Oklahoma independent political groups make new push after ‘error’ from state’s Democrats (News9)

Oklahoma independent political groups make new push after ‘error’ from state’s Democrats

The groups are interested in designing new ways for the state’s independents to have a more representative voice in the election cycle, or increase civic engagement.

Matt McCabe December 16, 2025 11:03 PM

OKLAHOMA CITY -

Independent political groups are moving quickly to capitalize on a mistake from Oklahoma’s Democrats, which has closed independent voters out of its primaries for the next two years.

News of the primary status, which breaks with roughly a decade of tradition for the state’s Democratic party, was announced after an announcement from the Oklahoma State Election Board last week.

“State law requires that the chair of a recognized political party notify the secretary of the state election board between Nov. 1 and Nov. 30 of each odd-numbered year whether that party will allow independents to vote in its primaries over the next two years,” said election board secretary Paul Ziriax on Dec. 10. “The law also says that the failure of a party to provide notice is the same as providing a notice that says, ‘no, they cannot vote.’”

A hopeful party

Nearly 500,000 independents are registered to vote in Oklahoma.

The Sooner State Party, which launched this summer, is a group seeking to become an officially recognized political party and says it represents independents.

“It came about because we had Republicans, Democrats, and independents which were coming together that, basically, were saying that they were tired of the current political system this year in Oklahoma, and they wanted to open it up to where it was more of a people-oriented party,” said co-founder CJ Webber-Neal.

Currently, the group is gathering 35,000 signatures to petition the State Election Board for recognition as a party.

It claims to have already collected 21,000 signatures.

“We would be like any other party,” Webber-Neal said, referencing creating a formal platform through an eventual state convention. “Come together and bring those folks to the table to decide what it is that we’re officially going to put forward for the voters in ‘26.”

Admittedly, Webber-Neal said this plan would convert independents. He agrees that being called a moderate is a more fitting term.

“It’s about bringing those views together and figuring out what’s going to be the best course of action for Oklahomans,” he said.

Grassroots organization

Not everyone shares the vision for a new political party.

On Tuesday, Oklahoma City nonprofit leader Andy Moore announced he had led a small coalition of other independent voters in forming a new group to be known as Oklahoma Independents.

“We’re not trying to be a political party,” he explained. “We’re just a political home for the rest of us. I think a lot of people feel left out of the political process or feel like they don’t have a political home anymore.”

Moore said he selected Dec. 16 as the date to launch the group because it is the anniversary of the Boston Tea Party.

It’s still developing its mission, but Moore said there are no plans to focus on specific candidates.

“We’re really just trying to create a space for voters,” he said. “This is a very voter-centri effort. We’re talking a lot about the closed primaries, and the need for open primaries.”