Candidates for area school board seats will have three days to file for office starting Monday, Dec. 2, and ending Wednesday, Dec. 4.
Nine Stephens County school districts have an opening on their boards while Caddo and Grady counties each have a dozen districts with a single open slot. Although the three counties have 33 openings among them, the majority of voters will only check boxes for one of those races — with a few exceptions. Marlow will elect City Council members for Wards 1 and 4, and other government entities may still file bond issues for the April 1 general election.
Most of the 33 school districts have openings for Office No. 5. Friend and Middleberg voters, however, will be choosing board members for Office No. 2, and Pioneer and Grandview districts have openings for Office No. 1. Each of the seats carry a 5-year term with the exception of Verdun, which will be filling an unexpired term, said Katrina Hughes, secretary of the Grady County Election Board.
Those who wish to file for a Board of Education office must submit a Declaration of Candidacy to their County Election Boards, Dec. 2-4, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Candidate filing packets are available on the State Election Board website at https://oklahoma.gov/elections/candidates/candidate-filing.html and at the County Election Board.
In addition to the Declaration of Candidacy, candidates must also submit a Voter Registration Verification Form, which can be obtained from the County Election Board or by logging into the OK Voter Portal at https://oklahoma.gov/elections/ovp.html. Information on the Voter Registration Verification Form must match the information provided on the Declaration of Candidacy.
Candidates who want to contest another candidate’s qualifications must do so no later than 5 p.m. Friday, Dec. 6. Contesting an unopposed candidate may be accomplished by contacting the County Election Board. (See below for contact information.)
To be eligible, a candidate must have lived in the district for at least six months.
If more than two candidates file for the same Board of Education seat, a Primary Election will be held Tuesday, Feb. 11, 2025. If one candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, that candidate will be named the elected official. If no candidate receives more than 50% of the votes, the two candidates receiving the highest number of votes will vie for the seat during the Board of Education General Election, Tuesday, April 1, 2025. If only two candidates file for the same Board of Education seat, those two candidates’ names will appear on the General Election ballot in April.
Stephens County, Shanda Seeley, Secretary
Declarations of Candidacy will be accepted for the following offices:
Bray-Doyle School District, Office No. 5
Central High School District, Office No. 5
Comanche School District, Office No. 5
Duncan School District, Office No. 5
Empire School District, Office No. 5
Grandview School District, Office No. 1
Marlow School District, Office No. 5
Velma-Alma School District, Office No. 5
Red River Technical School District, Office No. 5
For more information, contact your County Election Board office at 580-255-8782 or StephensCounty@elections.ok.gov. The Stephens County Election Board is located at 1075 West Elm Ave., Duncan and is open from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday – Friday.
Caddo County, Chelsea Bassham, Secretary
Declarations of Candidacy will be accepted for the following offices:
Anadarko School District, Office No. 5
Binger-Oney School District, Office No. 5
Boone-Apache School District, Office No. 5
Carnegie School District, Office No. 5
Cement School District, Office No. 5
Cyril School District, Office No. 5
Fort Cobb-Broxton School District, Office No. 5
Gracemont School District, Office No. 5
Hinton School District, Office No. 5
Hydro-Eakly School District, Office No. 5
Lookeba-Sickles School District, Office No. 5
Caddo-Kiowa Technology Center, Office No. 5, Zone 2
For more information, contact your Caddo County Election Board office at 405-247-5001 or caddocounty@elections.ok.gov. The Caddo County Election Board is located at 110 SW 2nd St, Ste 112 and is open from 8:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m., Monday – Friday.
Grady County, Katrina Hughes, Secretary
Declarations of Candidacy will be accepted for the following offices:
Alex School District, Office No. 5
Amber-Pocasset School District, Office No. 5
Bridge Creek School District, Office No. 5
Chickasha School District, Office No. 5
Friend School District, Office No. 2
Middleberg School District, Office No. 2
Minco School District, Office No. 5
Ninnekah School District, Office No. 5
Pioneer School District, Office No. 1
Rush Springs School District, Office No. 5
Tuttle School District, Office No. 5
Verdun School District, Office No. 5
For more information, contact your County Election Board at 405-224-1430 or GradyCounty@elections.ok.gov. The Grady County Election Board is located at 307 W. Pennsylvania Ave., Chickasha, and is open from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Monday through Friday.