About People Not Politicians

In June of 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled on Common Cause vs Rucho. In that 5-4 decision, SCOTUS deemed the issue of partisan gerrymandering not judicable by them and, instead, should be left up to the states.

To advocates for fair maps and redistricting reform throughout the country, the ruling meant that federal intervention in the redistricting process was no longer a possibility. Change must come from the people.

In Oklahoma, a coalition of organizations had been meeting privately for several months to discuss the state’s upcoming redistricting process. The coalition called themselves People Not Politicians, a name that gave credence to who should (and shouldn’t) be responsible for redistricting—the people, not the politicians. In the fall of 2019, PNP filed a ballot initiative to create an independent redistricting commission for Oklahoma. While the ballot initiative campaign was sidelined by COVID-19, People Not Politicians continued advocating for fair maps. Our relentless pressure on the Oklahoma state legislature resulted in a more transparent and participatory redistricting process. However, the end result was still the same - maps drawn by politicians and for politicians. Oklahoma deserves so much better.

Moving forward, People Not Politicians is committed to advocating for pro-voter reforms that will return the power of Oklahoma’s elections back where it belongs—to the people. In addition to redistricting reform, that means things like open primaries ranked-choice voting.

Oklahomans are tired of politics as usual; we deserve a system that prioritizes what the majority of voters want, not just the few who are wealthy and well-connected.