Several politicians from local and statewide campaigns flocked to Stillwater on Tuesday with one noticeable absence.
Neither Sen. Jim Inhofe nor any representative from his campaign came to Stillwater for Pokes Vote. He was in Washington D.C. to vote on the government’s economic bailout plan. Sen. Inhofe’s campaign told Co-Chairman of Oklahoma State’s College Republicans, Josh Pillow, that it would attend, but it cancelled on Tuesday because of a volunteer night in Oklahoma City.
“They were all busy working on the campaign in Oklahoma City,” Pillow said. “It was very close. They thought they were going to be able to, but they had a call night or some sort of volunteer night in Oklahoma City that they weren’t able to come up here for.”
Sen. Inhofe will be in Stillwater on Saturday for the football game. Pillow said Sen. Inhofe will do a “meet and greet” from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. He said the campaign comes to every home game near the ROTC building to pass out stickers.
SGA Executive for Oklahoma Intercollegiate Legislature, Shane Williams was one of the main organizers for Pokes Vote. He said one of the main goals of Pokes Vote was voter registration and to compete with OU, which registered 1,888 people during its three week voter registration drive.
“The main goal of this is to get people to register to vote,” Williams said. “It is also to make people aware of whom they can vote for, and put a spotlight on how important it is to be involved with the political process. That way you can alleviate any consequences that we are currently enduring.”
Sen. Inhofe’s opponent for U.S. Senate, Andrew Rice, also did not attend Pokes Vote, but he sent people from his campaign to represent him and talk to students. The Rice campaign sent two volunteers to Pokes Vote and a surrogate speaker for the political forum, which was held in the Student Union’s Starlight Terrace following Pokes Vote.
Angela Spotts is a volunteer with the Rice campaign. She was the first person from the Rice campaign to arrive at Pokes Vote. Spotts met Rice in a democratic political group in Tulsa.
“I told Andrew when I met him, almost 2 years ago, that if he would run, I would knock on doors, I’d make phone calls, and I’d do almost anything,” Spotts said. “I feel he is an excellent candidate, and I think he would represent all Oklahomans.”
Marsha Coyle is the Payne County Coordinator for the Rice campaign. She refers to her job lightheartedly as “jack of all trades and master of none.” Coyle echoed the sentiments of Spotts. Her main goals at Pokes Vote were to register and to get people to support Rice for the Senate. She also spoke about student concerns.
“If I were a student in college, I would be very concerned about what kind of jobs will be available when I graduate,” Coyle said. “It’s all in the way they vote. I think Andrew Rice would do whatever he could do to get tuition back down to make it affordable for people.”
Rice’s surrogate speaker, Kay Floyd addressed a packed Starlight Terrace at the political forum following Pokes Vote. She answered questions about the economy, Rice’s energy plan and the government’s economic bailout plan. During each response, Floyd sited the myriad differences between Rice and Sen. Inhofe. She also spoke informally after the forum had ended.
“I would think that it speaks to a candidates desire to listen to Oklahomans, to find out what’s on their minds and to find out the problems and the issues that they feel are important,” Floyd said. “I would hope that every candidate would send a representative to get that information and take it back to the candidate. That’s what Andrew Rice did.”
Electrical engineering freshman Robert Elliott attended Pokes Vote. He said he is from Texas and is not familiar with Oklahoma politicians. Elliot plans on voting in November, but has not decided whom he will vote for. He did know what issues will be on his mind in November when he casts his vote.
“I’ll vote for whichever candidate wants to limit the government the most,” Elliot said.
Nutritional science senior Janna Nelinson also came to pokes vote. She said she would like to vote on all the races if she can become more informed. Nelinson said she is concerned about medical issues, and she wants to know what each candidate is going to do about the job market.
“I came to Pokes Vote to become more educated about the campaigns,” Nelinson said. “As a college student, I am too busy to find out about all the campaigns on my own. This is an easy way to get a good recap.”
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