State ballot could be complicated in November

The leader of the Oklahoma Senate on Thursday expressed concern that too many state questions on the November ballot could run up the cost.

Senate President Pro Tem Brian Bingman, R-Sapulpa, was asked about a number of measures moving through the Legislature that would place additional state questions on the ballot.

“Well, if we are not careful, you are going to have to bring a sandwich when you go into that booth to mark that ballot this year,” Bingman said. “It might take awhile. Yes, we are concerned about flooding the ballot.”

Two state questions already are on the ballot. State Question 776 deals with the death penalty while State Question 777 deals with the rights of farmers and ranchers.

Meanwhile, education supporters earlier this week announced that they will begin circulating a petition to let people vote on increasing the sales tax by a cent to fund education. Other proposals would ban abortion and modernize the state’s liquor laws.

On the legislative side, the Senate Rules Committee has passed a variety of measures to go on the ballot, including Senate Joint Resolution 65 that would let the governor appoint the commissioner of labor.

Another measure, Senate Joint Resolution 72, would let voters decide if a section of the Oklahoma Constitution should be removed to allow the return of a privately funded Ten Commandments monument to the state Capitol.

Bingman said he consulted with Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax about the issue.

“More than likely, we can fit maybe six more state questions on the general election ballot without any problems,” Ziriax said. “It depends on the length of the ballot titles. In the event there were too many state questions, along with other elections, to fit on a single ballot, we would have to go to a second ballot for the general election.”

The cost of the added ballots would range from $600,000 to $650,000, Ziriax said.