Topic: Voting & Elections

What we know – and don’t know – about the revenue bill veto challenge

By: David Blatt
May 23, 2018 // Updated: May 2, 2019
In late March, on the eve of an anticipated teacher walk-out, Oklahoma lawmakers approved a series of bills intended to provide pay raises for teachers, school support staff, and state employees. To pay for the raises, lawmakers approved a number… Read more [More...]

What we know about Oklahoma’s 2018 legislative elections

By: David Blatt
May 10, 2018 // Updated: May 2, 2019
The filing period for the 2018 elections concluded on April 13th, one day after the Oklahoma Education Association announced the end to the two-week teacher walkout that brought tens of thousands of educators and their supporters to the Capitol on… Read more [More...]

Marsy’s Law is well-intentioned, but be wary of unintended consequences

By: Annaly Sullivan
April 5, 2018 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Annaly Sullivan is an OK Policy intern. She is a recent graduate of the University ​of ​East ​Anglia with a masters in Impact Evaluation. Marsalee (Marsy) Nicholas was stalked and murdered by her ex-boyfriend in 1983. Released on bail before the… Read more [More...]

Don’t ask Oklahomans to step down from guiding state agencies (Guest post: RoseAnn Duplan, Wanda Felty, and Erin Taylor)

By: Guest
February 8, 2018 // Updated: May 2, 2019
RoseAnn Duplan, Wanda Felty, and Erin Taylor are advocates for families on the DDS (Developmental Disabilities Services) Waiting List. As parents of adult children with developmental disabilities, we’ve earned seven decades of experience.   We’re familiar with programs and supports other… Read more [More...]

How does SQ 788 compare to other states’ medical marijuana laws?

By: Ryan Gentzler
September 20, 2017 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Next year, Oklahomans will vote on State Question 788, a ballot initiative to legalize medical marijuana. As of 2017, 29 states have approved measures legalizing the drug for medical purposes. We often think of legalization in binary terms — either… Read more [More...]

Six takeaways from Tuesday’s vote

By: David Blatt
November 14, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019
While most of the attention in Oklahoma last week focused on the geological earthquake that shook the state and the political earthquake that shook the nation, the state election results got less detailed coverage. Here are a few of our… Read more [More...]

Hofmeister indictment highlights need for better campaign finance laws (Capitol Updates)

By: Steve Lewis
November 10, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol. Almost everyone seems to agree that excessive money has fouled our politics in this country,… Read more [More...]

Who’s not voting, and why

By: David Blatt
November 7, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019
With Election Day tomorrow, many of us are busily getting prepared to exercise one of our basic civic rights by attending candidate forums, poring over election guides, studying the seven state ballot measures, and reviewing sample ballots.  But many Oklahomans… Read more [More...]

State Questions give Oklahomans a chance to govern ourselves (Capitol Updates)

By: Steve Lewis
November 4, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019
Steve Lewis served as Speaker of the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1989-1991. He currently practices law in Tulsa and represents clients at the Capitol. For a state with a well-deserved reputation for loathing government, we Oklahomans sure spend a… Read more [More...]

Fact Check: The claim that less than half of SQ 779 revenues will go to teachers is false

By: David Blatt
November 1, 2016 // Updated: May 2, 2019
A central claim being made by opponents of State Question 779, the ballot measure that would increase the sales tax by one percentage point to boost funding for education, is that less than half the money will go to raise… Read more [More...]