RUNOFF VOTE
Field of candidates to narrow before general election
Voting in an Oklahoma runoff election is sort of like being part of an exclusive, yet powerful, club.
Traditionally, most Oklahoma voters sit the runoff election out, so those wearing the
“I Voted” sticker on Tuesday make up some of the state electorate’s most engaged individualswho will go a long way in deciding the ultimate winner in many races.
“When the polls are open I’m going to be there,” said Michael Cron, 68, of Oklahoma City, who said the runoff election couldn’t come a moment too soon following weeks of political commercials and street intersections cluttered with campaign signs.
A total of 43,444 votes already have been cast through the mail or absentee inperson votes, according to the Oklahoma Election Board. Most votes will be cast on Tuesday, when polls across the state are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. In some deeply partisan districts, the winner of the runoff for the party in power will become the heavy favorite on the November ballot, even though more voters are likely to show up for a general election.
Then again, some are hopeful this year’s runoff election will buck recent trends, especially after Oklahoma saw historic turnout for primary races in June.
More than 890,000 voters cast a ballot in this year’s primary, but runoffs can see as much as a 40 percent drop in turnout, according to the last several election cycles.
All three of the state’s recognized parties have at least one statewide runoff. Registered Republicans,
Democrats and Libertarians may vote on their respective party ballots, but the Democratic Party allows registered Independents to vote in its primary.
The Republican and Libertarian Parties close their primaries and runoffs to Independents.
There are 35 state and federal runoffs on the Republican ballot and 12 runoffs on the Democratic ballot.
Libertarians will only have the gubernatorial runoff on the ballot.
The race likely to gain the most attention is the Republican runoff for governor between former Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett and Tulsa businessman Kevin Stitt. While some polls have shown a competitive race between Democrat Drew Edmondson and either Republican, Oklahoma remains a
staunchly Republican state where Tuesday’s winner will emerge as an early front-runner.
This election cycle has also been tougher for incumbents than in years past as 10 current Republican state representatives are fighting for their jobs on Tuesday.
Republicans are also voting for their nominee for lieutenant governor, attorney general, state superintendent of public instruction and other statewide seats.
There is also a local election in northeast Oklahoma City as eight candidates are running for the city’s Ward 7 city council seat.