The Oklahoma Republican Party is alerting the public to a number of questionable campaign tactics by Democrats.

Oklahoma City, OK— 11/06/18 — Chairman Pam Pollard stated today, “I am shocked by the number of reported instances of campaign violations immediately before the elections. I have personally received numerous mailers on behalf of Democrat candidates that did not have the proper financial disclosure.”

“Campaigns are regulated by the State Ethics Commission and the rules are clearly posted online. Rule 2.56. Candidate Committee Printed Advertisements Disclosure Requirements specifically addresses the proper way to identify who paid for the campaign material. Unfortunately, the public cannot discern if the statements were made by the candidate, their opponent or by an organization supporting or opposing a candidate without the disclosure,” explained Pollard. (see example #1)

One of the more egregious examples of questionable campaigning submitted to the Republican State Chairman is an apparent communication between a group making independent expenditures and the candidate. (see example #2)

Another seemingly unethical tactic is the OK Education Assn offering chances to win tickets to a Thunder game in exchange for pictures of your I-Voted sticker. (see example #3)

Chairman Pollard concluded, “The current system of enforcement of campaign violations does not protect the public and voters from hidden donors nor misleading advertisements. Elections can be won or lost by these highly questionable tactics. It is most unfortunate that so many Democrat candidates and left-leaning groups have not followed the rules.”

EXAMPLE #1

EXAMPLE #2

EXAMPLE #3

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SoonerPoll: Republican Runoff Poll for News9/News on 6 by TheOkie.com on Scribd

SoonerPoll: (All Parties )Runoff Poll for News9/News on 6 by TheOkie.com on Scribd

Source: http://acuratings.conservative.org/wp-content/uploads/sites/5/2017/07/Oklahoma_2017_web.pdf

Democratic Caucus Statement on Continued Cuts to Agencies

 OKLAHOMA CITY – The Oklahoma House Democratic Caucus has released the following statement on the passage of House Bill 1019.

“Today’s passage of the revised general appropriations bill, House Bill 1019, reflects a failure of the Republican majority to listen to their constituents, invest in the state’s future, and uphold their commitment to continue services for our most vulnerable populations. The measure cuts nearly 50 agencies an average of 2.5 percent with only seven months left in the fiscal year. All of these cuts will come from remaining funding effectively doubling the percentage cut.

Because this budget relies so heavily on one-time funding, including the raiding of several agency revolving funds and draining the state’s savings account, House Republicans have once again guaranteed a budget shortfall for the next legislative session.

Republican leadership has thrown up their hands and claimed this budget is the only option. This is patently false. They have refused to bring up several recurring revenue measures that only require 51 votes, including capping the itemized deduction and eliminating the capital gains exemption.

Additionally, Republican leadership team failed on their promise to bring 75 percent of their caucus in support of a recurring revenue package that included a modest increase in the gross production tax.

After two months of games, the Republican majority has passed the budget they had long intended; one that blindly cuts funding from agencies without consideration of the effects of those cuts. It has become painfully obvious that Republicans at the State Capitol never intended to solve the budget crisis during this special session. For seven weeks, House Republican leadership has given false hope to state employees, teachers, seniors, and many other groups desperate for stability and much-deserved pay raises. By the former Appropriation & Budget Chair’s own admission, this entire special session has been orchestrated to lead to this very outcome.

House Democrats will continue to fight for responsible, equitable, and stable revenue raising measures that will put our state on a more solid fiscal path going forward, including the revenue measures referenced above, a restoration of income tax cuts for high earners, and a restoration of the gross production tax cuts that have made Oklahoma’s rate the lowest in the nation.”

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House Democrats Support Senate Resolution Calling for GPT to be Included in Budget Deal

 OKLAHOMA CITY – The House Democratic Caucus has released the following statement in response to Senate Resolution 1, which called for an increase to the gross production tax to 4 percent.

“We are pleased that the Senate has confirmed their willingness to bring gross production tax to the negotiating table. Though not specific regarding the length of time of the incentive rate, Senate Resolution 1 indicates a willingness to have a discussion around an increase to 4 percent.

The House Democratic Caucus joins with Senate Democrats to support an increase to the incentive rate to help put the state’s financial future on a more stable path.

We encourage the Republican House Caucus to stand with their colleagues across the rotunda, include an increase to the gross production tax in their revenue plan, and allow a vote tomorrow in order to complete the work our constituents expected us to do months ago.”

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House Democrats Respond to Leader Inman’s Resignation

OKLAHOMA CITY – Upon hearing House Minority Leader Scott Inman’s plans to resign from the House of Representatives, the House Democratic Caucus released the following statement:

“For the last 11 years, Minority Leader Scott Inman has been a voice for the voiceless in the Oklahoma Legislature. In an environment where big business and special interest rule, Scott has been the canary in the mine shaft by tirelessly voicing opposition to policies that prey on working class Oklahomans to the benefit of some of the wealthiest individuals in our state.

As the leader of our caucus, Scott has encouraged us to fight for the future of Oklahoma by protecting and promoting democratic values. He has supported us when it seemed like the whole world was against not only us but the constituents we represent. He has done these things not with words but with true leadership.

Moving forward, we echo his request to allow him and his family privacy through this difficulty period, and we simply want to thank him for the work he has done for this caucus, the Legislature, and Oklahoma.”

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House Democrats Respond to GOP Tax Plan

OKLAHOMA CITY – The House Democratic Caucus released the following statement today in response to the tax plan Gov. Mary Fallin announced with House and Senate Republicans this morning:

“Since we unveiled our Restoring Oklahoma Plan last March, the House Democratic Caucus has been clear that we will not support a budget deal that balances the state’s checkbook on the backs of Oklahoma workers while refusing to ask the oil and gas industry to pay their fair share.

It is obvious that this budget is meant to meet one objective, which is to find a way out of this budget shortfall without restoring the gross production tax on oil and gas wells. Instead of asking the oil and gas industry to pay a fair and just tax, Republican lawmakers would rather tax working class Oklahomans.

We believe that offering teachers and state employees a pay raise while simultaneously raising their taxes to pay for the raise is both disingenuous and a terrible way to balance a budget. Our Caucus remains resolved that teachers and state employees deserve to be compensated fairly, but we will not support a plan that puts money in their right pocket just to take it back out of their left.

As Republican lawmakers continue to play political games, Oklahomans are suffering due to cuts that are taking place to Oklahoma’s various health care agencies. The House Democratic Caucus is demanding the Republican Caucus halt this plan, which only seeks to raise taxes on working Oklahomans, and come back to the table to build a budget that works for all Oklahomans.”

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The Tulsa County Democratic Party has asked for a restraining order against Mike Workman, a party maverick and frequent candidate who this year is campaigning for state party chairman.

In a petition filed Wednesday in Tulsa County District Court, current and past party officers say they’ve been threatened and harassed by Workman, and ask for an emergency restraining order to keep him 100 yards from the party headquarters, 13 feet from county officers and restrict his communications with the county party to email.

“Every single statement (in the petition) is not only false, but maliciously false,” Workman said Wednesday evening. “This is a political dispute, not a legal dispute.”

Read the complete story on tulsaworld.com

TULSA – Drew Edmondson will announce his candidacy for governor at an 11 a.m. press conference today, The Journal Record confirmed.

Edmondson, a Democrat, served as Oklahoma’s attorney general from 1995-2011. From 1982-1992 Edmondson served as the district attorney in Muskogee County. He lost the 2010 Democratic gubernatorial primary to then Lieutenant Governor Jari Askins by about six-tenths of 1 percent, approximately 1,500 votes. Since 2011 he has worked in private practice.

Edmondson is a Navy veteran who completed a tour of duty in Vietnam and served one term in the Oklahoma Legislature before enrolling at the University of Tulsa School of Law in 1976.

Read the complete story on journalrecord.com

Oklahoma Senate Democrats Announce 2017 Legislative Agenda

OKLAHOMA CITY – Senate Democratic Leader John Sparks on Thursday unveiled the Senate Democrat’s 2017 legislative agenda with a focus on specific plans and solutions, which will ensure that core government services in Oklahoma are protected and enhanced in a way that benefits hard working Oklahoma families and our business community.

“Oklahoma teachers, small business owners and hard working families are looking to the legislature for reassurance that there are, in fact, plans on the table to address issues like our budget crisis, our education crisis and our healthcare crisis. The Democrats in the Senate are prepared to present and champion legislation which specifically addresses these issues,” said Sparks, D-Norman.

“Now is the time for bold ideas and true leadership. Non-election years are the time to do hard things and take hard votes. This session we must be prepared to do the right thing for Oklahoma and turn crises into opportunities. We are hopeful that these practical, common-sense ideas will gain the support of members across the political spectrum and, together, we can muster the political will to do hard things this session, which will truly benefit Oklahoma families and businesses,” said Democratic Caucus Chair Sen. Kay Floyd, D-Oklahoma City.

Senate Democrats have filed 91 bills this session with a clear focus on protecting and investing in public education, supporting Oklahoma business and industry, fixing the revenue problem in the state budget, making Oklahoma healthier and expanding access to healthcare for hard working Oklahomans, expanding criminal justice reform, and supporting and protecting the most vulnerable among us.

The 2017 Senate Democratic Agenda includes specific proposals in each of these areas:

Protecting and Investing in Public Education

• Implementing an 8-year plan for the State Department of Education to get a better long-term view of how budget changes and legislative mandates impact our children, our teachers and our schools (SB 437 – Sparks).
• Reinstating the National Board Certified Teacher bonus program to ensure merit pay opportunities for Oklahoma’s best, brightest and most innovative teachers (SB 463 – Sparks).

Supporting Oklahoma Business and Industry

• Repealing Oklahoma’s non-compliance with the Real ID Act (SB 1 – Sparks, Floyd) and empowering the Department of Public Safety to implement a self-funding system, which will make Oklahoma compliant with the Real ID Act (SB 190 – Floyd) as quickly and efficiently as possible, so as to limit the impending interruption to the mission and work at our military installations and solve this problem promptly.
• Protecting Oklahoma businesses from excessive fees and taxes and ensuring that fees and taxes paid are spent in support of the industry that pays them and are not used to balance the state’s budget (SB 454 – Sparks).

Fixing the Revenue Problem in our State Budget

• Establishing a fund to replace the revenue from oil and gas extraction as that resource continues to diminish (SJR35 & SB610 – Sparks).
• Stopping the 2018 trigger on the most recent short sighted, politically motivated tax cut and ensure no more tax cuts happen in this budget environment (SB 82 – Matthews).

Making Oklahoma Healthier and Expanding Access to Healthcare for Hard Working Oklahomans

• Creating a paid family medical leave model for Oklahoma state employees (SB 736 – Floyd) where we can model the value in supporting Oklahoma families in a way that will encourage private industry to follow our lead.
• Restoring Insure Oklahoma to pre-Affordable Care Act levels (new SB 805 in process – Sparks).

Expanding Criminal Justice Reform

• Reducing unnecessary costs to state taxpayers by empowering the Pardon and Parole Board to parole prisoners who are 70 years of age or older and meet certain other public safety requirements (SB 185 – Floyd).

Supporting and Protecting the Most Vulnerable Among Us

• Restoring the Earned Income Tax Credit to its previous refundable status for the lowest-income working Oklahoma families (SB 434 – Sparks).
• Protecting survivors of domestic violence, sexual violence and stalking from certain landlord/tenant issues (SB 621 – Matthews).
• Extending the statute of limitations on human trafficking (SB 249 – Pittman) and child sexual abuse or child sexual exploitation (SB 192 – Floyd) to protect Oklahoma’s most vulnerable children.
• Passing a package of incentives and benefits for Oklahoma’s military families and veterans, including making 100% of military retirement pay exempt from state income taxes (SB 126 – Dossett) and extending reduced motor vehicle registration fees to military retirees (SB 125 – Dossett).

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Senators take oath of office

In a ceremony held on Oklahoma’s 109th birthday, 24 new and returning members of the Oklahoma State Senate were sworn into office at the Capitol Wednesday.  Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb, President of the Senate, presided over the ceremony.  The oath was administered by the Honorable John Reif, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court.

The 13 new members taking the oath of office were Micheal Bergstrom, R-Adair; Dewayne Pemberton, R-Muskogee; James Leewright, R-Bristow; Greg McCortney, R-Ada; Roland Pederson, R-Burlington; Tom Dugger, R-Stillwater; Joe Newhouse, R-Broken Arrow; Lonnie Paxton, R-Tuttle; Julie Daniels, R-Bartlesville; Chris Kidd, R-Addington; Dave Rader, R-Tulsa; Adam Pugh, R-Edmond; and Paul Scott, R-Duncan.

Returning members sworn in Wednesday included Wayne Shaw, R-Grove; Larry Boggs, R-Wilburton; Kevin Matthews, D-Tulsa; Rob Standridge, R-Norman; Ron Sharp, R-Shawnee; Bryce Marlatt, R-Woodward; Nathan Dahm, R-Broken Arrow; Gary Stanislawski, R-Tulsa; Dan Newberry, R-Tulsa; Kyle Loveless, R-Oklahoma City; and Greg Treat, R-Oklahoma City.  Sen. Joseph Silk, R-Broken Bow, will be sworn in on Monday.

Returning members were able to file legislation for the 2017 session beginning November 15, while new members can begin filing bills on November 23.  The deadline for requesting bills is December 9.  Those measures must be filed by January 19.

The full Senate will officially convene for an organizational day on Tuesday, January 3, 2017, and the First Session of the 56th Legislature reconvenes on Monday, February 6.

The Senate website has streaming video from all committee rooms and the chamber.  Legislation, the Senate Journal, biographical information on members, high resolution photos, committee and floor agendas, votes and press releases can also be accessed at www.oksenate.gov.

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The Honorable John Reif, Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, administers the oath of office to newly elected and reelected members of the Senate. 

WASHINGTON — Lt. Gov. Todd Lamb will run for governor in 2018 and be the heavy favorite. Attorney General Scott Pruitt will either run against Lamb or try again for a seat in Congress. And a long list of current and would-be officeholders will try to replace Lamb and Pruitt.

Those are the predictions of Oklahoma political experts polled by The Oklahoman with the promise of anonymity. A dozen elected officials, consultants and other campaign veterans — people who have run and won political races in Oklahoma — were asked to name the most likely candidates for the state’s highest offices two years from now; nine responded.

Aside from some high-stakes state questions on raising the sales tax, expanding liquor sales and other topics, there are few competitive or meaningful Oklahoma contests on the ballot next month.

The opposite is likely to be true in 2018.

Read the complete story on NewsOK.com

Current statistics in Oklahoma show the Republican Party continuing to lead in voter rolls.

Records maintained by the state Election Board show 929,989 registered Republicans, 838,665 Democrats, 281,790 independents and 807 Libertarians.

Historical trends have seen the Republican and independent share of voter registration increasing while the percentage of Democrats has decreased.

The number of Republican voters went up by about 3 percent from 2014 to 2016, a net increase of about 26,000 voters. The number of Democrats fell by 6 percent, a net loss of 53,000 voters from 2014. Independents, meanwhile, had a net increase of 28,000 voters in that period.

Read the complete story on NewsOK.com

After the Oklahoma Democratic Party announced last year that registered Independents would be allowed to vote in this year’s Democratic presidential primary, many observers wondered how big a role those voters would play in the outcome.

The answer? Not big enough to swing the race.

An analysis performed this week by Oklahoma City-based polling firm SoonerPoll shows 34,436 registered Independents voted in the Democratic primary — too few to make up the 34,716-vote margin between Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The small Independent turnout also appears to indicate that Sanders’ victory was not fueled by a large groundswell of young and Independent voters as some had speculated, said Bill Shapard, founder of SoonerPoll.

In Oklahoma, Sanders’ victory appears instead to have been driven by older registered Democrats, according to the analysis. That the contest isn’t living up to preconceptions isn’t a surprise to Shapard, who authored the analysis.

“This was a crazy election,” Shapard said. “There’s just no doubt about it.”

Read the complete story on NewsOK.com

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