Whatzup Politics

Whatzup Politics (1308)

Oklahoma State Election Board Releases Annual Voter Registration Statistics

Press Release

(Oklahoma City) – The Oklahoma State Election Board released annual voter registration statistics today showing 2,272,252 Oklahomans are registered to vote. Oklahoma’s official voter registration statistics are counted every year on January 15.

According to Oklahoma State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax, the largest number of Oklahoma's voters are Republicans, who make up 50.1% of registered voters. Democrats are the second-largest party with 32.9% of registered voters.

Independents, or voters not affiliated with a party, make up 16.3% of Oklahoma voters. The Libertarian Party, which gained recognition in 2016, now has 15,734 registered voters.

Oklahoma’s registered voters:

JANUARY 15, 2021

DEMOCRATS 748,222…….32.9%

REPUBLICANS 1,138,947…..50.1%

LIBERTARIANS 15,734…….....0.7%

INDEPENDENTS 369,349…….16.3%

TOTAL 2,272,252

The State Election Board also reminds voters that today (January 15) is the last day to register to vote or update your registration before the February 9 Board of Education Primary Election and Special Elections, which includes the race for State Senator District 22. Forty-nine counties have elections in February.

Party affiliation and address changes made within the same county can be made online using the OK Voter Portal. New Voter Registration Applications are available on the State Election Board website, at your County Election Board, most tag agencies, post offices, and libraries. Applications must be postmarked or hand-delivered to the applicant’s County Election Board no later than January 15.

For more information on voter registration OR to view or compare voter registration statistics since 1960, visit our website at oklahoma.gov/elections.

URL Guide:

OK Voter Portal – https://oklahoma.gov/elections/ovp.html

Voter Registration Application – https://oklahoma.gov/elections/voter-info/register-to-vote.html

County Election Boards – https://oklahoma.gov/elections/about-us/county-election-boards.html

Historical Voter Registration Statistics – https://oklahoma.gov/elections/voter-info/voter-registration-statistics.html

Written by David Deaton

US Senator James Lankford Letter to Oklahoma Friends and Neighbors

Dear Oklahoma friends and neighbors:

After the unthinkable and horrific attack on the United States Capitol happened on January 6, rumors are flying on social media right now making many people even more worried and fearful. The Capitol has always been a symbol of our freedom and the place where hard issues are discussed and every opinion is heard, not where a violent mob races through the building attacking, destroying, and trying to intimidate.

There is a lot of information that has circulated in the past week. However, I’ve been asked questions about rumors that are just simply not true. I would encourage all of us not to just accept every rumor as fact and to show personal restraint before sharing with others things we do not know whether they are actually true. This is a moment when we need to pour water over the fire, not gasoline.

Here are a few of the rumors I’ve seen and heard so far along with what I believe is at least one credible source to debunk or confirm the rumor:

Rumor: “There was a running police officer leading the mob in the Capitol” – Many have seen video of a Capitol police officer running up a staircase alone in front of a group of people illegally entering the Capitol. People have accused him of letting the mob in or even “enticing them.” That could not be further from the truth. I know that officer well, and we speak often. His name is Eugene, and he is a hero. He distracted the mob away from the Senate Chamber while staff and Senators were still in the chamber. His “leading” actually turned the mob away from the Senate floor and toward other officers, buying time to evacuate the building, and probably saved lives.

For a story in The Hill newspaper about Eugene’s heroism, please visit: HERE.

For another story from the Washington Post about Eugene, please visit: Here.

Rumor: “There were buses of ANTIFA members that came to the Capitol for the protest” – The rumor has spread across social media that the Capitol Police escorted in buses of ANTIFA protestors during the gathering at the Capitol. Video “evidence” is linked which shows multiple buses pulling up led by the Capitol police. While it is true the Capitol Police brought in buses during the riot, they were actually empty buses to evacuate staff and Members of Congress trapped in the buildings. The Capitol police had multiple options for securing the people in the Capitol, one of which was getting them out of the building entirely.

Rumor: “The federal government is about to declare martial law” – Fears of a declaration of martial law are some of the most quickly spread on social media. I understand Oklahomans’ concerns with the idea that a president could utilize our nation’s military service members and/or National Guard to suddenly act as national law enforcement. In recent days, the primary concern I’ve seen raised concerning martial law is that President Trump—or soon President Biden—could utilize provisions of the Insurrection Act inappropriately to control Americans involved in or even suspected to be involved in an insurrection attempt like the one being discussed at the US Capitol last week. The Insurrection Act

Whenever the President considers that unlawful obstructions, combinations, or assemblages, or rebellion against the authority of the United States, make it impracticable to enforce the laws of the United States in any State by the ordinary course of judicial proceedings, he may call into Federal service such of the militia of any State, and use such of the armed forces, as he considers necessary to enforce those laws or to suppress the rebellion.

But in order to enact the Insurrection Act, a president is required by law to make a public declaration. This cannot happen secretly. For a detailed report from the Congressional Research Service entitled, “The Posse Comitatus Act and Related Matters: The Use of the Military to Execute Civilian Law," please click HERE.

To read one outlet’s reporting about the Insurrection Act and the rumors swirling about martial law, please click HERE.

The Oklahoma National Guard also recently shared one of these rumors on Twitter and assured us that it is completely false. To see the tweet, click HERE.

Rumor: “There are two aircraft carriers off the East and West Coast preparing for military action” – Over the last several months, my staff and I have heard rumors of the presence of various numbers of military fighter jets, cargo planes, aircraft carriers or other increased military seeming to “await orders” in some area of the country or just off the coast. We’ve spoken to military personnel we trust, and they have not indicated that such military movements of aircraft are concerning or irregular. These are people we work with daily who serve our nation with integrity and whose information we trust.

Part of our normal defense operations include around two million flight hours and numerous training missions. To ensure readiness, our Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen, and Marines are always training. If you drive down I-40 in Oklahoma City, you’ll likely cross paths with an E-6 or a KC-135 taking off or landing. If you’re in Enid, it’s rare not to see a T-38 or a T-6 buzzing around the skies. This is part of our normal training, and there’s been no change in our readiness posture that would give credence to this rumor. My staff followed up on this rumor this week with our military liaisons just to be sure your fears were heard, and they assured us there is no imminent change in readiness planned at this time.

Rumor: “Seeing unusual increased military activity across the country” – There is a normal, increased posture of readiness in certain areas of the military around a presidential inauguration since we never want our adversaries to perceive weakness from our nation during a transition of power. To read more about the uptick in National Guard presence in Washington, DC, leading up to the 2009 inauguration of President Obama, please visit: HERE.

Rumor: “The National Guard is being secretly called up all over the country” – You can’t secretly call up the National Guard. “Calling them up” involves thousands of decisions that directly affect our friends and neighbors.

To read the actual law that governs how and when the National Guard can be called via a state’s Governor, please see HERE.

At this time the National Guard is being asked to help preserve national security during the transition of power, and the area in and around Washington, DC, will have additional National Guardsmen and women on hand to ensure the safety and continuity of our government. To see some of the stunning pictures from the Today Show of hundreds of National Guardsmen and women protecting the US Capitol, please visit: HERE.

To read more about the plans for National Guard deployment surrounding inauguration day, please visit: HERE.

Rumor: “The President is going to take over the Emergency Alert System since he was banned from Twitter” – Over the past weekend, we heard that President Trump was going to use the national Emergency Alert System to communicate with Americans. Despite being banned from or having material removed from social media sites, President Trump can still address the nation at press conferences, etc. as well as other websites and platforms. The Integrated Public Alert and Warning System Modernization Act of 2015 (read it HERE) clearly states that this system can only be used to transmit a message that is related to a national emergency. Presidential alerts are only sent on a limited basis if there is an actual threat to public safety.

Rumor: “There are armed attacks planned for every state capital on January 20th” – This is not a baseless rumor, and law enforcement is encouraging local, state, and federal agencies to exercise caution, particularly on and around January 20th to ensure personnel can be prepared and vigilant. Although no specific threats are being reported, after last week, we certainly cannot say “nothing’s going to happen.” I encourage all of us to be vigilant. My staff and I are in contact with local and federal law enforcement who continue to urge caution and vigilance around these national events.

If you hear that a person is considering carrying out acts of violence against the United States or any person, it is your moral and legal obligation to report that information to local law enforcement or the FBI before the plan is carried out. Let’s all watch out for each other during this volatile time, and let’s find ways to talk peacefully and civilly about our differences and resolve them before they spill over into violence. It is who we are as Americans.

I will be at the inauguration of Joe Biden on January 20th to represent all Oklahomans, just like I was for Presidents Obama (2013) and Trump (2017). Even when we disagree, we respect the peaceful transition of power in America.

In God We Trust,

James Lankford
United States Senator for Oklahoma

Written by David Deaton

Rep. Martinez to File Legislation Protecting State Assets

OKLAHOMA CITY – State Rep. Ryan Martinez, R-Edmond, today announced he is filing legislation to create accountability and transparency regarding the movement of state assets.

His forthcoming House bill will specify that no state asset is to be moved further than 10 miles from wherever it was located on July 1, 2020, without the approval of the Oklahoma State Legislature.

“State assets, which can be valued in the millions of dollars, should only be moved through the publicly transparent legislative process,” Martinez said. “This gives Oklahoma citizens the opportunity to ask questions and voice their opinions to the people they’ve elected to represent them in state government before major decision are made that affect their livelihoods and tax dollars.”

Martinez said the legislation was spurred when the governor announced in October his plan to move the Public Health Laboratory to Stillwater. The plan had no legislative input, Martinez said.

“This is not solely about the health laboratory,” he said. “It also helps us avoid similar moves in the future. We want the public to have a say in where their assets are located, and that happens best when we use the legislative process.”

State health officials said they would use $25 million in state funds along with federal coronavirus aid funds to move the laboratory into temporary leased space in Stillwater. Martinez said at the time that keeping the lab in an already established major medical complex in the state’s capital was in the best interest of the state. This would help with the recruitment of top doctors and other medical staff as well as keep services central for all Oklahomans, he said.

It also makes sense, Martinez said, to keep the public health lab in close proximity to its overseer, the Oklahoma State Department of Health. He also questioned if this was the best use of coronavirus aid funds.

Ryan Martinez represents District 39 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which includes parts of Edmond and Oklahoma City.

Written by David Deaton

House Appropriations Committees to Hear Agency Budget Reviews

OKLAHOMA CITY – House Appropriations and Budget subcommittees next week will begin hearing budget and performance reviews from the state agencies under their purview.

Several meetings will be held jointly with the State Senate.

“These meetings are held each year and give our subcommittee members and the public the opportunity to hear a brief overview of the scope of programs and services offered to Oklahomans with state appropriated dollars,” said State Rep. Kevin Wallace, R-Wellston, the House Appropriations and Budget Chair. “This overview includes insight into agency budget requests for the next fiscal year as well as an accounting of how prior funds were spent.”

The subcommittee meetings start Jan. 19 and can be livestreamed on the House Website: https://www.okhouse.gov/Video/Default.aspx.

A full list of meetings can be viewed here: https://www.okhouse.gov/Committees/MeetingNotices.aspx.

Wallace explained that House Appropriation and Budget subcommittees consider budget requests, analysis and legislation pertaining to the various agencies assigned to them, reporting their recommendations to the full House Appropriations and Budget Committee. The subcommittees’ efforts are part of the ongoing work of drafting a balanced state budget due by the end of the legislative session.

Later this month, the House will hold public forums with six agencies that receive the greatest share of state appropriations. Those meetings will be Jan. 25, 26 and 28. Specific details will be posted to the House website soon.

Written by David Deaton

Dems Respond to Governor Ignoring CDC in Demand For In-person Learning

Press Release

OKLAHOMA CITY -- Members of the Oklahoma House Democratic Education Group released the following statements in response to Governor Kevin Stitt’s comments today that seem to ignore CDC guidelines for returning to in-person learning.

“The state data shows kids under 15 were ten percent of all cases in the weeks before the holidays,” said Rep. Andy Fugate, D-Del City. “After the holidays, when kids were out of school, the number dropped by 50 percent. Last week, kids under 15 just accounted for five percent of all cases. The state’s own data doesn’t support the Governor’s reckless plan. It’s time for him to stop blaming the unions for his failure to provide informed leadership.”

“The governor, who recently enacted COVID precautions to close bars after 11 p.m., is now advocating for a large-scale return to in-person school across the state,” said Rep. Melissa Provenzano, D-Tulsa. “The only change instituted was suggesting that if mask mandates were in place, exposed children do not have to quarantine out of school. This didn’t work in Mustang Public Schools - why should we believe it would statewide? Oklahomans should understand that in the governor’s demand for schools to return to in-person learning, he offered no additional guidance or resources for Oklahoma public schools to do so safely.”

“I’m happy to hear the governor agrees that a mask mandate works for school populations,” said Rep. Trish Ranson, D-Stillwater. “I encourage him to issue a statewide mask mandate as our schools are part of our communities. Everyone -- students, teachers, and staff -- deserves a safe working environment.”

"While I applaud the effort of the governor to focus on how to keep students in school,” said Rep. Jacob Rosecrants, D-Norman, “I'm concerned that teachers weren't contacted about this policy change, and I'm further concerned that Superintendent Hofmeister wasn't invited to the press conference. While we all agree that in-person learning is the best way for children to learn, this policy doesn't go far enough to ensure the safety of teachers, students, and staff. I urge the governor to call for a mask mandate, which is proven to be the best way to mitigate the spread of this virus, inside and outside of our schools.”

Written by David Deaton

Mullin It Over January 12, 2021

I Will Always Support Our Capitol Police

By Congressman Markwayne Mullin

Last week’s attack on the U.S. Capitol was a horrific, dark day for our country. While we saw the worst in some, we also saw the best in others. Law enforcement officers, especially those with the U.S. Capitol Police and Sergeant at Arms, put their lives on the line to protect others and I will be forever grateful for their service.

Their actions that day were nothing short of heroic. They were greatly outnumbered and did the absolutely best they could, given the situation they found themselves in. When I visited the triage center shortly after the attack began, I saw many officers who were badly injured during the attack and they will be forever changed.

Tragically, we lost two members of the U.S. Capitol Police after the attack, Officer Brian Sicknick and Officer Howard Liebengood. I am heartbroken by the loss of these two courageous officers, but we will never forget the sacrifice they made as well as the sacrifice their families made.

The U.S. Capitol Police, like all other law enforcement officers, deserve not only our thanks, but also our full support. They sacrifice holidays, weekends, and other precious time with family and friends to serve the public.

Congress simply could not do what we do in Washington, DC without them. I will always support these heroes and I am proud to call many of them dear friends.

Want to stay up-to-date on what I’m doing in Oklahoma and Washington on your behalf? Sign up for my newsletter by visiting Mullin.house.gov/newslettersignup.

Written by David Deaton

State Rep. Rick West Column January 12, 2021

Serving as Vice Chair of County, Municipal Government Committee

Submitted by State Representative Rick West

I recently was named vice chair of the House County and Municipal Government Committee for the next two sessions of the Oklahoma Legislature. This is a great committee as it takes a look at legislation pertaining to the governing structures that are closest to the people legislators serve in their districts. If there’s a city or county law that’s too restrictive, for instance, or something that would help our towns and counties serve their people better, that will flow through this committee.

I’ll receive my other committee assignments this week and report those in a future column.

I wanted to touch on the process of redistricting for legislative and congressional districts that is happening this year. We are constitutionally required to do this every 10 years after U.S. Census results are reported to the states. Committees from both the Oklahoma House and Senate redraw the districts accounting for population shifts. The goal is for each representative, senator or member of Congress to represent roughly the same number of people. As more people move from rural areas to bigger cities, this can result in big districts for our rural lawmakers. We will likely see some changes to our districts here in Southeast Oklahoma because of population shifts. We’ve had several meetings to allow for public input into this process, one in McAlester and one in Tahlequah, along with others in other parts of the state. The committees and the House and Senate redistricting offices will be using all of this input to help us when we get to the part of remapping our districts this summer. I’ll keep you posted on our progress.

I want to say a big thank you to Karen Wages, the Executive Director of the Poteau Chamber of Commerce, and to her staff for all their hard work in opening the Reynolds Center for the LeFlore County Health Department’s COVID-19 Vaccine Clinic held Jan. 7. I was told they were able to vaccinate about 800 people during that one day. They plan to host the clinic each Thursday. I very much appreciate the great work the health care employees are doing to help our people during this pandemic.

For more information or to register to get the vaccine, you can go to this website: https://oklahoma.gov/covid19.html.

Also last week, I attended Organizational Day at the state Capitol. This day is constitutionally required to take place every two years after a statewide election is held. We accepted our state election results as delivered by the Oklahoma Election Board. House and Senate members then formally were seated, and we elected our leadership for the coming two years. House members also adopted House rules to govern how we do business in our chamber. We got through the day will little trouble.

In my next column, I’ll give some details about the legislation I will be filing this session as well as some news from the district. Until then, stay safe and sound.

If I can help you with anything, feel free to call my Capitol office at (405) 557-7381 or email me at .

Rick West represents District 3 in the Oklahoma House of Representatives, which includes part of LeFlore County.

Written by David Deaton

The Future of Our Election System is at Stake

Press Release

Written by Congressman Markwayne Mullin

On Wednesday, January 6^th a joint session of Congress convened to count the electoral college votes and I contested the votes from several states.

The reason I contested the results was not a political decision. It is because I firmly believe the procedures surrounding how the electors in several states were chosen violates our Constitution.

Under the Constitution, states have the right to set their own election laws and state legislatures are the only ones who have the authority to direct how the presidential electors are chosen. In several states where I will contest the results, the rules were deliberately changed by officials other than the state legislatures in direct violation of the U.S. Constitution and the constitutions of those states.

I swore an oath to protect and defend the Constitution therefore I cannot in good conscience vote to certify an election where the electors were not chosen properly. Standing by and letting these electoral votes be certified would show the American people the foundation of our democracy means nothing.

The future of our election system is at stake. Our country is and always will be worth fighting for.

Want to stay up-to-date on what I’m doing in Oklahoma and Washington on your behalf? Sign up for my newsletter by visiting Mullin.house.gov/newslettersignup.