Oklahoma Democratic Party

The Oklahoma Democratic Party is an Oklahoma political party affiliated with the Democratic Party. Along with the Oklahoma Republican Party, it is one of the two major parties in Oklahoma politics.

The party dominated local politics in Oklahoma almost since the days of early statehood in 1907 to 1994. In national politics, the party became a dominant force beginning with the presidential election of 1932 and the Franklin D. Roosevelt political re-alignment. From 1932 to 1994, the majority of members of Congress from Oklahoma have been Democrats, and of the 27 men and women who have been elected to the office of Governor of Oklahoma, 22 have been Democrats.

However, the party has fared poorly since 1994; Democrats lost five out of six congressional races that year. Since then, they have won only a handful of seats, which they no longer hold. In response, the traditionally disorganized Oklahoma Democrats have taken steps to create a more organized state party, hiring a professional executive director in 1995.Gaddie, Ronald Keith
Democratic Party
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture (accessed February 11, 2010). Even so, Democrats continued to lose ground in the 2000s, losing control of both the Oklahoma House of Representatives and the Oklahoma Senate in the presidential election.

As of January 15, 2021, there are 748,222 registered Democratic voters in Oklahoma.

In the 2012 general election, the party was successful in defending all incumbents in the Oklahoma Legislature and defeating two Republican House members.

In 2018, Kendra Horn defeated incumbent Republican congressman Steve Russell, to become the first Democrat elected to Congress from Oklahoma since 2010. She lost reelection to Republican challenger Stephanie Bice in 2020.

History

Statehood and the 20th Century

The Oklahoma Democratic Party once dominated state politics for much of Oklahoma history from 1907 to 1994, with its strength in greatest concentrations in the southeastern part of the state, known as "Little Dixie" because of the post-Reconstruction migration of people from southern states such as Mississippi, Texas and Arkansas.

Upon statehood, all but one of the Congressional seats was held by Democrats. The Democrats won eighteen of the twenty-one gubernatorial elections since its statehood in 1907. The Democratic Party held on average 81 percent of the seats in the state legislature between 1907 and 1973.Carney, George O.,
McGuire, George O. (1865-1930)
"
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture
'' (accessed May 28, 2010). With the onset of the Great Depression, the party gained even more influence for several decades.

The first legislature, dominated by Democratic party members, passed legislation that made it nearly impossible for African-Americans to seek elective office.

Democratic opposition to deficit spending in the late 1930s marked a growing conservative movement in the party, which led to a 1941 constitutional amendment requiring legislators to pass a balanced budget. The growing conservative movement in the party also led to the rejection of many New Deal programs after initial acceptance in the early 1930s.Bryant Jr., Keith L
New Deal
Encyclopedia of Oklahoma History and Culture (accessed May 9, 2013)

After the federal Voting Rights Act and congressional reapportionment in Oklahoma in the 1960s, black state lawmakers returned to the Oklahoma Legislature, this time many aligning with the Democratic Party and hailing from Tulsa or Oklahoma City.

Since the 1980s the party has seen a decline as Christian fundamentalists have shifted to the Republican Party. The Democratic Party has not attained more than 41 percent of the vote for president.

21st Century

As of 2000 about 55 percent of Oklahoma voters registered as Democrats. The party continues to decline in strength in both the Oklahoma Legislature and executive branch. For the first time since statehood, Republicans held all statewide-elected offices starting in 2011.

In the 2020 Oklahoma elections, Democrat Mauree Turner became the first Muslim Oklahoma state legislator and the first publicly non-binary U.S. state legislator in the United States.

Electoral history

Note:

Current structure and composition

The Oklahoma Democratic Party headquarters is located North Santa Fe Avenue in Oklahoma City. They host the biennial state conventions in May of odd-numbered years, in which they elect executive officers and delegates to the Democratic National Committee. The Democratic National Committee is responsible for promoting Democratic campaign activities, overseeing the process of writing the national Democratic Platform, and supervising the Democratic National Convention. Delegates serve four-year terms concurrent with presidential elections.

Alicia Andrews, the first African American and African American Woman chair was re-elected June, 2021. Former state Representative, Eric Proctor was elected vice chair.
Oklahoma Democratic Party (accessed February 11, 2010). Former Governor David Walters and Kalyn Free are delegates for the Democratic National Committee.

The state party coordinates campaign activities with Democratic candidates and county parties, and officers who correspond with the state's five Congressional districts. In 2005, the Democratic National Committee began a program called the "50 State Strategy" of using national funds to assist all state parties and pay for full-time professional staffers.

The Young Democrats of Oklahoma is the official age 13-35 division of the Oklahoma Democratic Party.

Officers and Staff

Officers:
*Chair, Alicia Andrews
*Vice Chair, Eric Proctor
*Secretary, Nana Dankwa
*Treasurer, Rachel Hunsucker

Staff:
*Executive Director, Scott J. Hamilton
*Communications Director, Angela Allmond
*Director of External Relations, David D. Roberts
*Operations/Office Manager, Tristen Watkins

Ideology

The Oklahoma Democratic Party is made up of conservative, Centrism, centrist and liberal members. Less than a third of registered Democratic voters in Oklahoma supported President Barack Obama in 2012, due to the larger proliferation of conservative and Centrism, centrist members of the party.

Compared to other Democratic factions, Centrist members of the Oklahoma Democratic Party support the use of military force and the use of deadly force in self-defense. They are more willing to reduce government welfare. Many Oklahoma Democrats are socially conservative by supporting the United States pro-life movement and traditional marriage. The Oklahoma Democratic Party tends to support moderate to conservative positions on gun control and open carry.

The Oklahoma Democratic Party held a state convention on May 14, 2011, in which they discussed a number of platform positions.Baggett, James. "Oklahoma Democrats." 2011 Convention: Rules, Resolutions, Affirmative Action Committee members (two men and two women); to consider proposed Minutes from 2009. Oklahoma Democrats, n.d. Web. 7 Nov. 2011. . Participants discussed support for public health programs, government-funded embryonic stem cell research, the legalization of medical marijuana, education funding, and opposition to voucher programs that divert tax dollars to private institutions. They also discussed the state party's support of teacher's rights to unionize and policies to protect homeowners from unfair foreclosures. Other party platform positions included support for the elimination of predatory lending practices, support for limitations on credit card interest rates, support for the elimination of the state sales tax on food, support for increasing taxes on the wealthiest citizens of Oklahoma, and support for reforms to the state criminal justice system. The party's position on gun laws was moderate, stating support for limited, but responsible gun laws. The party also supports continued investments in green energies.

Current elected officials

, the Oklahoma Democratic Party does not have a majority in either house of the state legislature or hold any federal seats. The only statewide Democratic official in Oklahoma is Joy Hofmeister, who switched parties in October 2021.

Legislative leadership

*Senate Minority Leader: Kay Floyd
* House Minority Leader: Emily Virgin
*House Minority Whip: Mickey Dollens

Notable Oklahoma Democrats

*U.S. Senator Thomas P. Gore
*U.S. Senator Robert S. Kerr
*U.S. Senator Fred Harris
*U.S. House Speaker Carl Albert
*Historian Angie Debo
*Artist Enoch Kelly Haney
*Entertainer Will Rogers
*Governor George Nigh George Nigh
*Governor David Walters David Walters
*Governor Brad Henry
*Attorney General Drew Edmondson
*U.S Representative Kendra Horn of Oklahoma's 5th congressional district

Democratic Governors

, there have been a total of 22 Democratic Party Governors.

See also

* Politics of Oklahoma
* U.S. Democratic Party
* Oklahoma Libertarian Party
* Oklahoma Republican Party

References

External links

Oklahoma Democratic Party

{{U.S. Democratic Party state parties

Democratic Party (United States) by state
Democratic Party