Gov. Kevin Stitt has a simple solution to deal with statewide elected officials who fall out of favor with voters while in office: Let the governor appoint them in the first place.

“I think that the governor should appoint all these positions because you’ve got one neck to choke, and the 4 million Oklahomans vote on the governor,” Stitt said Dec. 20.

Funeral services for Charles Phillip Ganote of Oklahoma City will be held at 11 a.m. Monday, Jan. 13 at the Concho Emergency Response Center with burial in the Concho Cemetery. Services are under the direction of Huber-Benson Funeral Home.

Charles died Jan. 8, 2025, at Integris Baptist Medical Center in Oklahoma City. He was born April 28, 1982, in Weatherford. He worked in security for the Oklahoma City Golf and Country Club.

States across the nation continue cutting income tax rates with a new round of reductions taking effect this month. The trendline has Oklahoma falling behind in the race to attract investment and job creation.

In the 1990s, Oklahoma’s top income tax rate was 7 percent. It has since been reduced to 4.75 percent. But even that 4.75 percent rate now significantly exceeds what entrepreneurs would face if they took their money elsewhere.

Randy Lee Popham died Jan. 1, 2025, at his home and had lived in El Reno over 30 years.

Randy was born Jan. 3, 1958, in Charleston, S.C. He was a veteran serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and was a painting contractor and a gun parts dealer.

He was preceded in death by his mother, Evelyn Knight Davis; sister, Debbie Pendergast; and brothers, Terry Popham, Billy Popham and Ricky Davis.

Randy is survived by Jeri Popham, Shawn Pugh and J.P. Jones; sister, Cathy Davis; and three grandchildren.

Arrangements are by Huber-Benson Funeral Home.