The Oklahoma Democratic Party says it's committed to ensuring independent voter access to its primary ballot.

Independent voters in Oklahoma will not be able to participate in primary elections for the 2026-2027 election cycles, the Oklahoma State Election Board announced Wednesday.

Republican voters in House District 35 cast ballots in a special primary election Tuesday, but they'll have to do it again in January.

The State Election Board announced Independents in Oklahoma will not be able to vote in the 2026-2027 primaries and runoff primaries.

A Democratic Party spokesperson said party officials voted in June to continue with open primaries and notified the Election Board of that decision in early August. According to a press release from the Democrats, the party did not receive further communication on the matter between then and Wednesday's announcement from the Election Board.

The State Election Board Secretary announced on Wednesday that all primaries will remain closed for the 2026-2027 election years.

The Oklahoma Election Board's recent announcement that none of the political parties will have open primaries has the state's Democratic Party challenging the decision.

No candidate secured a majority in the GOP primary for Oklahoma House District 35, sending Dillon Travis and Mike Waters to a Jan. 13 runoff.

Oklahoma's recognized political parties are keeping their primaries closed, according to State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax, because no political party

Independents in Oklahoma will not be able to vote in the 2026-2027 primaries and runoff primaries. State Election Board Secretary Paul Ziriax announced on Wednesday that none of the three state recognized political parties filed a notice to allow Independents to vote in these elections.

Oklahomans in House District 35 will have the chance to vote on a new representative Tuesday. The seat covers cities in Creek, Noble, Osage, Pawnee and Payne counties. Former Rep. Ty Burns, R-Pawnee, resigned after pleading guilty to domestic abuse and assault.

Oklahoma is a modified closed primary state, which means to vote in a party's primary, or runoff, you must be registered to vote in that party.  However, in every odd-numbered year from November 1-30,