I wanted to give y’all an update on the campaign now that we’re just 8 WEEKS out from Election Day!

I’ve spent hours and hours walking around Northwest OKC, Warr Acres, and Bethany the past couple of months—talking with neighbors and likely voters about the upcoming election. The voters of House District 84 are ready for new blood at the State Capitol. Democrats, Republicans, and Independents alike continue to tell me that they’re concerned about the state of our schools, roads, and bridges. They’re ready to have a representative that will make being a responsible legislator priority number ONE!

Around Bethany and Warr Acres, I’ve met voters of all ages, but those who are most concerned about transportation are our seniors. I’ve met so many seniors who tell me that they just are not able to get around the way they used to. They want to get out of their homes, but they don’t feel safe driving anymore. They are hungry for more transit options—such as CNG powered regional buses and commuter train lines. They love the new development in downtown Oklahoma City, but they wish they had a better way to get downtown to enjoy it. It’s time we do right by our seniors and come together as a state and a community to invest in more transit options.

On August 28, I took part in a candidate forum for the Oklahoma Rehabilitation Council. Oklahomans with disabilities are also asking our legislators to take transit seriously. These folks want to be productive workers and members of the community, but often find themselves trapped in their homes because of a lack of transit options. I support finding a revenue source that will ensure all Oklahomans have transit options so that they can have an equal opportunity to help build a better community.

Investing in CNG buses and commuter rail will not only give these seniors and Oklahomans with disabilities more transit options, it will give all Oklahomans more choices to get around. It will have the added benefits of being better for our environment and encouraging economic development. Investing in more transit options is a win-win situation for local businesses, seniors, and working Oklahomans.

If you’re ready for legislators who are looking to the future and finding solutions to the issues we face today; if you’re ready for legislators that see their job as one of building a brighter future for our community, rather than demagoguery and divisiveness; then I hope you’ll get involved in my campaign and help us take a step forward by defeating Rep. Sally Kern in November and showing the world that Oklahoma is ready to move forward.

Thanks for all your support that has kept me energized and ready to go! Let’s do what it takes to share our message of Jobs, Education, and Transportation with the voters and take Oklahoma forward!

Sincerely,

Brittany M. Novotny

After you’ve watched the clip, help Brittany fight to build a brighter future for Oklahoma by focusing on jobs, education, and transportation rather than the same old Kernservative playbook of outrageous, divisive rhetoric by contributing to the campaign today!

One of my supporters forwarded me a speaking schedule for a conference that took place this past weekend called “Wake Up, America!” According to the speaker schedule, on Saturday you were to present on the topic of “Taking a Stand Against Liberals.”

This led me to ponder a question. What exactly do you see as your job as a state legislator? Is this just a game to you? Oklahoma is facing real issues that will affect the everyday lives of teachers, police officers, firefighters, construction workers, small business owners, and most important of all, our children.

Instead of spending your weekends and your time in the legislature “taking a stand against liberals,” why aren’t you finding solutions to our budget dilemma that will keep teachers in the classroom, police officers and firefighters on the street, construction workers improving our roads and bridges, and small businesses afloat?

Legislating should not be a political game. Real lives are affected by what goes on in the legislature. But if you’re too busy “taking a stand against liberals” (of which there are maybe 5 in the 101 seats of the state legislature) to find real funding solutions, then apparently you believe that legislating is just a game. As long as you’re taking a brave stand against “liberals,” then people shouldn’t worry about the fact that Putnam City Schools just laid of 40 teachers.

After examining your legislative record of the past six years, it appears that your main goal has been to institute a big brother government that looks into the private bedrooms and physician exam rooms of Oklahomans, while doing nothing to address the issues facing Oklahoma’s public schools (which you have stated are “failing our children”) or our crumbling infrastructure. Targeted tax incentives are great for economic development; across the board tax cuts that bankrupt our public schools and deplete resources that go to public health and safety will not make Oklahoma a more attractive place to do business.

The Journal Record has already taken you to task for “damaging [Oklahoma’s] credibility and inhibiting our state’s ability to conduct business.”

This is OUR future that you’re playing with. I’m not willing to just stand by and let your crusade against liberals ruin the future of my home, Oklahoma. That’s why I decided to challenge you, because Oklahomans deserve legislators that are going to work in the Capitol to try and solve our budget crisis. Oklahomans deserve legislators looking for ways to help our small businesses create jobs. Oklahomans deserve legislators looking for innovative education solutions to ensure that all children have the tools they need to succeed. Oklahomans deserve legislators that understand that economic development requires investment in our transportation infrastructure.

In order to solve these problems, I’m willing to work with all of my fellow legislators and fellow Oklahomans. I’ll work with conservatives and liberals, Democrats and Republicans to find solutions that will help us create a brighter future for all Oklahomans. It’s OUR future, let’s stop the divisiveness and start building something better.

Sincerely,

Brittany M. Novotny

Well, the primary elections for 2010 are finally here. To those of you in House District 84, remember that I am not on the ballot tomorrow (July 27), because I did not draw an opponent for the Democratic nomination. However, that does not mean that you get to skip out on voting! If you are registered Republican or Democratic, then you can vote in tomorrow’s primary races and have a hand in choosing your party’s nominees for the general election in races ranging from Governor to Superintendent, as well as U.S. Congress.

For those of you who are registered Independent, you won’t get to choose any party’s nominees–both parties in Oklahoma have opted to keep their primaries closed to only those registered with their parties. However, you will get to vote in the non-partisan judicial elections, and there are many candidates running for Judge in Oklahoma County that could use your support.

So, to recap, I’m not on the ballot tomorrow, but YOU still should go out and VOTE! There are many important races from Governor to Judge, and YOUR VOICE is important. If there is anything I’ve learned in my campaign for public office, it is just how important your involvement is on election day.

For those of you who are registered Independent or Democratic, I’d love for you to vote in the following poll. Should the Oklahoma Democratic Party open up its primary elections to Independent voters?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

The Declaration of Independence not only proposed that the colonies were to be independent of Great Britain, but set out what many of us believe to be the moral standard of America:

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness.

The reason so many people and families from so many nations have trekked to make their home in the United States is precisely because of this moral standard set out in the Declaration—the idea that America represents the hopes and dreams of human kind for equality of opportunity.

Throughout our shared American history, our institutions have strived to achieve that moral standard of equality under the law. Though our institutions have many times failed to live up to that standard, the arc of history has continued to bend toward a deeper embrace of equality and liberty for all individuals.

So on this holiday, Independence Day, let us remember that we are all Americans, regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, creed, or color. Let us celebrate the words in the Declaration that all of us are created equal and endowed with the rights of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. For these rights are truly worthy of our celebration and commemoration.

Finally, let us continue to strive to ensure that the arc of history will continue to bend toward a deeper embrace of equality and liberty for all.

Happy Independence Day!

Sincerely,
Brittany M. Novotny

Brittany will have a booth to meet voters, and will also be marching in the parade. If you’re interested in marching with Brittany or helping out at the booth, please contact Jen Stringham at 405-420-8295.
Start Time: 10:00
Date: 2010-07-03
End Time: 22:00

June 8, 2010

Oklahoma City, OK – Brittany Novotny, a resident of northwest Oklahoma City officially filed to run for State Representative in House District 84 on Tuesday. Novotny, an attorney who maintains her own law practice, said “the key to building a strong local economy is a legislature whose primary concern is helping small businesses create jobs, investing in our children’s education, and investing in our transportation infrastructure.”

Novotny is a graduate of the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma and UC – Hastings College of the Law. She started her own law practice in Oklahoma City in 2008, and has been active in community organizations, including serving as National Committee Woman for YDO and on the Community Advisory Board for Supporting Kids in Independent Living, a program of Youth Services of Oklahoma County.

Novotny says she made the decision to challenge Rep. Kern for the seat because, “[Kern] has proven to be out of touch with mainstream Oklahomans, ineffective at solving problems, and bad for business.”

She also said, “I understand there are going to be some folks who try to make this election about the fact that my medical history includes a gender transition, but I’m running for office because I believe I’m the best candidate to fight for jobs, education, and transportation. I understand that state government runs best when it focuses on helping small businesses create jobs and guarantees all of our children can get a great public education.”

This is Novotny’s first time to run for public office. Her official campaign website can be found at www.brittany4hd84.com.

Contact:
Jennifer Stringham, Campaign Mgr.
Brittany Novotny for HD 84 in 2010
P.O. Box 374
Bethany, OK 73008
405-420-8295

According to state schools Superintendent Sandy Garrett, 85 percent of the education budget goes to teacher salaries. Currently Oklahoma employs approximately 50,000 teachers in our 531 school districts. Therefore, districts will be required to lay off teachers and the quality of education will likely suffer. Loss of teachers will lead to larger class size and dramatically affect the quality of education in a state that already lags behind the nation in graduation rates and test scores.

In addition to the effect on the education of our youth, the layoffs would also increase the unemployment rate in Oklahoma that current stands at 6.6%.

Do you think education funding should be cut? Should lawmakers instead be searching for ways to increase revenue?
Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Many of us in Oklahoma City, and around the country, still recall that morning. How can we forget it? My mom spent the next week or so volunteering downtown, helping serve meals to the rescue and search teams. My step-dad, a retired Oklahoma City police officer, volunteered to work at security check points around downtown.

Oklahomans from all backgrounds came together and looked out for each other. In that moment, we were reminded that ultimately, we’re all in this together as Oklahomans. The focus was not on what separated us, but on what made us all the same—stories of heartache, loss, tragedy, love, kindness, and compassion; the stories that make us human.

Today we remember, and as the words inscribed at the Memorial state:

“We come here to remember those who were killed, those who survived and those changed forever. May all who leave here know the impact of violence. May this memorial offer comfort, strength, peace, hope and serenity.”