New congressional district, new precincts among changes for Washington County voters
A few changes are in store for voters in Washington County this year prompted by the new boundaries drawn in congressional and legislative districts.
This year's June 28 primary, Aug. 23 runoff and Nov. 8 general election will reflect the new district lines approved by the legislature which are evaluated every 10 years to ensure equal representation based on the latest census numbers.
A few things of note:
New voter identification cards and polling locations: All voters will be receiving new voter ID cards in the mail now through May 27. The new IDs include the polling place, which will be different for some voters. Voters can also find their polling place using the OK Voter Portal at oklahoma.gov/elections.
Washington County Election Board Secretary Yvonne House said that polling place changes were prompted by changes to House district lines which made some of the precincts too large. She said they are in the final process of confirming all new precincts.
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New Congressional district: Through redistricting, Washington County was dropped from the more urban 1st Congressional District, held by Kevin Hern, and is now in the 2nd Congressional District led by U.S. Rep. Markwayne Mullin.
Mullin, however, is abandoning a run for a sixth House term to seek the unexpired seat being vacated by Sen. Jim Inhofe in the U.S. Senate. There he faces 12 other Republicans including Inhofe’s former chief of staff and Bartlesville native Luke Holland, 35, Tulsa, in a special Republican primary election on June 28.
Other Republican contenders are T.W. Shannon, 44, Oklahoma City; Alex Gray, 32, Nichols Hills; Nathan Dahm, 39, Broken Arrow; Adam Holley, 41, Bixby; Jessica Jean Garrison, 47, Owasso; Laura Moreno, 37, Edmond; Michael Coibion, 67, Bartlesville; Scott Pruitt, 53, Tulsa; Paul Royse, 51, Tulsa; John Tompkins, 65, Oklahoma City; and Randy Grellner, 56, Cushing.
With 50% plus one vote to win the election, a runoff is highly likely in that race on Aug. 23. The Republican winner will face Democrat Kendra Horn, 45, Oklahoma City, and Independent Ray Woods, 86, Fairview, in the general election Nov. 8.
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U.S. Representative District 2: Meanwhile, 14 Republicans and a sole Democrat and Independent, Naomi Andrews, 39, Tulsa, and Bulldog Ben Robinson, 88, Muskogee, respectively, will vie for Mullin’s currently-held District 2 seat.
In the competitive Republican primary on June 28 are John Bennett, 47, Vian; Dustin Roberts, 38, Durant; Guy Barker, 32, Monkey Island; Clint Johnson, 49, Tahlequah; Chris Schiller, 45, Muskogee; Marty Quinn, 62, Claremore; Johnny Teehee, 57, Vian; Avery Frix, 28, Muskogee; Rhonda Hopkins, 46, Rose; David Derby, 45, Owasso; Pamela Gordon, 62, McAlester; Wes Nofire, 35, Park Hill; Erick Wyatt, 43, Kingston; and Josh Brecheen, 42, Coalgate.
Oklahoma House districts: Changes to boundaries in House districts 10 and 11 within Washington County were minor, with land around Bartlesville taken from HD 10 and added to HD 11.
House District 11 covers the southern half of Washington County and the northern part of Tulsa County. In that seat, Republican John Kane, 62, Bartlesville is challenging incumbent Republican Wendi Stearman, 48, Collinsville.
HD 10 includes the northern part of Bartlesville, Dewey as well as parts of Nowata and Osage counties. Judd Strom, 43, Copan, holds that seat and is unopposed.
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Washington County offices: All Washington County seats up for reelection will be held by the unopposed Republican incumbents: Assessor Todd Mathes, Treasurer Melissa Thornbrugh, County Commissioner Mitch Antle in District 1 and County Commissioner Mike Dunlap in District 3.
District Attorney Kevin Buchanan is not seeking reelection in District 11, leaving the office open to the one candidate, Will Drake, 40, Bartlesville.
Voter registration: Deadlines are June 3 for the primary election, July 29 for the runoff and Oct. 14 for the general election. Register online at oklahoma.gov/elections or contact the Washington County Election Board, 401 S. Johnstone Ave., at 918-337-2830 for more information.
Absentee ballots: The deadline to request an absentee ballot for the June 28 primary election is June 13 at 5 p.m.
Early birds: Early voting is offered to all voters Thursday and Friday before an election at a designated early voting location, no excuse is needed. It is also offered, on Saturday before state and federal elections and on Wednesday before a general election.
This article originally appeared on Bartlesville Examiner-Enterprise: Washington County voters have new congressional district and precincts
