Welcome to the new Oklahoma Democratic Third Congressional District website.  We look forward to visiting with everyone in the coming months. 

Mack Miller, CD3 Chair

I think I have been a Democrat my entire life.

As a young boy in Cordell (Washita County), I remember walking up and down the streets, knocking on doors and passing out campaign literature for then Representative Victor Wickersham. He was a good man and represented his district well. It seems every two years I was out helping him campaign.

With my early introduction in life to politics, it was easy to become involved in other campaigns as I grew older. Both of my parents were life long Democrats and I don’t think either of them ever voted for one of the other guys.

A lot of my wife’s family don’t agree with me on political issues (to put it mildly), so it has always been my cup of tea to discuss political issues. This helped as I became owner and publisher of  now 3 small weekly editorials. I was in a class once the instructor made the comment, “The Democratic Party seems to have moved from southeastern Oklahoma to northwestern Oklahoma by reading the editorials in the papers”.

I had been active as a precinct officer in rural Major County for several years. I was privileged to serve as Chair of the Major County Democrats for 2 terms.

Then in 2003, I was elected 3rd District Chair of the Oklahoma Democratic Party. This was the first term since the state went from having 6 congressional districts to only having five. The former 6th Congressional District used to have a lot of active Democrats but through the years, the Democratic enthusiasm has slowed down it seems.

The goal for the new 3rd District Central Committee was to begin to get this huge district active. I have been privileged to now be serving my fourth term as Chair of this district (which comprises 48.9% of the state and 32 counties) and our goal remains the same: Work to get the counties activated and to get Democrats elected. More counties are active now than were in 2003 but we haven’t given up and still have a long way to go to get the entire district active. Sometimes it seems we are on the go constantly.

All three members of the 3rd District Committee travel thousands of miles annually visiting counties. We have assisted counties with conventions, attended fundraisers, and candidate forums as well as just attending the counties’ monthly meetings.

We invite you to join us anytime when we travel across this great district we are allowed to serve!

Anita Norman, CD3 Co-Chair

Little did I know when attending my first precinct meeting, that politics would become a passion in my life. My parents raised me in a Democratic home, and we spent many hours around the table discussing politics. Although they were not Democratic leaders in the community, they spent countless hours behind the scenes helping to elect our local, county, and Congressional candidates.

 I spent countless hours with my mom in our truck traveling over the county campaigning for our Democratic candidates. I remember the late President John F. Kennedy coming to LeFlore County to dedicate a highway in the middle of no where. I was in the 7th grade attending Heavener Junior High School , and it was the biggest event that ever happened in southeastern Oklahoma . Senator Bob Kerr and the Honorable Carl Albert were there also, it was a great day for us all, when Democrats opened my horizons onthe Talimena Drive .

 

My active involvement was slow to come. But I finally started in 1979 by helping the late Mike Synar’s campaign. He was more than a friend; he treated everyone in the 2nd District as part of his family. One of Heavener’s favorite sons, Jim Hamilton, (an old family friend) asked me to be Adair County Coordinator for his U.S. Senate Campaign. This was my first involvement in a statewide race, it was an eye opener. But I was hooked! After that I really wanted to help Democrats get elected.

 

During a meeting of the Adair County Excise Board, a gentleman came in and introduced himself and said that he was running for State Auditor and Inspector. He stated he would appreciate any support that we could give. I have helped Clifton Scott from day one. He impressed me then and still does today.

 

Over the years I have worked to elect many democrats with countless hours of phone calls, mailings, knocking on doors to get out the vote. I still enjoy it, especially when we win!

 

The past 30 years have seen a lot of hard work, but a great adventure too. I have been involved in grass roots politics since 1979, and this past year, I attended my 30th precinct meeting. In 2003, I was elected 3rd District Vice Chair. It is a privilege to serve in this capacity and represent the great Democrats from the 3rd Congressional District. Our goal was to get the counties energized and active. We’ve come a long way, but we still have a long way to go. Our goal for the next two years is educating our Democrats through training sessions.

 

We look forward to the elections of 2010 when the Democrats elect a new governor, and we take back the House and Senate!

Kathy Huston, CD3 Secretary