Oklahoman]
- Political newcomer selected by voters to lead Oklahoma Insurance Department [Oklahoma Voice]
- Republican lawmaker elected to lead Oklahoma labor department [Oklahoma Voice]
- West wins Oklahoma labor commissioner race amid workforce crisis [The Oklahoman]
- Republican state lawmaker wins election to Oklahoma Corporation Commission [Oklahoma Voice]
- Republican state lawmaker Brad Boles wins seat on Oklahoma Corporation Commission [KGOU]
- State Rep. Brad Boles leads political newcomer in election for Corporation Commission seat [The Oklahoman]
Judicial
- Judicial elections: Appellate judges retained, district incumbents hold, new judges chosen [NonDoc]
- Oklahomans decide fate of 9 high-court judges in midterm elections [The Oklahoman]
- Voters retain all statewide judges up for retention; Tulsa County decides 3 local judicial races [Tulsa World]
- All appellate judges keep their jobs and Tulsa County seats three district judges [Tulsa Flyer]
State House & Senate Election Results
- Oklahoma Senate elections usher in new faces at the Capitol [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma House Democrats gain ground, chipping at GOP supermajority [The Oklahoman]
- Democrats gain five seats in Oklahoma House of Representatives [Tulsa World]
- Who won the races for Tulsa’s Oklahoma House and Senate seats? We round up the November election results. [Tulsa Flyer]
County & Local Election Results
- Oklahoma County: Voters reject jail sales tax, Democrats sweep county office races [NonDoc]
- Oklahoma County voters soundly defeat jail sales tax [The Oklahoman]
- Democrats sweep Oklahoma County assessor, treasurer races [The Oklahoman]
- Democrat Mayo wins Oklahoma County commission seat by narrow margin [The Oklahoman]
- Frankie McClendon wins Pittsburg County sheriff race, lodging taxes fail [NonDoc]
- Tulsa voters approve increase in hotel guest tax rate [Tulsa World]
- Tulsans approve hotel tax hike backed by business and tourism groups [Tulsa Flyer]
- Tulsa City Council District 1: Vanessa Hall-Harper wins 6th term [NonDoc]
- Hall-Harper ekes out victory in District 1 City Council race [Tulsa World]
- Vanessa Hall-Harper secures 6th term on Tulsa City Council in tight runoff race [Tulsa Flyer]
Other Election Stories
- OKC Republican mayor says ‘bankrupt’ party deserved Election Night rebuke [The Oklahoman]
- 5 things to know about midterm election results in Oklahoma [The Oklahoman]
- What brought voters to the polls on election day? [The Oklahoman]
- Election monitors? What election monitors? And other Election Day news [Tulsa World]
- DOJ has ‘limited’ presence in OKC for midterm elections, official says [The Oklahoman]
- Oklahoma County election official says DOJ monitors have kept a low profile [KOSU]
- Unprecedented voter turnout in SW OKC [KFOR]
- About 12 voting machines in Tulsa County broke down Tuesday morning, officials say [Tulsa World]
Oklahoma News
Oklahoma City man accused of mailing white powder to election offices nationwide: An Oklahoma City man has been arrested and accused of sending letters with white powder to election offices across the country as well as to members of Congress, the media, pollsters and the FBI. [The Oklahoman]
- FBI arrests Oklahoma man for mailing hundreds of threats to political officials ahead of midterms [KOSU]
- FBI arrests Oklahoma City man in connection with white powder mailings [Tulsa World]
New law cracks down on medical marijuana packaging to protect children: Several new Oklahoma laws went into effect on November 1, including one that brings changes to medical marijuana. [KFOR]
State Government News
Corporation Commission reschedules potential vote in PSO rate case: The Oklahoma Corporation Commission met on Tuesday to consider a vote in a case involving rates to be paid by customers of Public Service Co. of Oklahoma, but after a lengthy discussion commissioners opted instead to delay any further action until Thursday. [Tulsa World]
- Decision on PSO’s request to increase electricity rates could finally arrive Thursday [Tulsa Flyer]
Oklahoma Supreme Court considers SQ 836 signature dispute: If the Oklahoma Supreme Court rules in favor of the proponents of State Question 836 in the coming months and enough signatures are subsequently verified, the initiative to open Oklahoma’s primaries could be put before voters ahead of the next presidential election in 2028. [The Journal Record]
Federal Government News
Catholic groups ask court to exempt preschools from LGBT protections: Conservative US Supreme Court justices appeared sympathetic on Tuesday toward a challenge by Catholic groups to a Colorado law barring anti-LGBT discrimination at publicly funded preschools in a case that could further bolster the rights of religious people and institutions. [Reuters via The Journal Record]
Justice System News
Judge to rule Friday whether to quash petition seeking investigation of Tulsa County DA: A judge intends to rule Friday on whether to grant Steve Kunzweiler’s request to quash a citizen petition effort that seeks a grand jury investigation of Kunzweiler and the Tulsa County District Attorney’s Office. [Tulsa World]
Quote of the Day
“I think not only is it our right, but it’s our opportunity to allow our voices to be heard, and I think in Oklahoma, it’s time for us to stand up for what we believe in and get out and vote.”
-Oklahoma City voter Joy Morgan speaking about the importance of voting. [The Oklahoman]
Number of the Day
36.8%
The unofficial Nov. 3 election turnout rate for voting-eligible Oklahomans, which includes people legally eligible to vote but not registered. In Tuesday’s election, about 1.12 million Oklahomans cast ballots in the governor’s race, while there are an estimated 3.03 million voter-eligible people in Oklahoma. The Nov. 3 turnout was the state’s third-lowest midterm rate since 2002, behind 2006 (36.4%) and 2014 (30%). [Election Lab]*
Policy Note
Does Your Vote Matter? The Impact of Voting in American Elections: The most common source of voter skepticism is the statistical argument: the chance that one individual’s vote will be the single, tie-breaking ballot in a major election is infinitesimally small. While this is mathematically true, a deeper look at the data reveals a more nuanced picture of a vote’s potential power. [GovFacts]
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* Correction: The original version of In The Know contained an error regarding Oklahoma’s voter turnout rate for the Nov. 3 general election and how it compared to previous midterm elections using two different methods of calculating voter turnout. In the original version, we presented the turnout rate as a percentage of registered Oklahoma voters (45.2% of the 2.45 million registered voters). However, the historical data** we compared to this year’s voter turnout calculates voter turnout as a percentage of voting-eligible residents, including people legally eligible to vote but not registered. Using that metric, the voter turnout for voting-eligible Oklahomans was 36.8% of the estimated 3.03 million people in the state’s voting-eligible population. This would mean the Nov. 3 turnout was the state’s third-lowest midterm rate since 2002, behind 2006 (36.4%) and 2014 (30%).
** Note: This calculation differs from the calculation the State Election Board uses for voter turnout, which simply assesses the percentage of registered voters who cast a ballot. While a useful metric, we believe that it does not show the entire picture of civic participation in Oklahoma. There are a number of barriers in place that make it harder to register to vote that we believe should be represented in the discussion around voter turnout.
