The initiative petition to gradually raise Oklahoma’s minimum wage to $15 per hour is one step closer to appearing before voters.
Last week the Oklahoma Secretary of State’s Office verified 157,287 signatures for State Question 832, well above the 92,263 required to make the ballot. A statutorily required 10 business day protest period will run through Aug. 26.
When organizers turned in dozens of boxes of signatures to the Secretary of State’s office on July 22, there was confusion on whether a new state law extending that protest period would apply to the initiative.
House Bill 1105, which increases the protest period from 10 to 90 days, took effect in late May. But because organizers were gathering signatures at that point, the extended protest period will not ap-ply to them.
Amber England, organizer of the Yes on 832 campaign, said there is a chance the question could reach the November general election ballot.
“We hope politicians and special interest groups with deep pockets representing giant corporations who have tried to block us at every turn will respect the will of the voters and forgo any further political maneuvers that would keep us off this ballot,” England said in a statement. “It’s time to let voters decide this issue for ourselves.”
Potential legal challenges could throw a wrench in that timeline, as the Oklahoma State Election Board must print ballots several weeks in advance to accommodate overseas voters.
On Sept. 21, 2022, the Oklahoma Supreme Court denied State Question 820’s request to appear on the November general election ballot, concluding there wasn’t enough time to put the question on ballots. The question instead appeared on a March 2023 special election ballot with about 25% voter turnout statewide.
If State Question 832 survives legal challenges but does not qualify for the November ballot, the governor has the authority to set a special election date. Without action, the question would automatically appear on the November 2026 ballot.
Oklahoma Watch, at OklahomaWatch.org, is a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that covers public-policy issues facing the state.
