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Ballot access requirements for political parties in Oklahoma
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Note: This article is not intended to serve as a guide to running for public office. Individuals should contact their state election agencies for further information.
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Although there are hundreds of political parties in the United States, only certain parties qualify to have the names of their candidates for office printed on election ballots. In order to qualify for ballot placement, a party must meet certain requirements that vary from state to state. For example, in some states, a party may have to file a petition in order to qualify for ballot placement. In other states, a party must organize around a candidate for a specific office; that candidate must, in turn, win a percentage of the vote in order for the party to be granted ballot status. In still other states, an aspiring political party must register a certain number of voters.
To learn more about ballot access requirements for political candidates in Oklahoma, see this article.
Process for a political party to obtain ballot status
See statutes: Title 26, Chapter 1 of the Oklahoma Code
Gaining status
The first step in forming a new political party in Oklahoma is to file a "notice of intent" form with the Oklahoma State Election Board. This form can be filed at any time except between March 1 and November 15 of even-numbered years.[1]
Once the notice of intent form is filed, the new political party must circulate a qualifying petition to collect signatures from registered voters equaling at least 3% of the total number of votes cast in the last general election for governor. The qualifying petition can be circulated for up to one year after a notice of intent is filed, but it cannot be circulated between March 1 and November 15 of any even-numbered year. To qualify as a political party in time to access the ballot in an election year, the petition must be filed by March 1 of that year. If the Oklahoma State Election Board finds that the qualifying petition contains a sufficient number of valid signatures, the political party will be officially recognized by the state. An officially recognized political party may nominate candidates via primary election.[1][2]
Maintaining status
To maintain recognized status, a political party's candidate must have received at least 2.5% of the vote for any statewide office in either of the last two general elections. If a party fails to meet this requirement, the party will cease to be recognized by the state. A political party that has lost its recognition is considered a political organization. In order to be recognized again, the political organization must re-qualify by following the procedures described above. A political organization designation terminates after four years unless the organization re-qualifies as a political party.[3]
Political parties
As of May 2024, the state of Oklahoma officially recognized three political parties. [4]
| Political parties in Oklahoma | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Website link | By-laws/platform link |
| Democratic Party of Oklahoma | Link | Party by-laws |
| Libertarian Party of Oklahoma | Link | Party platform |
| Republican Party of Oklahoma | Link | Party platform |
Noteworthy events
2018
On April 26, 2018, the Oklahoma House of Representatives voted 77-3 to approve SB 350, which established new requirements for political parties to retain recognized status. Under previous law, a political party's candidate for statewide office needed to win at least 2.5 percent of the total votes cast that office in each general election in order for the party to retain recognized status. SB 350 amended this requirement, providing that a candidate for statewide office must to win at least 2.5 percent of the total votes cast for that office in either of the two most recent general elections in order the party to retain recognition. The bill originated in the Oklahoma State Senate, where it was approved by a vote of 41-3. The bill was signed into law by Governor Mary Fallin (R) on May 3, 2018.[5][6][7]
2015
On May 12, 2015, Governor Mary Fallin (R) signed into law a bill that reduced the petition signature requirement for newly-qualifying political parties to 3 percent of the total number of votes cast for governor in the last general election. Prior to the bill's enactment, newly-qualifying political parties were required to submit signatures equaling at least 5 percent of the total number of votes for governor.[8][9]
University of Oklahoma political science professor Keith Gaddie criticized the legislation, saying, "[The bill is] reform in the sense that they cut the threshold, but it’s not real reform. It ain’t much. If my cholesterol was 400 and I did everything the doc asked and I got it down to 300, it’s still high. There’s no good reason to have such restrictive ballot access."[10]
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See also
- Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Oklahoma
- Ballot access requirements for presidential candidates in Oklahoma
- List of political parties in the United States
- Democratic Party of Oklahoma
- Libertarian Party of Oklahoma
- Republican Party of Oklahoma
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 [https://law.justia.com/codes/oklahoma/title-26/section-26-1-108/ Justia, " 26 OK Stat § 1-108 (2024)," accessed July 14, 2025]
- ↑ Justia, "26 OK Stat § 1-102 (2024)," accessed July 14, 2025
- ↑ Justia, "26 OK Stat § 1-109 (2024)," accessed July 14, 2025
- ↑ Oklahoma State Election Board Website, "Frequently Asked Questions: Political Parties," accessed May 15, 2024
- ↑ Ballot Access News, "Oklahoma Legislature Passes Bill Easing Definition of Political Party," April 26, 2018
- ↑ Oklahoma State Legislature, "Bill Information for SB 350," accessed April 27, 2018
- ↑ Ballot Access News, "Oklahoma Bill, Easing Definition of Political Party, is Signed Into Law," May 3, 2018
- ↑ NewsOK, "Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin signs ballot access bill," May 14, 2015
- ↑ Ballot Access News, "Oklahoma Governor Signs Ballot Access Bill," May 12, 2015
- ↑ Red Dirt Report, "Lawmakers fall short with ballot access reform, OU professor says," May 18, 2015
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