A Letter from OKC Mayor David Holt

10 December 2025

Dear Open Primaries Supporters,

I hope this note finds you well. In this season of thanks, I am feeling grateful.

The year 2025 has been a uniquely rewarding one in my hometown of Oklahoma City, where I serve as Mayor. We have leveraged our “top two,” open primary system to build nonpartisan coalitions and achieve unifying solutions to our challenges. Earlier this Fall, we reached support as high as 85% in support of a tax vote to fund infrastructure. Our city is a political and demographic microcosm of the nation, and we prove every day that three-quarters of Americans - Democrats, Republicans and Independents - can work together and get things done.

We are especially grateful when we compare our success to dysfunction at the state and federal levels, where electoral systems create the illusion of division and polarization.

But the hopeful news is that organizations like Open Primaries are recognizing that the root of our dysfunctionality is in fact the way we elect our leaders.

Right now, here in Oklahoma, hundreds of volunteer and paid petitioners are gathering 200,000+ signatures in the next 60 days to put State Question 836 on the ballot. If passed by the voters, we will have a truly open primary that treats all voters equally - just like we have in Oklahoma City and Tulsa. This system would force all candidates to face all voters, and would allow all voters to see all of the candidates.

This state question isn’t just another policy debate. It may be our last, best opportunity to restore functional, responsive governance in Oklahoma.

Here in Oklahoma City - where we have had nonpartisan “top two” elections for many decades - we’ve seen what’s possible when a community has the tools and the freedom to come together across party lines to lead and innovate. Our city—and cities across Oklahoma—are driving progress in ways that are making life better for all residents, attracting new investment, and building a stronger future.

In my lifetime, we have moved from the 37th-largest city to the 20th, and the foundation of that success is an electoral system that incentivizes pragmatic solutions. Imagine how much more we could achieve if state leadership weren’t stuck in a partisan political swamp that prevents them from pursuing common sense solutions.

Most Oklahomans don’t want dysfunction. They certainly don’t want a state legislature that can’t or won’t address key issues like the economy, health care and education. They don’t actually want leaders distracted by bizarre priorities. They want problem-solvers. They want competence. They want a government that reflects the real needs and values of our communities. And yet, because of how our system is structured, the people of Oklahoma don’t currently have a way to speak with a unified, decisive voice.

That’s what State Question 836 will change. It gives the people—not the politicians—the power to reshape our state’s direction. It unleashes the same collective strength and common sense we harness every day in Oklahoma City.

Opportunities like this don’t come often. And they don’t succeed without people like you.

Your support—your investment—can help us reach voters who have never been given the chance to participate in meaningful statewide reform. It can help us build the strongest, broadest coalition Oklahoma has ever seen. And it can ensure that Oklahoma finally realizes the potential of a functional government.

Click here to donate. Click here to volunteer.

I’m grateful for everything you’ve already done—and for what you’ll help us accomplish next.

With deep appreciation,

Mayor David Holt, Mayor of Oklahoma City

President, United States Conference of Mayors