County officials talk about changing political parties

Apr. 16—All 4 Pittsburg County elected officers in search of reelection say they felt the time had come to alter their political get together affiliations from Democrat to Republican.

District 1 County Commissioner Charlie Rogers and District 3 Commissioner Ross Selman have been each Democrats they final time they filed for workplace in 2018.

So have been Pittsburg County Assessor Michelle Fields and Pittsburg County Treasurer Jennifer Hackler.

All 4 have modified their political get together affiliation from the Democrat to the Republican Occasion in time to file as GOP candidates for reelection throughout the three-day submitting interval that started on Wednesday, April 13 and prolonged by means of 5 p.m. Friday, April 15, on the Pittsburg County Election Board Workplace in McAlester.

They are not the one ones to alter their political get together affiliation. Throughout the previous few years, sufficient voters have registered as members of the Republican Occasion, that it is now Pittsburg County’s dominant political get together.

Pittsburg County voter registration as of this week stood at: Republican — 12,228; Democrat — 9,865; Unbiased — 4,271 and Libertarian — 152, for a complete of 26,516 registered voters within the county when all political events and independents are included.

Rogers, the District 1 county commissioner, stated he determined to alter his political get together affiliation for a number of causes, together with the truth that voters in Oklahoma can vote by the straight get together system — that means in a Basic Election they will verify a field saying all their vote goes for all Republican candidates, all Democrat candidates, and many others., with out having to verify the field in every particular person race.

“In native authorities, the straight get together system obtained lots of people out final time that have been doing a very good job,” Rogers stated. He stated he believes votes needs to be for the most effective individual for the job, but it surely does not all the time go that method when straight get together voting is utilized on all the poll.

Rogers additionally attributed his resolution to alter political events to the altering instances.

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“Issues have modified and neither get together is the whole lot what they was,” Rogers stated. “I believe basically within the county, it is a Republican county and the state is a Republican state,” Rogers stated. He stated he is not the one one which’ thinks that.

“Folks observe you by your political get together, and there are quite a lot of Trump supporters and plenty of Biden supporters,” Rogers stated. He stated in native races, he thinks it ought to come right down to the most effective man for the job.

“However lots of people do not vote for the person, they verify the highest of the field,” Rogers stated, referring to the field voters can verify to point they need all of their votes to go to candidates of a selected political get together.

“I wasn’t a Joe Biden supporter and lots of people weren’t,” Rogers stated. “That is why I switched to Republican.”

“I’ve obtained quite a lot of associates who’re supporters of Joe Biden,” stated Rogers. “It is not a break up deal. I am not towards anybody who helps Joe Biden.”

Rogers stated he is been a Democrat ever since he first registered to vote on the age of 18.

His grandfather, the late Gene Rogers, beforehand served because the longtime District 1 county commissioner as a Democrat. After Gene Rogers stepped down as a consequence of well being causes, Charlie Rogers got here out on high in a six candidate area in a 2017 Particular Election to elect a brand new commissioner within the District 1 submit. In 2018, operating once more as a Democrat candidate, he gained a four-year time period because the District 1 commissioner.

Nonetheless,Rogers famous the altering instances.

“Even in my district, there are extra Republicans than Democrats,” Rogers stated. “I want it could be extra like all people desires the most effective individual for the job,” but it surely’s not that method anymore,” he stated, referring to those that vote for candidates just because they signify a selected political get together.

Selman, the District 3 commissioner, was going through three challengers as of early Friday, with all of them additionally registering as Republican candidates. He stated he modified his get together registration to Republican due to his beliefs. He had additionally been a Democrat from the time he first registered to vote, however he was able to make a change.

“The Democrat Occasion had drifted away, for my part,” Selman stated. “Primary, I am towards abortion. Quantity 2, I am towards gun management.” He indicated he gave the matter of adjusting his political get together affiliation quite a lot of thought.

“That is been consuming on me for a lot of years now,” Selman stated. “I must observe what I imagine.

“I am not scared to face up for what I imagine and what I struggle for,” he stated. “A number of of us have been altering within the final three or 4 or 5 years,” he stated, referring to altering their political get together affiliation.

Fields, the Pittsburg County assessor, stated she modified her political get together affiliation to Republican “as a result of I used to be not agreeing with the Democrats on the time.”

“I registered as a Democrat in highschool,” she stated. “I used to be younger and that was the factor to do.”

Fields was appointed to the assessor’s workplace in 2017 to fill the unexpired time period of Donna Scrivner, who retired as county treasurer earlier than finishing her four-year time period in workplace. In 2018, Fields filed as a Democrat for a four-year time period in workplace and gained the county treasurer’s submit with out opposition when nobody else filed as a candidate.

This shall be her first time to hunt the workplace as a Republican candidate.

“I used to be not agreeing with the way in which the Democrats ran the nation,” she stated.

Along with serving as Pittsburg County Assessor, Fields additionally serves because the secretary-treasurer of the County Assessors of Oklahoma, a company consisting of county assessors all through the state.

Hackler, the Pittsburg County treasurer, stated she gave the matter a number of thought earlier than switching her political affiliation.

“To be trustworthy, I really feel like most voters within the county are switching over to Republican,” Hackler stated. “I really feel like I ought to observe the residents.”

“This was a tough alternative for me,” she stated. ” I made a decision to observe swimsuit with the vast majority of voters within the county.”

Hackler stated she’d been a registered Democrat from the time she first turned eligible for voter registration.

“The primary time I registered in highschool I used to be a Democrat,” she stated. Nonetheless, she felt it was time to make a change.

“I figured I wanted to observe the way in which our county was heading,” Hackler stated.

“Another excuse I did it, if I wished to have a say on native races, I would have to alter.” Hackler was referring to the truth that the entire county candidates who’ve filed as of noon Thursday have been Republican candidates, with the chance that a few of the races may very well be determined by the June 28 Main Election.

“It was a tough resolution,” Hackler stated, however in the end she determined to change her get together affiliation to the GOP.

Contact James Beaty at jbeaty@mcalesternews.com.