In The News
Here are the headlines shared on the week of Thursday, October 1, 2026.
Oklahoma Voice releases Nov. 3 voter guide, highlighting candidates and issues (Oklahoma Voice)
Oklahoma gubernatorial candidates debate ahead of election (KOCO)
Former Edmond mayor escorted out after heated exchange with DHS chief Mullin (KOKH)
OG&E is proposing a base rate increase. What’s behind it? (KOSU)
Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes to consider data center ban on tribal land this weekend (KGOU)
Oklahoma State Rep. Archer Elected Chairman of The Energy Council (The Penny News)
Cherokee Nation advocates for federal memorial in Tulsa’s Greenwood District (KWGS)
‘Not enough data or expertise’: Oklahoma lawmakers consider future of data centers (Oklahoma Voice)
‘Serious lack of impulse control’: Tulsa County Judge Sharon Holmes reprimanded, retained (Nondoc)
Oklahoma officials cite early milestones in first year of Rural Health Transformation Program (KOKH)
City approves roadwork for OK’s first Buc-ee’s, despite sprawl concerns (OKC Free Press)
Sand Springs Explosion Brings Inspection Quality Into Question (Oklahoma Watch)
Trump launches campaign tour in GOP-friendly states ahead of midterms (Oklahoma Voice)
Emergency Drought Program Receives Additional $2 Million (The Penny News)
Hobart lifts precautionary boil advisory after water tests pass (KWTV)
Elgin man raises more than $3,000 for students’ school lunches (KSWO)
Oklahoma Drought Monitor
South Regional Drought Summary
“The southern states have taken the brunt of recent drought intensification since August, which continued this past week across most of Oklahoma and Texas. Worsening drought also occurred across most of Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee. Virtually no rain fell this past week in this region except for far western Texas, the Oklahoma Panhandle, and eastern Tennessee. Combined with temperatures of 6-12 degrees above average, the lack of rainfall contributed to the rapid intensifying drought. Most of central and eastern Texas, Oklahoma, and Arkansas are under severe, extreme, or exceptional drought classifications. Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee are quickly degrading as well into severe to extreme drought conditions due to the September heat wave and continued lack of rainfall. Much of Texas and Oklahoma need to receive 20 to 25 inches of rainfall over a 3-month span to break out of the present drought. The lone exceptions to the drought worsening were in far western Texas and the western Oklahoma Panhandle, where several inches of rain fell as eastern Pacific tropical moisture associated with Hurricanes Odalys and Polo moved across the region. Far eastern Tennessee experienced temperatures around 3 degrees below normal along with the plentiful rainfall resulting in no drought conditions.”
Read the National Drought Summary for October 1, 2026, for forecast statements.
Note: We did get some nice rain this week here in Western Oklahoma. I doubt it will have much impact on the drought, but it was still nice to have. - K.
Oklahoma Elections
The general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026. The last day to register to vote in this election is October 9. The deadline to request an absentee ballot is October 19.
For more information on voting in Oklahoma, please visit oklahoma.gov/elections.
Debate Night
OETA hosted a debate between Oklahoma gubernatorial candidates Cyndi Munson and Mike Mazzei. You can watch the debate here on OETA’s website: 2026 Oklahoma Governor’s Debate
Because of a presidential visit to our state, they recorded this debate at 10:00 AM this morning for airing tonight. If you missed it and can’t watch it online, OETA will reair the debate on Saturday, October 3 at 5:30 PM.
Update
It's time for another #blogmonth challenge over on my personal blog. The challenge is to write something new every day for the entire month and post it to my blog. It's been a few years since I last did this. I'm excited to tackle it again. It's nothing serious; you won't find the next great novel over there. Mostly, it'll be daily life observations and cat pictures. This Sunday, I'll post my annual Spooky Season movie list. You can find more details about this writing challenge over at Blog Oklahoma. Please feel free to follow along at programwitch.com.
Extras
NEO - A Writing Tool for Authors (Hugh Howey)
How I Learned 3D Animation in Just 1,506 Days (AustinMcConnell)
This 1982 PAC-MAN Toy Is Even Stranger Than I Expected (GenXGrownUp)
Feedback Welcome
Please don’t hesitate to contact me with any comments or questions. You can leave a comment on Substack, send me an email, or connect with me on social media at Mastodon, Bluesky, or Threads.
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Until next time.
– K. @}-;--
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