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vote
Dec. 4, 2023
Democracy Watch
Two Oklahoma City women cast their votes at North Side Christian Church in the Super Tuesday presidential preference primary election on March 3, 2020. (Whitney Bryen/Oklahoma City)
By Keaton Ross | Democracy/Criminal Justice Reporter
Ready or not, Oklahoma’s presidential primary season kicks off this week.
Candidate filing for the Oklahoma Presidential Preferential Primary began this morning at 8 a.m. and runs through 5 p.m. Wednesday. The filing fee is $5,000, more than twice what’s required for a U.S. Senate or gubernatorial candidate. In lieu of the filing fee, candidates may provide a petition with at least 1,000 signatures of registered voters from each of Oklahoma’s five congressional districts.
Candidate filing for statewide, federal, judicial and legislative seats is usually quite a spectacle. Most show up in-person at the State Capital to fill out the required paperwork, and reporters take advantage by staking out the filing area and stopping public officials for questions.
As you might expect, the state doesn’t require in-person filing for presidential candidates, who can opt to file by mail or send an agent to deliver their paperwork. You can keep track of who’s filing on the Oklahoma State Election Board website.
Oklahoma’s presidential filing requirements are relatively lax compared to other states. To make the primary ballot, presidential candidates must be registered with the Federal Election Commission and have expended at least $5,000.
The primary election is set for March 5 with polls open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The registration deadline is Feb. 9 at 5 p.m. You can use the OK Voter Portal to check your voter registration status.
Have questions about this election or coverage from Oklahoma Watch you’d like to see? Let me know at Kross@Oklahomawatch.org.