I’m thankful to share that this year as a voter and citizen in Oklahoma City, USA, I’ll be headed to the polls more prepared than ever to cast my ballot. For this important mid-term election, I used the Online Voter Tool from the Oklahoma State Election Board (@OKelections) to generate a PDF sample ballot.
Make a Plan to Vote! Use our new web page to decide how you are going to cast your ballot (by mail, early voting, at your polling place) for the Nov. 6 election. Print out your plan and post it somewhere you will be reminded when the time comes. https://t.co/9IGEFQGwZh
— Oklahoma State Election Board (@OKelections) October 19, 2018
Then, I used DocHub to fill out the PDF, which I’ve linked and embedded as images below. I used many of the articles from NonDoc.com (@nondocmedia), Oklahoma Watch (@OklahomaWatch), The Oklahoma Policy Institute (@okpolicy) as well as candidate websites and other news sites to vet candidates, particularly ones with whom I was not previously familiar. This included all the judge races. I sheepishly admit that every other time I’ve voted as an adult in a U.S. election, there has been at least one ballot question or position for which I was unprepared to vote. If political parties were specified, that could be a fallback to help me make a decision, but in the case of judges a political affiliation is not specified in our state. So I’m VERY happy to feel more prepared than ever before to cast an informed ballot tomorrow. This preparation is also important since we have several important ballot initiatives to vote on.
A4 Without a doubt I'm voting for @joy4ok for Oklahoma State Superintendent of Public Instruction. Joy has worked tirelessly as an advocate for our students, teachers, & families in #OklaEd. I respect her integrity & passion to help make every classroom an amazing place to learn! pic.twitter.com/0KX95rQkug
— Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. ??? wesfryer.com/after (@wfryer) November 5, 2018
If you're in Oklahoma City District 85, please join @sfryer and I on Tuesday voting for @CyndiMunson85! Cyndi is a tireless advocate for our students and families in Oklahoma City & #OklaEd. We ?? and support you Cyndi!!!#ElectionDay #Election2018https://t.co/eJHyNUnaxJ
— Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. ??? wesfryer.com/after (@wfryer) November 6, 2018
I support Natalie Mai @MaiforJudge for District Judge (District 7, Office 5) in Oklahoma City! https://t.co/MhdVuiW9Ic#ElectionDay #ElectionDay2018 #OKC #OklaEd pic.twitter.com/3wBCLF10db
— Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. ??? wesfryer.com/after (@wfryer) November 6, 2018
If you are reading this post before you head to the polls in Oklahoma on November 6, 2018, I encourage you to download and view this PDF of my completed sample ballot, in case this can help you make some decisions prior to voting. As you’ll see if you look at my choices, I’m NOT a straight party voter. In many cases I’m voting for the person, their record and their professed agenda rather than just the political party they represent.
I was also thankful to have the opportunity to participate in this past Sunday evening #OklaEd Twitter chat, which focused on our upcoming elections and was led by Oklahoma school superintendent Rick Cobb (@grendelrick). The discussion and shared ideas from this Twitter chat especially helped me become more informed about our proposed state questions, and decide how am choosing to vote on them tomorrow. Woo hoo for democracy and voting! Our system is not perfect but it’s better than what folks have in many parts of the world… and it only works when citizens take civic responsibility seriously and participate in the process! Whatever your political persuasion, get out tomorrow / Tuesday and VOTE!
Well done sir, @grendelrick. Not many could handle the #rememberinnovember Sunday night chat. But you did it. Let’s all remember our passion & purpose. We love kids, the future, & all things edu! Let’s get this done! #oklaed
— Kristin Atchley (@kristin_atch) November 5, 2018
A2 We need to follow democratic processes in our Oklahoma legislature when it comes to our budget process. Our budget is still decided behind closed doors, & literally at the 11th hour legislators are shown the budget & asked to vote w/o time to debate. This must change! #OklaEd
— Wesley Fryer, Ph.D. ??? wesfryer.com/after (@wfryer) November 5, 2018