Redistricting maps released
It‚s been a busy week at the State Capitol!
On Monday, the Legislature debuted our proposed maps for Oklahoma‚s five congressional districts, as well as the updated maps for legislative districts.
The Legislature is required by our state con stitution to redistrict legislative maps during regular session, but the pandemic slowed data retrieval from the U.S. Census Bureau, so the maps signed into law in the spring were only temporary. We knew they would need ...
It‚s been a busy week at the State Capitol!
On Monday, the Legislature debuted our proposed maps for Oklahoma‚s five congressional districts, as well as the updated maps for legislative districts.
The Legislature is required by our state con stitution to redistrict legislative maps during regular session, but the pandemic slowed data retrieval from the U.S. Census Bureau, so the maps signed into law in the spring were only temporary. We knew they would need to be tweaked once we received our final population data and received a clear view of how our population is shifting.
Our census data shows us that more Oklahomans are moving from rural areas to the urban areas of our state. This is one reason why our House district‚s boundaries are expanding.
In the amended boundaries, Oklahoma House District 15 would encompass most of McIntosh County, with the exception of the northeastern portion of the county and Checotah. HD15 would also extend further north into Muskogee but would lose its portion of Sequoyah County and a portion of its current ground in LeFlore County.
Eastern Oklahoma will continue to be represented in the U.S. House by Congressional District 2. Further details on the proposed House District 15 map, as well as the updated maps for our five Congressional districts, can be found at https://okhouse. gov/Publications/Redistricting.aspx. Proposed state Senate maps can be viewed at https://oksenate.gov/ redistricting. On Nov. 15, the Legislature begins our special ses
On Nov. 15, the Legislature begins our special session to consider and vote on the proposed maps. Until then, public comment on the maps can be submitted to RedistrictOklahoma2020@okhouse.gov for consideration.
Also this week, we held our final interim studies of the year. The bill filing deadline and the next regular session of the Legislature will be here before we know it!
I‚ve heard from many of my constituents who are concerned about vaccine mandates. Last Thursday, Oklahoma House Speaker Charles McCall sent a letter to Oklahoma Attorney General John O‚Connor asking for immediate action to fight back against the White House‚s demands that Oklahomans working for the federal government must receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Recently, both OU and OSU announced they would begin requiring vaccination for their full-time employees as well, due to mandates coming down from the federal level.
I believe the government should not mandate vaccines, as this should be a personal choice. While I chose to receive the vaccine, I respect that other people may choose differently, and that should be their right as an American.
The Legislature took action earlier this year to give the Attorney General‚s office more authority and funding to assert Oklahoma‚s 10th Amendment rights by challenging improper federal actions. On Thursday of this week, AG O‚Connor filed a lawsuit against these illegal vaccine mandates. I will keep you updated on this situation as it unfolds.
As always, please contact me with anything I can help with at (405) 557-7375 or randy.randleman@okhouse.gov. Thank you for the honor of representing District 15!
