On March 8, the Oklahoma Senate passed SB 145 by 41-2. The only two “no” votes were Democratic Senators Kay Floyd of Oklahoma City and Kevin Matthews of Tulsa. The bill lets independent presidential candidates, and the presidential nominees of unqualified parties, on the ballot without a petition, if they pay a filing fee of $17,500. Alternatively they can get on with a petition of 3% of the last gubernatorial vote.

Current law requires a petition of 3% of the last presidential vote, which would be 43,590 signatures in 2020. No one can know how many votes will be cast for Governor in 2018, but one can guess that 3% of the 2018 gubernatorial vote will be between 25,000 and 30,000.

The bill now goes to the House. In recent years, the House has been significantly more friendly to ballot access reform than the Senate has been. That this bill is now through the Senate makes it likely it will become law. Assuming it does become law, every state with have some method to get on the general election ballot for President that is at 2% of the last vote cast, or easier.