OKLAHOMA CITY – A state question to raise the minimum wage in Oklahoma will be voted on statewide during the June 16, 2026 primary election.
If passed by voters, the initiative would increase the minimum wage to $12 an hour in 2027 from the current $7.25, which is also the federal minimum wage. It calls for additional gradual increases until it reaches $15 an hour in 2029.
Gov. Kevin Stitt issued an executive order Wednesday assigning the state question to the 2026 primary.
The question called for an increase in minimum wage to $9 beginning in 2025. However, as the initiative won’t be voted on until 2026, the minimum wage would jump to $12 in 2027, skipping the 2025 and 2026 gradual increases.
“I’m disappointed, but not surprised that the governor is deciding to play politics with the lives of working Oklahomans,” said Amber England, a spokesperson for Raise the Wage Oklahoma. “This is over 320,000 Oklahomans have waited over 15 years now to see their wages increase through an increase in the minimum wage, and they’re going to have to wait two more years.”
England said it will be three years between the question being filed and Oklahomans being able to vote on the measure, but the campaign is confident that voters will vote to approve the measure when they are able to in 2026.
The measure survived challenges from the State Chamber and the Oklahoma Farm Bureau Legal Foundation and the state Supreme Court ruled that the state question had garnered enough signatures to be placed on the ballot.
The ballot initiative had 157,287 verified signatures, well over the required number.
Oklahoma Voice is an affiliate of States Newsroom, a nation 501(c)(3) nonprofit supported by grants and donations focused on delivering state government news. The Voice maintains full editorial independence. For more stories by Oklahoma Voice go to oklahomavoice.com.
