Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Stitt is ranked 18th among U.S. governors on a scale devised by conservative economist Arthur Laffer and distributed by the American Legislative Exchange Council, better known as ALEC.
Texas’ Greg Abbott and Georgia’s Brian Kemp are ranked first and second.
The scale takes into account response to the COVID-19 pandemic as measured by both mortality rate and the extent to which businesses have been allowed to operate during the past eight months.
Stitt gets four of five stars by Laffer and the report’s other authors, and gets high marks for handling of federal coronavirus relief money, “protecting” the state’s economy and not spending too much money.
He ranks 13th for policy and 27th for results.
The report says voters’ passage of Medicaid expansion will make it difficult for Stitt “to shore up Oklahoma’s state finances against expected rising Medicaid costs while avoiding tax increases that could be harmful to the state economy.”
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ALEC generally favors states without income and estate taxes and that have laws unfavorable to labor unions.
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U.S. Sens. James Lankford and Jim Inhofe both said confirming a Supreme Court nominee seven weeks before an election is fine because this time there is a Republican president and a Republican majority in the Senate.
Oklahoma voter guide 2020
Oklahoma voter guide 2020: What you need to know for Election Day
Ballots at USPS
More absentee ballot guidance
Absentee ballots must be at the county election board by 7 p.m. on Election Day to be counted, which means you're out of time if you planned to mail it in or drop it off. You may vote today in person; a poll worker's paperwork will indicate an absentee ballot had been requested; voters must sign documentation they are not casting two ballots.
The Tulsa County Election Board has been keeping up with the roughly 2,500 absentee ballots received daily by convening almost every day for more than a month. Today Election Board staff will make at least four trips to the post office to pick up absentee ballots, including a final visit just before the polls close at 7 p.m.
As of 5 p.m. Monday, 73,357 ballots were processed, including 60,029 absentee ballots and 13,328 in-person early ballots. There are 374,821 Tulsa County residents registered to vote in Tuesday’s election, according to the Election Board.
Early voting
Despite record-setting figures for Oklahoma early voting as a state, Tulsa County's early-voting total was eclipsed by the 2016 count, when two sites were made available.
In Tulsa County, the three-day total for 2020 was 13,328.
About 18,000 early in-person votes were cast in 2016, when Hardesty Library in south Tulsa was offered up as a polling place in addition to the Election Board downtown.
A record 164,000 Oklahomans cast in-person ballots for early voting, according to the State Election Board, compared to 2016 when 153,000 early votes were cast.
Absentee
Absentee voting
The ballot affidavit may be notarized OR the voter may submit a copy of a valid ID. Follow instructions to the letter.
Those who mailed their ballot must NOT vote in person. To check the status of your absentee ballot, go to https://okvoterportal.okelections.us.
Absentee voters who did not submit by the deadline may hand-deliver their own ballot in-person to the county election board, 555 N. Denver Ave., by 5 p.m. the day before Election Day; ID is required.
Absentee ballots may NOT be hand-delivered anywhere else.
For voters who neither mailed nor dropped off their absentee ballot, voting in person on Election Day is permitted upon signing an oath that only one ballot is being submitted.
Dates
To help with the safety of voters and polling site workers throughout the election process, Anheuser-Busch produced and is donating more than 61,000 ounces (about 476 gallons) of hand sanitizer. Tulsa World file
Proof of identity
Proof of identity for in-person voting
- Voter registration card from county election board
- State-issued driver’s license, photo ID or Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Authority patient card (unexpired)
- Federal- or tribe-issued photo IDs including passports or military ID
Observing
Can people observe voters casting ballots?
"It is crime for any unauthorized person to remain within 50 feet of a ballot box while an election is in progress,” an Oklahoma State Election Board spokesperson said. Doing so is a misdemeanor offense, according to Oklahoma statute.
Sample ballot
What will my ballot look like?
By far the easiest place to find a sample ballot and most information about your registration status is at the Oklahoma State Election Board’s online voter portal: https://okvoterportal.okelections.us/.
Sample ballot Tulsa November 2020
Here's a sample ballot for midtown Tulsa
Safety
Are COVID-19 precautions being taken?
Yes. Poll workers across the state will be wearing face masks and other protective gear. Voting booths will be sanitized regularly, and pens used for marking ballots will be single use only.
Wearing masks is strongly encouraged. Poll workers will enforce social distancing.
Voter Portal online
When will we know results?
Oklahoma State Election Board public information officer Misha Mohr said the agency is confident Oklahomans will know the results Tuesday evening.
“While results may take longer than usual due to this year’s unique circumstances, Oklahomans can expect unofficial results — as they have come to expect — on election ‘night,’” Mohr said. “Election officials intend to work until results have been reported.”
Negating absentee ballot
I asked for an absentee ballot but didn’t use it. May I still vote?
Yes. A person who requests an absentee ballot but does not submit it may vote in person at their usual polling place. Doing both knowingly, however, is a felony.
Absentee ballots may also be hand-delivered to your county election board, but they must be received by the close of business the day before the election.
Only the person who applied for the ballot may deliver it.
Long lines?
Are long lines at polling locations expected?
Possibly. Pictured is the line early Tuesday outside All Souls Unitarian Church. The combination of COVID-19 precautions and the inexperience of many poll workers could slow down the voting process.
Other states have seen voting delays because of COVID-19, but with wide variations. Many of the delays have been because a shortage of workers resulted in fewer polling locations.
Oklahoma has not reduced its number of polling locations.
State Question 814
State Question 814 seeks to reduce the amount of money the state gets from a 1998 multistate legal settlement with tobacco companies to cover Medicaid expenses and allow the state to draw down additional federal dollars to pay for Medicaid expansion.
Related: Critics of SQ 814 explain pitfalls of funding change
State Question 805
Kris Steele speaks with supporters during a rally for Yes on SQ 805 in Oklahoma City in February. State Question 805, which seeks to end the use of sentence enhancements for repeat nonviolent offenders, will be voted on Nov. 3.
Related: Supporters of State Question 805 slam foes' 'fear-mongering' of reform petition
Congressional District 1
Republican incumbent Kevin Hern, right, and Democratic challenger Kojo Asamoa-Caesar are in the race for Oklahoma's 1st Congressional District.
Congressional districts 2, 3 and 4
Tulsa-area congressmen Frank Lucas, left, and Markwayne Mullin, right, are against underfunded opponents in far-flung districts. They, along with fellow Republican Tom Cole in the 4th District, center, are heavy favorites to keep their jobs.
U.S. Senate race
U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe is being challenged this election by Democrat Abby Broyles to represent Oklahoma, along with Sen. James Lankford, in Washington, D.C.
Read more
Sen. Jim Inhofe says voters know all there is to know about him
Jim Inhofe, Abby Broyles ads hit the airwaves in Senate race
Senate District 37
Political newcomer Republican Cody Rogers hopes to unseat state Sen. Allison Ikley-Freeman in the race for Senate District 37. Click here to read more.
House Districts 71, 78
Two Democratic incumbents are trying to hold their seats in the heart of Tulsa this election season. Rep. Denise Brewer (left), whose House District 71 runs along the east side of the Arkansas River from 21st Street to 81st Street, and Rep. Meloyde Blancett, whose pistol-shaped HD 78 extends from Maple Ridge to east Tulsa, are up for re-election in districts that have been trending Democratic for years.
House Districts 66, 68 and 29
State House District 66 Republican incumbent Jadine Nollan (left) is one of three Republican incumbents representing western Tulsa County. Rep. Lonnie Sims in HD 68, which includes west Tulsa and west Jenks, and Rep. Kyle Hilbert in HD 29, whose mostly Creek County district includes Tulsa County’s western-most precincts, don’t seem to have many constituents after their jobs, but Democratic opponents are making the trio work for re-election.
Judge retention
Oklahoma voters will decide whether three of the nine current Oklahoma Supreme Court justices will retain their jobs.
