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Now that the legislative session is behind us, we have to immediately pivot and turn our attention to the primary elections on June 16.
The elections have taken an unexpected turn since we last talked and we’ll talk about that in a little bit.
Before we dive into the elections, though, I wanted to take a few minutes to talk about the OBA Annual Convention that was held in mid-May at the OKANA Resort in Oklahoma City. Every year I say it was one of our best conventions ever, and this year’s definitely didn’t disappoint.
We had a great lineup of speakers who brought industry expertise and excitement to all of our bankers in attendance.
ABA Chair Kenneth Kelly gave us an update from Washington and everything that is going on regarding the GENIUS Act.
We were very fortunate to have the chairman of the FDIC, Travis Hill, join us for a “fireside chat” with OBA Chair Steve Bagwell. Hill talked about the recent accomplishments by the FDIC, and what the agenda is going forward.
Chad Warmington, president/CEO of the State Chamber, gave a great presentation on workforce development and what it’s going to take to make Oklahoma more competitive in the future. If you would like a copy of Chad’s presentation, please send me an email and I’ll get it to you.
We also were fortunate to have two of the candidates for governor join us for a little chat. Charles McCall III and Gentner Drummond both have strong ties to the banking industry and are both running for governor. I had a list of questions for the candidates and they all centered around, if elected, what would each do to move the state forward?
Both candidates did a great job laying out their vision for the state and how they would move it into the future. I also want to say a special thank you to all of our convention sponsors. This great event wouldn’t be possible without them.
Also, thanks for the Oklahoma State Banking Department for all its help in making this a memorable convention.
• • •
Everyone should know the primaries are coming up on June 16.
Early voting is June 11-12. There are several statewide elections that will shape the future of our state.
I wanted to give you a list of candidates in those races. I would encourage you to do your homework on each of these races before you vote, however. Each candidate brings different thoughts and ideas to their plan; you need to see who best aligns with your personal beliefs.
Governor
Democratic
Connie Johnson
Arya Azma
Cyndi Munson
Republican
Calup Anthony Taylor
Jennifer Domenico
Gentner Drummond
Kenneth Sturgell
Chip Keating
Mike Mazzei
Jake Merrick
Charles McCall III
Leisa Mitchell Haynes
Lt. Governor
Republican
H. Victor Flores
T. W. Shannon
David Ostrowe
Justin J.J. Humphrey
Brian Hill
Attorney General
Republican
John Echols
Jeff Starling
State Treasurer
Republican
Todd Russ
Cindy Byrd
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Democratic
Jennettie Marshall
Craig McVay
Republican
Toni Hasenbeck
John Cox
Robert Franklin
James Taylor
Adam Pugh
Debra Herlihy
William E. Crozier
Labor Commissioner
Republican
John Pfeiffer
Lisa Janloo
Keith Swinton
Kevin West
Insurance Commissioner
Republican
Chris Meredith
Greta Shuler
Marty Quinn
Bob Sullivan
Corporation Commissioner
Democratic
Donald Anthony Clytus
Rhonda Eastman
Harold Spradling
Republican
Brad Boles
Justin Hornback
United States Senator
Democratic
Troy W. Green
Ervin Stone Yen
R.O. Joe Cassity Jr.
N’Kiyla Jasmine Thomas
Jim Priest
Republican
Nick Hankins
Gary Ty England
Kevin Hern
Sean Buckner
Brian Ragain
Now that we have covered all the elections for statewide officials, there’s one more thing I want to bring to your attention that will be on the June 16 primary ballot.
State Question 832 is a vote to increase the minimum wage. Below is some information from both sides of the debate for you to consider when casting your vote.
SQ 832 does the following should it be passed by the voters of Oklahoma:
Increases the minimum wage to $12 in 2027.
Increasesthe minimum wage to $13.50 in 2028.
Increases the minimum wage to $15 in 2029.
Increases the minimum wage each year after 2029 according to cost-of-living increases.
Makes part-time employees, students, minors, farm and ag workers, domestic service workers, newspaper vendors and carriers and feed store employees subject to the state minimum wage.
SUPPORTERS
Cherokee Nation Business
National Education Association
Oklahoma AFL-CIO
Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice
Oklahoma City Democratic Socialists of America
Oklahoma Decides Inc.
Oklahoma Policy Institute
Oklahomans for a Prosperous Future, Inc.
The Fairness Project
Tulsa Community Foundation
ARGUMENTS FOR
Raise the Wage Oklahoma — “Costs are skyrocketing – but wages haven’t kept up. Working Oklahomans need a raise. Thousands of Oklahomans work full-time and earn less than $15,1000 a year on minimum wage. People who work for a living should earn a living. The cost of groceries, gas and housing keep going up – but wages haven’t kept up. Raising the minimum wage helps hard-working Oklahomans feed their families and pay for housing. Oklahoma parents shouldn’t have to work two jobs to put food on the table. Too many Oklahoma parents work, often at more than one job, but struggle to stay afloat when they earn $290 per week. Raising the minimum wage makes our communities stronger. Hourly employees, like healthcare and childcare workers, are the foundation of our communities. They work for a living and should make a living.
This Land Research & Communications Collaborative — “We estimate raising Oklahoma’s minimum wage to $15 per hour would reduce youth crime by nearly 7,000 incidents annually, primarily in property crime categories, but also by preventing an estimated 55 fewer homicides per year. These crime reductions translate to $840 million in avoided social costs each year, with violent crime reductions driving the bulk of these savings. The magnitude of crime reduction would be the equivalent of hiring 970 additional police officers. We also estimate that the projected decrease in criminal activity would reduce the states incarcerated population by approximately 370 individuals per year and lower the annual recidivism rate by an estimated 6 percentage points.
Oklahoma Appleseed Center for Law and Justice — “Each year the American government spends over $250 billion on social welfare programs for the working poor, individuals who have jobs
but can’t survive on their wages. This funding represents a hidden government subsidiary to low-wage businesses, allowing them to shift the burden of their low wage employees over to the government. A much-higher minimum wage would force these businesses to stand on their own two feet and cover the cost of their own workers.”
Economic Policy Institute — “While dozens of states and cities have passed minimum wage increases over the past 15 years, Oklahoma is one of 20 states that still uses the dismally low federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour. Policymakers have not raised the federal minimum wage since July 2009, meaning that as prices throughout the economy have risen, the buying power of a paycheck at the federal minimum wage has fallen – substantially. Adjusting for inflation, the federal minimum wage is worth 30% less than it was in 2009. In fact, since 2025, the federal minimum wage has officially been a poverty-level wage under the Department of Health and Human Services’ guidelines. The stagnant federal minimum wage is one example of how economic policy in recent decades has suppressed workers’ wage growth, squeezing them as prices have continued to rise and creating the affordability crisis.”
OPPONENTS
National Federation of Independent Business
Oklahoma Council of Public Affairs
Oklahoma Farm Bureau
Oklahoma Restaurant Association
State Chamber of Commerce
ARGUMENTS AGAINST
State Chamber of Commerce — “This is a disastrous policy that will crush working families through price increases on the heels of record inflation. This ballot initiative is bad for workers, bad for business and bad for Oklahoma. We look forward to a vigorous campaign to educate Oklahomans about the initiative that will put corner stores and family farms out of business. SQ 832 harms small businesses and family farms because it drives up the cost of everything on the heels of already high inflation. This harms consumers who struggle to pay more for gas and groceries, small businesses, whose costs will increase, and family farms, who already operate on very thin margins.”
OCPA — “Because Oklahoma is one of the nation’s lowest-cost states, the measure would effectively mandate rapid wage increases far above market rates in Oklahoma, based on the cost of living in places like San Francisco and New York City. As a result, while SQ 832 would initially mandate that entry-level jobs pay $15 an hour by 2029, the wage mandate would rapidly escalate ever higher. An analysis by the State Chamber of Oklahoma and Oklahoma Farm Bureau found SQ 832 could inflate Oklahoma’s minimum wage to $35.61 per hour within 15 years.”
Employment Policies Institute — “The $15 minimum wage push is an empty political play that would crush thousands of employees and small business owners. These adverse consequences have played out in real-time across the country. Doubling Oklahoma’s mandated minimum wage will prop up activists at the expense of over 12,000 employees left without a job.”
Oklahoma Restaurant Association — “Oklahoma already has one of the lowest costs of living in the U.S., 40% below cities driving the CPI-W. 98.6% of Oklahoma workers already earn above the current $7.25/hour rate. Only 1.1% of all workers nationwide earn minimum wage, and most are young, entry-level employees who move up quickly. Automatic increases would force businesses to raise prices, reduce hours and cut jobs especially in hospitality, retail, and agriculture. In short: SQ 832 is not a one-time adjustment, it’s a permanent, inflation-driven mechanism that outsources Oklahoma’s wage policy to federal economic trends that don’t match our state’s reality.”
• • •
June 16 will be here quickly and we’ll deal with whatever happens. I want to respectfully ask you vote and encourage your employees to vote. Oklahoma ranks dead last in the country in terms of registered voters actually voting. The outcome of these elections will significantly determine the future of our state. We have to make sure that we all get out and vote so we have a say in the future of Oklahoma.