Byrd faces Perry in Oklahoma treasurer race on Election Day

Oklahoma voters will choose a new state treasurer on Tuesday, Nov. 3, with Republican Cindy Byrd facing Libertarian Kiefer Perry in a race with no Democratic candidate on the ballot.

Polls across Oklahoma are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., according to the Oklahoma State Election Board. Voters in line by 7 p.m. are legally allowed to cast their ballots, according to The Oklahoman.

Results will begin coming in after polls close and will be posted on the State Election Board's results page.

What's at stake

The state treasurer serves as Oklahoma's chief financial officer and state banker, managing tax dollars and overseeing the state's unclaimed property program, according to News 9. The next treasurer will also oversee the Oklahoma Taxpayer Endowment Trust Fund, a $200 million sovereign wealth fund that Gov. Kevin Stitt negotiated into this year's budget, according to NonDoc.

Byrd defeated incumbent Treasurer Todd Russ in the Republican primary.

The candidates

Cindy Byrd is the current state auditor and inspector. She has worked in the State Auditor and Inspector's Office since 1997 and was elected to lead it in 2018, according to NonDoc. She is term-limited in that role.

Byrd defeated incumbent Treasurer Russ in the June 16 Republican primary with 61.7% of the vote, according to NonDoc. She initially planned to run for lieutenant governor but switched to the treasurer's race after President Donald Trump endorsed T.W. Shannon in that contest, Oklahoma Voice reported. Trump later endorsed Byrd for treasurer at an Oct. 1 rally in Durant, according to Oklahoma Voice.

Byrd told NonDoc that speeding up the return of unclaimed property would be a priority. She also said she would focus on managing the new endowment trust fund.

Kiefer Perry is the vice chairman of the Oklahoma Libertarian Party and a first-time candidate. He has a background in retail management and the service industry, according to NonDoc. His campaign priorities include fiscal transparency, debt reduction and responsible investment, according to News 9.

Perry told NonDoc he entered the race partly because Oklahoma law requires a political party's statewide candidates to receive at least 2.5% of the vote to maintain official recognition.

He also said the absence of a Democratic candidate motivated him. "There wasn't a Democratic candidate running for this position, and I felt that took the element of choice away from the citizens," Perry told NonDoc.

Perry acknowledged his chances are long. "The realistic outcome of this is the chances of me winning are slim," he told NonDoc.