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Immigrants Deserve to Be Here
The Oklahoma Senate just passed HB4156, which is a major anti-immigration bill, that is now headed to the Governor's desk for him to sign or veto. This Oklahoma bill is modeled after a recent Texas law that has been making headlines:
You can expect to see many more headlines about the Oklahoma law soon because while the Texas law is bad, the Oklahoma version is worse. HB4156 includes minimal safeguards and creates a terrifying environment for immigrants living or even just traveling through Oklahoma.
WE STILL HAVE TIME TO STOP IT.
Governor Stitt has the power to veto HB4156. He knows that the bill is bad for Oklahoma because it will stifle economic growth in Oklahoma, especially in the industries that rely on immigrant workers: agriculture, construction, and others.
The U.S. needs immigration reform, but HB4156 doesn't do anything to address immigration. All this bill does is scare off immigrants living in Oklahoma, weaken our economy, and sow distrust in our communities and with law enforcement.
Use the link above to contact Governor Stitt's office and ask him to VETO HB4156.
If you'd prefer to call rather than email, that's even better! His office number is (405) 521-2342.
What are we voting on? (June 2020 Edition)
“Wait, there’s an election next week? What are we voting on?”
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard that phrase, though I suppose it’s understandable - due to how we schedule elections in our state, there’s inevitably one somewhere in Oklahoma nearly every month of the year. Back in March we had our presidential primary election, and next Tuesday, June 30th, we’ll have our state primary election. For most Oklahomans, there will be four or five races on the ballot in addition to one state question, which we describe more below.
A word about primary elections
Before we get started, it bears mentioning that the purpose of primary elections is to allow political parties to choose their best candidates that they will then submit to the general election, which is held in November. Oklahoma has a “modified, closed-primary” system, which means that members of each political party are only allowed to vote for their party’s candidates. Our system is called “modified” because the Democratic Party allows voters who are unaffiliated (aka “independent”) to vote in the Democratic primary. Make sense? Allow me to summarize:
Voters registered as Republican can only vote for Republican candidates.
Voters registered as Democrat can only vote for Democratic candidates.
Voters registered as Libertarian can only vote for Libertarian candidates.
Voters registered as Unaffiliated/Independent can only vote for Democratic candidates.
If you feel like that is unfair, you’re not alone. Closed primaries are a contentious issue. Political parties are basically private clubs - it’s free to join, but by affiliating with one party you basically give up your ability to have any say in how the other party conducts their business, including which candidates they run. Furthermore, the parties use taxpayer dollars to run their private candidate selection process. Having a closed system, it means that voters may not get any say at all in who represents them.
For example, let’s say you live in Enid and are registered as an Independent. There are two candidates for Oklahoma House District 40, but both are Republicans. Because we have closed primaries, only registered Republicans can vote in the primary election to choose their state representative. Everyone in HD40 who is registered as Democrat, Independent, or Libertarian does not get to vote in that race. (According to the State Election Board, HD40 contains 9,396 Republicans, 4,176 Democrats, 2,951 Independents, and 114 Libertarians. So, only 56% of voters in that district are allowed to vote in the election that will decide who represents the entire district.)
What you can expect to see on the ballot
US Senate. Like all states, Oklahoma has two seats in the US Senate, which are elected to staggered, six-year terms. Only one of the seats is up for election this year - the seat of long-time incumbent Senator Jim Inhofe. He has both Republican and Democratic challengers, so regardless of your party affiliation, you’ll get to vote in a primary for this seat.
US House of Representatives. Oklahoma has five Congressional seats and they all are up for election this year. However, whether or not you have a primary election to decide depends on where you live and your party affiliation. The most contested Congressional seat is CD5, which is currently held by Kendra Horn. She is facing perennial candidate Tom Guild in the Democratic primary, and there are nine Republican candidates vying for the nomination from their party.
Oklahoma Senate. Oklahoma has 48 state Senate districts, which are elected to staggered, four-year terms, with half of the seats going up for election every-other year. So, again, whether or not you have a primary election to decide depends on where you live and your party affiliation.
Oklahoma House of Representatives. Oklahoma has 101 state House districts, which serve two-year terms, which means they’re all up for election this year. Like the items above, whether or not you get to vote in a state House race depends on where you live and your party affiliation.
In addition to the legislative positions listed above, there are also “down ballot” races for various County, City, and School Board positions on next week’s ballot as well. You guessed it - whether or not you are able to vote in one of those races depends on where you live and your party affiliation. If you’re curious, the state Election Board has a long list of all the races sorted by county:
And last but certainly not least, we have State Question 802. This is a statewide issue, so all voters get to vote. In fact, you will receive a separate ballot containing just this question all by itself. SQ802 deals with expanding Medicaid, and the “ballot title” (the summary paragraph that you will see on the ballot) reads as follows:
This measure adds a new Article to the Oklahoma Constitution. The new Article would expand Oklahoma's Medicaid program to include certain low-income adults between the ages of 18 and 65 whose income does not exceed 133% of the federal poverty level, as permitted under the federal Medicaid laws.
Supporters say: Oklahoma has one of the highest rates of uninsured people in the country, most of whom can’t afford it and don’t work at jobs that provide it. This measure would fix that. Furthermore, Oklahoma has been paying for Medicaid expansion through our federal income tax for more than 10 years, but all that money goes to other states because we didn’t expand Medicaid in our state. It may cost some money, but it’s worth it to ensure that all Oklahomans have health insurance, and if there’s ever a time our state needed a stronger safety net, it’s right now.
Opponents say: Oklahoma can’t afford to expand Medicaid, especially right now. Our economy is already fragile and cuts are expected next year as it is; having to come up with another $100 million per year is too much. Giving people free health insurance doesn’t incentivize them to work, so they end up costing the state more.
When you can go vote
If you haven’t already voted absentee (aka voted by mail), you can still vote early or vote on election day. Here’s all the days & times:
Early Voting - at your County Election Board
Thursday 6/25 from 8a - 6p
Friday 6/26 from 8a - 6p
Saturday 6/27 from 9a - 2p
Election Day - at your assigned precinct (find your precinct here)
Tuesday 6/30 from 7a - 7p
What to do if you’re not registered to vote
Unfortunately, if you’re not already registered to vote, you can’t vote next week. HOWEVER, you should still go ahead and register so that you’ll be all set for future elections. Oklahoma’s online voter registration system won’t be fully operational until 2022, but you can register by paper form. To get a voter registration form, you can print one of the state election board or stop by and fill one out at any tag agency (they’ll mail it for you, too).
Best of luck out there. Remember: Decisions are made by those who show up!
How to Vote by Mail
Just a quick reminder that any registered voter in Oklahoma can vote by mail – no excuse necessary! (Although a pandemic is certainly a worthy excuse!) All you have to do is sign up online.
We made this quick "how-to" video for requesting an absentee ballot:
And here's some Step-By-Step instructions, in case you're into that kind of thing. I was overly detailed; it's really pretty simple.
Go to the state's Online Voter Tool website.
Enter your name and date of birth, then click "Find Me."
Scroll down a bit; below the blue Voter Services heading you'll see a checkbox for "Request an Absentee Ballot." Check that, then click the blue "Begin" button at the bottom.
On the next screen you will need to enter your Driver's License number (or a state ID) and/or the last four digits of your Social Security number. If you have a Voter ID PIN, you can enter that as well. (I honestly don't know what that is.)
Read the instructions, scroll to the bottom, check the two affirmation boxes, and then click the blue "Validate Me" button.
On the next screen, select the reason you are requesting an absentee ballot and check whichever box is appropriate for you. Most people will fall into the last category listed: "All other voters."
Scroll on down and decide if you'd like an absentee ballot for just one election or for all elections for the remainder of the calendar year. (You have to renew your absentee status annually.) Select which ever one you want. (I suggest "all," especially in year like this when things are so uncertain.)
Below that, you can enter your phone number and/or email address if you'd like to (and you should, because the Election Board will notify you of upcoming elections!)
And finally, if you are an Independent (or "Unaffiliated") voter, you can choose which party's primary & run-off ballots you'd like to receive. (At this time, only the Democratic Party allows Independents to vote in their primaries, so that's your only option.)
Click the blue "Continue" button.
The next page is just a confirmation of everything you've entered and a final attestation that it's all valid & correct. Look it over, check the three boxes, type your name, click Submit and you're all done!
Open Primaries: A Primer
Many thanks to our intern, Megan Funderburk, for researching and writing this post.
This is the second post in an ongoing series about the issues in our legislative agenda.
A primary election is an election in which a party decides who they will nominate to run for a particular office. Democrats have a Democratic primary to decide who the Democratic nominee will be, and Republicans have a Republican primary to decide who the Republican nominee will be.
Sounds pretty simple, right? Well…not so much. Many states are struggling to address concerns about their primary election system by answering questions such as:
Who gets to vote in these elections?
Should only Republicans vote for Republicans and Democrats for Democrats?
What about Independent voters or those that are unaffiliated?
Should voters be forced to simply forfeit their voice until the general election when the choices are considerably more limited?
Primaries are either open or closed, with variations within each of these models. States may use one type of primary for their state and local elections and a different type for their presidential elections. The basic types of primary elections are:
An open primary is a primary in which voters are not asked to declare a party affiliation on their voter registration form. At the polls, voters can choose which party’s ballot they receive regardless of party affiliation (or lack thereof).
A partially open primary asks voters to publicly declare which party’s ballot they would like on the day of voting which then registers the voter with that party. In most states with partially open primaries, voters may change their party affiliation on the day of voting.
A closed primary means that only those who have previously registered with a party may vote for that party’s nominees. In most states with closed primaries, you can’t change your party affiliation in the months surrounding the election.
In a partially closed primary, it is up to political parties to decide whether to allow unaffiliated voters to vote in their primaries while still excluding members of the opposing party.
A few states, like California, have adopted a “top two” primary system in which all candidates are listed together on the ballot and the top two, regardless of party affiliation move on to the general election.
Oklahoma currently uses a partially closed primary system. According to state law, party leaders are given the authority to allow unaffiliated voters or voters not registered with a party to vote in their nominating primaries. Parties make this decision every two years. The Oklahoma Democratic Party currently allows Independent voters to vote in the Democratic primaries. Voters must be registered with the Republican party to vote in the Republican primaries. Voters may choose to change their party affiliation but cannot do so between April 1 and August 31 in even-numbered years.
Advocates for an open-primary system argue that if everybody is given a voice at primary elections then it will increase the likelihood of more moderate candidates. According to the Oklahoma State Election Board, nearly 16% of Oklahoman voters are registered as Independent, and that number has increased nearly 35% over the past decade. With an increasing pool of Independent voters and a general dissatisfaction with hyper-partisan practices, moderation seems to be just what we need. Primaries are paid for with our tax dollars, yet we allow the parties get to tell us who gets to vote. There are pros and cons to each system, but an open system works under the assumption that everyone deserves a vote, even in a primary.
Two bills related to primary elections were filed this year in the Oklahoma legislature: Bill HB1026 by Rep. Tadlock sought to make county sheriff elections nonpartisan in an attempt to remove some politics from law enforcement. Bill HB1153 by Rep. Grego sought to authorize counties to vote to make county elections nonpartisan, including county officers and district attorney. Both bills were assigned to the House Rules Committee, but neither were heard, and thus they are dead…for this year, at least.
Helpful links
Click here to view the Election Board’s “Online Voter Tool,” where you can confirm your registration, find your polling place, view sample ballots for upcoming elections, and track your absentee ballot. (Speaking of which, if you’re not already registered to vote absentee (aka “vote by mail"), you should, and you can do it online right here.)
Podcast Episodes 60-62: All Things Election
We recorded two episodes the week prior to the election that didn’t get posted here, so I’m combining them with our post-election recap for a comprehensive election post!
In episode 60 we revealed that Scott and I have been working on an Oklahoma-only election forecast model, similar (though not nearly as advanced) as the good folks at FiveThirtyEight. We also talked about “voting plans,” what they are and why you need one.
In episode 61 we briefly discussed the races we’d be keeping a close eye on (and why) during election night.
And last but not least, in episode 62 we discussed what happened during the election, why Stitt beat Edmondson, and what this means for the upcoming 2019 legislative session.
Podcast Ep. 57 | 2018 State Questions Guide
Summary
We discuss the pros and cons of each of the five state questions that are on the ballot this year.
Announcements
Reminder that Nov 6th is Election Day - which means you need to vote. And then, in the evening following, you’re all invited to join us for The Election Night Show!
Links & Articles Discussed
The video clip of The West Wing used as the opening to this episode.
Health Department faces employee lawsuit (Journal Record)
Pulling back from partisanship (our blog post from late 2017)
Take-Aways
We discussed the five state questions that appear on the ballot this November. We’ll publish our own voter guide later this week, but until then, here are two excellent guides that we highly recommend:
Podcast Ep. 55 | Commissioner Candidates Chat
In this episode, we sit down with two candidates running for statewide office - Kimberly Fobbs, who is running for Insurance Commissioner, and Fred Dorrell, who is running for Labor Commissioner. #Votelahoma