BY DAVID GLOVER

Oklahoma’s Ten Commandments legislator, Rep. Mike Ritze, R-Broken Arrow, appeared to bear false witness on a statewide TV broadcast last week.

During OETA’s “People’s Business” with George Tomek [3.25.09], Ritze used these phrases in describing the need for Voter ID in Oklahoma:

“found voter fraud”

“250 people in Tulsa”

“vacant lots”

“defeated a Republican”

“two years ago”

“documented”

[See video: http://www.voterok.com/]

Turns out he is either very confused and mistaken or willfully spreading falsehoods.

One call to the Tulsa Election Board set the record straight: No voter fraud whatsoever in these cases.

In one case the voter moved, the house was torn down and the person voted legally from the vacant lot address.
In 2004, a few poll workers mistakenly allowed registered Republicans to vote in a Democratic-only primary. This City Council election primary was done over.

Either Ritze was wrong and should admit his mistakes and apologize to the viewers of OETA or he knew the truth and tried to pull one over on us.

Legislators should be expanding voting opportunities for citizens rather than trying to disenfranchise the poor, elderly and disabled with false information.

I will be looking forward to his response.

– David Glover lives in The Village, OK and is an occasional contributor to The Oklahoma Observer