{
  "$type": "site.standard.document",
  "bskyPostRef": {
    "cid": "bafyreicrw3sh5u7hf2cv2wofj4ice4n5e2skdohazbpz6hpg4gcufywy2i",
    "uri": "at://did:plc:yaaai3eger24s2puxlzw5nyf/app.bsky.feed.post/3m5whcrckbco2"
  },
  "coverImage": {
    "$type": "blob",
    "ref": {
      "$link": "bafkreigtzik7uz2y5k3ikqqlyincaeexwp5kb5aj5vkph43fhpichcnefm"
    },
    "mimeType": "image/jpeg",
    "size": 123746
  },
  "description": "Mayor, school board filing opens Dec. 1; state and federal legislative races follow through November",
  "path": "/2026-election-preview-what-stillwater-voters-need-to-know/",
  "publishedAt": "2025-11-18T19:17:39.000Z",
  "site": "https://www.thestillwegian.news",
  "tags": [
    "comments",
    "Will Joyce",
    "Rachel Dillin",
    "resigned",
    "See all the Holiday Events",
    "Kevin Wright",
    "Amber Roberts",
    "Dillon Travis",
    "Mike Waters",
    "James Winn",
    "Luke Kruse",
    "Trish Ranson",
    "Molly Jenkins",
    "Markwayne Mullin",
    "Frank Lucas"
  ],
  "textContent": "Stillwater-area voters will cast ballots multiple times in 2026, starting with a mayoral race, school board election, and special legislative race in February, followed by state legislative and federal races in November.\n\n### Mayoral and school board filing\n\nCandidate filing for both Stillwater mayor and Stillwater Public Schools Board of Education opens Dec. 1-3 at the Payne County Election Board offices, 315 W. 6th Ave., Suite 207. Filing runs from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. each day.\n\n****Editor's Note:**** Both Will Joyce and Rachel Dillin stated in the comments of the Facebook post for this story that they both intend to file for their respective races. This story has been updated to reflect this new information.\n\nMayor Will Joyce will seek a third term. The Oklahoma State University alum first won the office in 2018 following a two-year stint on the city council. He secured reelection in 2022 with 73.5 percent of the vote against challenger Marc Trotter.\n\nThe school board election will fill board position No. 1, which carries a five-year term and represents Ward 1. Candidates must reside within Ward 1 boundaries, though all voters within the Stillwater Public Schools district boundaries are eligible to vote in the election.\n\nRachel Dillin currently holds the seat. She was appointed by the board in 2023 to replace longtime board member Camille DeYong, who stepped down for personal reasons. Dillin will seek election to retain the seat, which would be her first campaign.\n\n__Stillwater Public Schools Ward 1 (shown in purple) covers the eastern portion of the school district and parts of south-central Stillwater. Candidates for the Ward 1 school board seat must reside within the ward boundaries, but all voters within the Stillwater Public Schools district are eligible to vote in the Feb. 10 election.__\n\nBoth the mayoral and school board races are scheduled for Feb. 10, 2026. If three or more candidates file for the school board position, a primary election will be held Feb. 10. If only two candidates file, or if no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote in the primary, a general election will be held April 7, 2026.\n\nVoters must register by Jan. 16 to participate in the Feb. 10 elections. Early voting runs Feb. 5-6 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with polls open election day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.\n\n### Special election follows Burns resignation\n\nFive Republicans and one Democrat are vying to replace former Rep. Ty Burns, who resigned Oct. 1 after pleading guilty to misdemeanor domestic violence charges.\n\nBurns, of Pawnee, pleaded guilty in Pawnee County District Court to one count of domestic abuse and two counts of assault. He received a one-year suspended sentence and must complete a 52-week batterer's intervention program.\n\n\"It is in the best interest of the people I serve in House District 35 and, most importantly, my family to step down from my position,\" Burns wrote in his resignation letter to Gov. Kevin Stitt. \"I take full responsibility for my actions and am going to counseling with my family.\"\n\n* * *\n\n**_A message from Visit Stillwater_**\n\nThe holiday season is here!**** Now’s the perfect time to shop, dine, stay, and enjoy everything  _America’s Friendliest College Town_ has to offer this season.\n\nSee all the Holiday Events\n\n* * *\n\n### House District 35 candidates\n\nRepublicans Kevin Wright, Amber Roberts, Dillon Travis, Mike Waters and James Winn are competing in the special primary scheduled for Dec. 9. Only registered Republicans can vote in the primary. The voter registration deadline for the Dec. 9 primary was Nov. 14. If no candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote, a runoff will be held Jan. 13, 2026. Voters have until Dec. 19 to register for a potential runoff.\n\nDemocrat Luke Kruse will face the Republican nominee in the special general election on Feb. 10, 2026. Registered Republicans, Democrats, independents and Libertarians can all vote in the general election. Voters must register by Jan. 16 to participate. Early voting runs Feb. 5-6 from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with polls open election day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.\n\nThe winner will serve the remainder of Burns' term but must run again in November 2026 to keep the seat for a full two-year term.\n\n_House District 35 covers Noble and Pawnee counties and portions of Osage County (left). Stillwater's precinct 5 is the only portion of the city within the district (right). Maps: Oklahoma House of Representatives Redistricting Office and Oklahoma State Election Board_\n\nWhile most of Stillwater falls within House District 34, precinct 5 in the city's northern tip is part of District 35 and includes 559 registered voters, according to the Oklahoma State Election Board. Precinct 5 voters cast ballots at Sunnybrook Christian Church, 419 Richmond Road.\n\n__Precinct 5 has 559 registered voters: 317 Republicans, 135 Democrats, 101 independents and 6 Libertarians as of Oct. 31, 2025. Chart: Oklahoma State Election Board__\n\nIn Burns' 2022 race, precinct 5 favored him with 196 votes to Democrat Sam Jennings' 101, a 66-34 split. Burns won the district with more than 78 percent of the vote and ran unopposed in 2024.\n\n### House District 33 and 34\n\nHD 34 Rep. Trish Ranson, D-Stillwater, announced her reelection campaign on Nov. 16. HD 33 Rep. Molly Jenkins has not publicly announced her reelection campaign but her website indicates she will.\n\nThe filing period for all House District reps opens April 1-3, 2026, with the general election scheduled for Nov. 3, 2026. Voters must register by Oct. 9 to participate in the general election.\n\n### Federal races\n\nU.S. Sen. Markwayne Mullin, R-Oklahoma, is seeking his first full six-year term after winning a 2022 special election to fill the remainder of former Sen. Jim Inhofe's term. Mullin, a Cherokee Nation citizen, became the first Native American senator since Ben Nighthorse Campbell retired in 2005.\n\nU.S. Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Cheyenne, is seeking reelection to represent Oklahoma's 3rd Congressional District, which includes Stillwater and covers nearly half the state's land mass. Lucas, an Oklahoma State University graduate who has represented the district since 2003, serves as chairman of the House Agriculture Committee's Conservation, Research, and Biotechnology Subcommittee.\n\nAll five of Oklahoma's U.S. House seats are on the ballot in 2026.\n\nThe filing period for federal offices opens April 1-3, 2026, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., at the Oklahoma State Election Board. Primary elections are scheduled for June 16, 2026, with the general election on Nov. 3, 2026.\n\n### 2026 Election Timeline\n\nDate | Event | Race\n---|---|---\nNov. 14, 2025 | Voter registration deadline (PASSED) | HD 35 Republican Primary\nDec. 1-3, 2025 | Candidate filing (8 a.m.-5 p.m. daily at Payne County Election Board) | Stillwater Mayor & School Board\nDec. 9, 2025 | Special Primary Election (Republicans only) | House District 35\nDec. 19, 2025 | Voter registration deadline | HD 35 Potential Runoff\nJan. 13, 2026 | Special Primary Runoff (if needed) | House District 35\nJan. 16, 2026 | Voter registration deadline | Mayor, School Board & HD 35 General\nJan. 26, 2026 | Absentee ballot request deadline | Mayor, School Board & HD 35 General\nFeb. 5-6, 2026 | Early voting (8 a.m.-6 p.m.) | Mayor, School Board & HD 35 General\nFeb. 10, 2026 | Election Day (7 a.m.-7 p.m.) | Mayor, School Board & HD 35 General\nApril 1-3, 2026 | Candidate filing (State House at Payne County Election Board; Federal at State Election Board) | State House (HD 33, 34, 35) & Federal (U.S. Senate & House)\nApril 7, 2026 | Mayoral/School Board Runoff (if needed) | Stillwater Mayor & School Board\nMay 22, 2026 | Voter registration deadline | State & Federal Primaries\nJune 16, 2026 | Primary Election | State House (HD 33, 34, 35) & Federal (U.S. Senate & House)\nJuly 31, 2026 | Voter registration deadline | State & Federal Primary Runoffs\nAug. 25, 2026 | Primary Runoff (if needed) | State House (HD 33, 34, 35) & Federal (U.S. Senate & House)\nOct. 9, 2026 | Voter registration deadline | State & Federal General Election\nNov. 3, 2026 | General Election | State House (HD 33, 34, 35) & Federal (U.S. Senate & House)",
  "title": "2026 Election Preview: What Stillwater Voters Need to Know",
  "updatedAt": "2026-04-06T20:55:36.254Z"
}