New poll finds Kevin Stitt has narrow lead on Joy Hofmeister in race for Oklahoma Governor
A poll from Amber Integrated Monday shows Gov. Kevin Stitt has a narrow lead on his Democratic opponent Joy Hofmeister.
It’s the second poll this month that shows a narrow lead for Stitt.
Overall, he’s up three points on his Democratic opponent, but that’s within the margin of error for the poll commissioned by local television station KOCO 5.
Stitt has a big advantage when it comes to men, white people and voters outside of the Oklahoma City and Tulsa metro areas. Plus he’s winning most Republicans.
But Hofmeister is taking away some of those Republican votes and Stitt is winning over few Democrats.
The results back up one from earlier this month from another pollster showing a tight race. Sooner Poll found Hofmeister within one point of Stitt. The two will face off in November. For StateImpact, I’m Robby Korth.
Amber Integrated also found Libertarian Natalie Bruno is polling at 2% and Independent Ervin Yen is polling at 1%.
Amber Integrated poll shows Democratic lead in state superintendent race
A new poll shows a modern Oklahoma rarity: A Democrat ahead of a Republican in a statewide race.
Democrat Jena Nelson has a narrow lead on Republican Ryan Walters, per the poll from Amber Integrated commissioned by OKC television station KOCO.
Pollsters asked 500 likely voters their preference for state superintendent, 49 percent picked Nelson, and 44 percent picked Walters.
Nelson is the strong preference of voters in Oklahoma City and Tulsa — two places that helped propel Walters to his victory in the GOP primary runoff against April Grace.
Pollsters also asked voters about their preference for lieutenant governor. Incumbent Matt Pinnell has a comfortable 15-point lead in his bid for re-election on Democratic challenger Melinda Alizadeh-Fard, who 34% of voters prefer, and Libertarian Chris Powell, who is preferred by 5%.
How an Oklahoma City technology center is helping first responders fight electric vehicle fires
Instructors and administrators from Francis Tuttle Technology Center gathered around an electric vehicle (EV) battery that had been set on fire at a training area for the Edmond Fire Department. On a warm August morning, smoke billowed out of the sides, cells popped intermittently, and flames rose to about two feet high at their apex.
More electric vehicles on the road means more questions about how emergency responders should adapt to the new technology at car crash scenes.
The demonstration is to prepare Francis Tuttle for a new program it’s launching this fall that aims to train first responders on how to prepare for and manage alternative energy vehicle fires. The program is run by Onward OKC, a collaboration of five technology center districts in Central Oklahoma.
According to Jesse Benne, Edmond Fire Department Captain of Prevention, one of the main challenges with EVs is there’s little standardization across car makes — from where the battery is located to the chemical makeup of the lithium inside.
“I think if we just know what we’re looking at and know what we’re dealing with and educate ourselves, I think we can mitigate it,” Benne said.
Francis Tuttle plans to keep partnering with the department for more experiments on other AEVs.
Oklahoma Gas and Electric in Florida
Oklahoma Gas & Electric has deployed crews to Florida to assist with Hurricane Ian. Nearly 100 restoration personnel left a staging area in Shawnee Monday morning.
The group is expected to arrive in Florida today in preparation for expected power outages due to the storm.
The hurricane is forecast to make landfall late Wednesday into early Thursday.
OTA Open Meeting Act lawsuit update
Opponents of three highly-contested turnpike routes are celebrating a move forward in their legal battle against the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority. The lawsuit is based on allegations the agency violated the state’s Open Meeting Act.
Cleveland County District Court Judge Timothy Olsen decided Friday the case against the OTA can move forward despite the agency’s attempts to hold it up. The OTA had previously filed to delay proceedings until the state Supreme Court could decide if it would hear a separate petition by the OTA to validate its plans.
Olsen writes in his decision the OTA didn’t establish a “likelihood of success” that its Supreme Court case will be decided favorably. And even if it is decided in OTA’s favor, it’s likely the agency would still need to comply with this suit’s discovery period and produce the relevant documents for the Open Meeting Act violation claims to be resolved.
The Open Meeting Act case alleges the OTA didn’t clearly and transparently outline in its meeting agendas the scope and placement of the new routes. The suit is one of two currently making its way through district court against the new turnpike plans.
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