(ENTRY POSTED 6:59 PM, Monday, November 1, postdated to remain at the top through election day.)
UPDATED 12:00 AM, Tuesday: I've moved off dead center on 707.
Here's how I'm voting tomorrow -- click the link below, for my choices with links to what I've written about them:
President: George W. Bush
Corporation Commission: Denise Bode
U. S. Senate: Tom Coburn
U. S. House, District 1: John Sullivan
County Clerk: Earlene Wilson
County Commission: Randi Miller
State House 78: David Schaffer
House 78 is my district, but I urge you to vote for the Republican in all legislative races. We have the opportunity to rescue the state legislature from more than 80 years of Democrat misrule. When you vote for a candidate for legislature, you're voting for that candidate's party to control the organizational machinery, to be able to hinder or help legislation through the committee process. You're also voting on which party will hold the positions of Speaker of the House and Senate President Pro Tempore -- jobs that have more power than the Governor, and include the ability to appoint members to certain state boards and commissions.
That alone is reason enough to vote for a change, but beyond that the Republicans have simply fielded better, smarter, more energetic, and more future-focused candidates than the Democrats. One of the hard things about deciding not to run for State House was the thought of missing the chance to be a part of a great team. The state will be in good hands with these bright leaders in charge.
State Questions:
SQ 705: NO
SQ 706: NO
SQ 707: YES, I think
SQ 708: YES
SQ 711: YES
SQ 712: NO
SQ 713: NO
SQ 714: YES
SQ 715: YES
Given the reluctance of judges to answer questions about their judicial philosophy, the best we can do is use the judge's party registration and the Governor who appointed the judge as a sort of proxy. Those are noted below in parentheses. (And, yes, Henry Bellmon was and is a Republican, but his appointee Glenn D. Adams is a registered Democrat, thus the odd-looking "D, Bellmon" combination below.)
Supreme Court:
James R. Winchester (R, Keating): YES
Rudolph Hargrave (D, Boren): NO
Criminal Court of Appeals
Charles S. Chapel (D, Walters): NO
Civil Court of Appeals
Joe C. Taylor (D, Walters): NO
Ron Stubblefield (D, Nigh): NO
Glenn D. Adams (D, Bellmon): NO
Larry E. Joplin (D, Walters): NO
E. Bay Mitchell, III (R, Keating): YES
