In a recent news conference, Gov. Kevin Stitt floated the idea of changing the way Oklahoma selects its top education leader. Instead of electing the state schools superintendent, as our Constitution now requires, he suggested moving to an appointed model. On the surface, that may sound like a small technical change, but in reality it represents one of the most significant shifts of power in state government in decades.

To understand why, we need to step back and look at how much power has already been concentrated in the governor’s office.

A governor with growing appointment power

When Oklahoma became a state, our founders intentionally spread authority across multiple elected officials, boards and commissions. They were suspicious of too much power being vested in one person, having s

See Full Page