Policy Group Identifies Candidate Issues and Trends

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Oct. 2006	Contact: Dr. Roy Peters 918.521.9470 Susan Hardy Brooks 405.392.2325
OKLAHOMA CITY – On the Ballot 2006, an interactive CD released by the Citizens Policy Center, provides a one-of-a-kind guide to legislative candidate positions on health, education and economic development issues. “On the Ballot is the first project of its kind in Oklahoma,” said Roy Peters, CPC board chairman. “Never before has such an effort been undertaken to accumulate in-depth information from candidates on their views and plans for our future.” What truly sets the CPC endeavor apart from other voter information resources is the extent of the research paired with the integration of candidate comments included as verbatim dialogue in each “In Their Words” section, Peters explained. “On the Ballot gives voters the opportunity to read for themselves exactly what their candidates have to say about the issues that matter most to them,” Peters said. The most exciting outcome of this effort rests in the possibilities it offers the voting public statewide. On the Ballot will positively impact interest in issues that are important to Oklahoma, improve voter insight into the candidates vying to represent them and ultimately improve voter turnout, Peters said. “On the Ballot is not about party politics. It is not about pushing a particular agenda or position on any issue for any special interest group,” Peters said. “Rather, On the Ballot is about educating and empowering every voter with the information they need to make informed decisions.” Information on the CD is organized by House and Senate districts pending election in November. It provides side-by-side, at-a-glance perspectives as well as expanded narrative from candidate interviews. A total of sixty-three races and 126 candidates are included in the report. The CD also provides navigation tools and indexing to simplify “exploration and discovery” of information of interest. The Executive Summary section compiles candidate responses creating an invaluable tool for in-depth analysis as well as a preview of what we can expect positions will be in the upcoming legislature. “OTB2006 is a valuable resource for organizations supporting a particular cause or issue area, such as funding for economic development, research, children’s health or public education,” Peters said. “OTB2006, by virtue of its nonpartisan, unbiased approach of providing every candidate an equal opportunity to “speak their mind,” will serve every organization regardless of their position on any particular issue.” When the Citizens Policy Center made the decision to pursue this effort, we investigated every possible resource we might be able to tap into to guarantee the accumulation of complete, reliable information, Peters said. We were very familiar with the products created by Oklahoma Publishing Today, an Oklahoma firm that has built its reputation on providing comprehensive, nonpartisan coverage of capitol activities. In fact, it was Oklahoma Publishing Today’s most recent efforts interviewing candidates for their On the Issues series that caused us to engage their assistance in developing this product. “We know all too well that candidates tire of being asked to respond to questionnaires and polls that are slanted toward a particular political agenda,” Peters said. “We worked directly with the data gathered by a reputable third party so that candidates and the voting public could have every confidence that the information presented in OTB2006 is objective, truthful and credible.” OTB2006 is a product of CPC’s Opportunity Initiative, designed to educate Oklahomans on issues that will create better opportunities for our citizens and a better future for our state. Upcoming plans for CPC include publication of in-depth analysis of each issue area covered in OTB2006 leading up to and including the November election results. In addition, CPC will provide on-going analysis of legislative performance throughout session as it relates to the progress of relevant legislation. Following the legislative session, the CPC will publish the Opportunity Index, a comprehensive analysis of legislators’ voting records on health, education and economic development issues. The CPC is a nonpartisan, issue-based organization whose mission is to create better opportunities for all Oklahomans. The group is committed to identifying, understanding and promoting public policies that strengthen Oklahoma’s ability to provide people the opportunity to build good lives for themselves and their families. Interested voters and organizations are encouraged to order additional copies of On the Ballot 2006 by emailing: media@citizenspolicycenter.org. -30-