Voters Face Long Lines In Some Areas To Vote Early
Across Oklahoma, tens of thousands of voters are casting their ballots for the presidential election.
Nearly 90,000 people have voted by mail. State Election Board reports 158,000 stood in lines - occasionally for hours - to vote Thursday, the state's second day of early voting.
Samuel Garza cast his ballot in Canadian County.
“Because I wanted to get my vote in. Basically before, I mean it’s not packed here on the day of voting, but I’m just anxious to get my vote in,” Garza said.
Early voting continues Friday from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Saturday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Election Day is Tuesday.
For more information on how to vote, visit KGOU.org.
New State Laws Going Into Effect
More than 200 new laws take effect Friday, Nov. 1.
The laws focus on a variety of issues like public education, health, agriculture and retirement.
Some of the high profile new laws include A Women's Bill of Rights, a ban on camping on state-owned land and required age verification on pornographic websites.
Winter Homeless Shelter Opens in Oklahoma City
A winter shelter for people experiencing homelessness opens Friday in Oklahoma City.
With temperatures dropping, the Homeless Alliance’s winter shelter will remain open until the end of March.
CEO Megan Mueller says the shelter is designed to be low-barrier and easy to access.
The shelter is also trying something new in its second year – it will provide on-site medical care through a partnership with Healing Hands Health Care Services.
“People come to us in all sorts of conditions, especially when they're coming in out of the cold. We are hoping that by having medical services integrated into our shelter, we'll better be able to identify when people's medical concerns are acute or in need of a higher level of care," said Mueller.
Mueller says the partnership will decrease the winter shelter’s reliance on emergency medical services.
CDC Reports Increase In Oklahoma’s Vaccine Exemption Rate For Kindergarteners
Nearly 3,000 Oklahoma kindergartners had one or more exemptions for childhood vaccines during the past school year.
The CDC reported that Oklahoma’s vaccine exemption rates among kindergartners have risen to about 6%.
The CDC says exemptions over 5% can increase the risk for outbreaks of vaccine-preventable diseases.
Required vaccines in Oklahoma schools combat diseases like chickenpox, measles and mumps. Parents or guardians can fill out a form to declare a medical, religious or philosophical reason for exempting their child.
Nationwide, coverage for state-required vaccinations for kindergartners declined to less than 93% for all vaccines.
The CDC says efforts by health departments, schools and providers are necessary to ensure higher vaccination rates.
Wildfire Destroys Osage Nation Landmark
A little-known landmark in the Osage Nation is no more following the destruction of a famous Osage man’s cabin near Pawhuska.
It’s been long rumored that about 100 years ago, the Osage man John Stink came back from the dead.
Ho-tah-moie lived south of Pawhuska. He was an eccentric recluse with a pack of at least five dogs.
Shannon Shaw Duty is the editor of Osage News and a distant relative. She says John Stink’s experiences were an urban legend, but Ho-tah-moie’s real story is different.
"But in reality, he was someone that needed help. And he only had his dogs because he didn't have any companions, and there were numerous accounts of the bullying that happened to him and the community shunned him," said Shaw Duty.
Shaw Duty says Ho-tah-moie’s cabin was destroyed in a wildfire earlier this week.
It was on private land and had been renovated. More recently, it was the site of community events.
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