This is part of the Brennan Center’s Toolkits for Activists Across the Nation.
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Political Context | What’s in Place and What’s Needed | Key Dates
Administering an election under pandemic conditions requires undertaking steps to keep voting accessible, safe, and secure. The guide below lays out the problems Covid-19 poses, what preparedness measures Oklahoma has, and what changes are still needed. But first, we offer some political context for your advocacy.
Advocacy Focus: Local Reform
Local officials have a lot of responsibility over elections. They are a great place to focus advocacy efforts. Though state officials can make any of the changes in this toolkit, we highlight some examples of changes that local elections officials can also make with this symbol:🔸
Political Context
Below is a list of the relevant officials and information about the legislative session.
Governor: Kevin Stitt (R)
Secretary of the State Election Board: Paul Ziriax (R)
Legislature: House (R) Senate (R)
Legislative Session: The legislature last adjourned on May 29, 2020. Either the legislature or the governor can call a special legislative session.
Local Elections Officials: In Oklahoma, county election boards share responsibilities for administering elections. You can look up individual county election boards here.
What Oklahoma Has and What’s Needed
Three priorities. There are three key areas where we need to shore up our elections systems for success during a pandemic: registration, mail voting, and in-person voting.
Registration
Covid-19 may disrupt the traditional ways Americans register to vote, like get out the vote drives or registering at government agencies. In the crucial weeks before the registration deadline, postal service disruptions may lead many registration forms to arrive at election offices after the deadline.
Changes Still Needed:
- Prepare to extend mail voter registration deadlines based on conditions in the state
- Online voter registration
- Voter registration on Election Day
Voting by Mail
Because of Covid-19, long lines and crowds at the polls pose health risks not seen in previous elections. Allowing every citizen to vote by mail reduces the number of people at the polls on Election Day and decreases the exposure risk to Covid-19.
Preparatory Measures Oklahoma Already Has Taken:
- All voters can vote by mail without an excuse
- Online tool for requesting an absentee ballot
Changes Still Needed:
- Eliminate ID or notary requirement for return of mail ballot
- Provide pre-paid postage for voting by mail
- Accept late-arriving ballots postmarked by Election Day
- Provide post-election notice and cure opportunity for defects on absentee-ballot envelope, including signature mismatch or missing signatures
- Send absentee ballot applications to all active registered voters
In-Person Voting
Even with expanded mail voting opportunity, states cannot close polling places. To do so may disenfranchise voters without Internet and mail access, or those who do not wish to cast a ballot by mail. In-person voting must be done in accordance with health guidelines to prevent the spread of Covid-19.
Preparatory Measures Oklahoma Already Has Taken:
- In-person early voting
Changes Still Needed:
- Ensure sufficient polling places are open and resourced on Election Day🔸
- Open more in-person early voting locations🔸
- Take proper public health precautions to ensure safe polling places🔸
- Hold training sessions for polling-place workers well in advance of Election Day, so that election officials can better anticipate problems with staffing and logistics🔸
- Increase access to curbside voting at polling locations
Advocacy Focus: Protecting Polling Places
No matter how prepared Oklahoma is as a matter of policy, elections officials and advocates must stay vigilant about ensuring safe, healthy in-person voting is an option for everyone all the way through Election Day. Here are some important things to know about who makes decisions about polling places in Oklahoma and what rules govern the process:
- The Secretary of the State Election Board can declare an election emergency, which would allow him to promulgate rules and procedures for administering an election during the emergency.
- State law prohibits changing precinct boundaries in 2020.🔸
- The State Election Board may vote to stop the establishment of a polling location outside the precinct boundaries.
- The State Election Board is required to provide county election boards with the supplies necessary for conducting elections.
Key Dates for Oklahoma Elections
- June 5, 2020: Deadline to register by mail for the Primary Election
- June 30, 2020: Primary Election Day
- October 9, 2020: Deadline to register by mail for the General Election
- November 3, 2020: General Election Day