Kevin Stitt

A spokesperson from the Oklahoma Office of Management and Enterprise Services announced that Stitt would occupy temporary office space in the Capitol which is under renovation and not immediately occupy the Governor's Office until early 2020 due to the previously scheduled Capitol restoration project. Stitt also announced that he would not immediately move his family into the Oklahoma Governor's Mansion in Oklahoma City, instead remaining in Jenks until summer 2019 to allow his daughter to graduate high school.

On February 13, 2020, Secretary of Human Services Steven Buck announced his intention to step down from his position in order to become the head of trade association representing long-term care health providers. Buck, who served concurrently as Executive Director of the Oklahoma Office of Juvenile Affairs, first became OJA head in 2016 after service at the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services before being promoted to the Cabinet Secretary position in 2017 by then Governor Mary Fallin.

Stitt and the Legislature approved the 2020 Oklahoma state budget in May 2019. After years of cuts under the Fallin Administration, the budget provided for 5 percent in additional spending among state agencies over 2019 levels without increasing taxes. Particular areas of increased spending include a teacher pay raise of $1,220, a state employee pay raise of $1,400, authorization of two new trooper academies for the Oklahoma Highway Patrol to hire 80 additional state troopers, a 14% pay raise for correctional officers with the Oklahoma Department of Corrections, the largest investment in the state's Quick Action Closing Fund for job recruitment in state history, increased spending for Oklahoma State Regents for Higher Education, and additional spending to increase provider rates for physicians, hospital, and nursing homes from the Oklahoma Health Care Authority. In addition to the increased spending, Stitt demanded depositing of $200 million into the state's reverse fund, increasing its balance to $1 billion.

On February 13, 2020, Stitt, together with Attorney General Hunter and Corrections Director Scott Crow announced that the 5-year moratorium would be lifted. Citing a reliable source of necessary drugs, the state would again use lethal injection as its primary means of executions. Hunter announced that executions would be scheduled for Oklahoma's 48 death row inmates following the exhaustion of their appeal rights.

In response to the petition, in January 2020 Stitt unveiled his own proposal to expand the program, which he called "SoonerCare 2.0". With the blessing of the Trump Administration, Stitt's proposal would transform the Medicaid program from a formula grant to a block grant. Key elements of Stitt's plan include introducing work-related requirements for recipients, requiring recipients to pay some form of monthly premiums, and transition from a fee for service model to a managed care model.

Stitt signed legislation reorganizing the Oklahoma Supreme Court and the Oklahoma Court of Civil Appeals. Prior to the reforms, the Supreme Court's justices were appointed from nine separate districts representing various collections of counties. Under the legislation and effective in 2020, the Court's nine judicial districts were redrawn such that five were made coequal with the state's five congressional districts and the other four being at-large with the state as whole. Similarly, the five judicial districts used for appointing judges of the Court of Criminal Appeals were likewise made coequal the five congressional districts. The method for appointing appellate judges via the Oklahoma Judicial Nominating Commission was unchanged by the legislation. The ostensive purpose the reform was to increase the pool of applicants to the appellate courts.

Under the authority of the federal Indian Gaming Regulatory Act, in 2004 Oklahoma voters approved State Question 712 which adopted the Oklahoma State-Tribal Gaming Act. By the Act, the State of Oklahoma offered to each federally recognized Indian tribe the right to conduct commercial gambling within their territories upon acceptance of the terms of a uniform state-tribal gaming compact. The compact allowed the compacting tribes to conduct gaming in return for payment to the state treasury of "exclusivity fees" averaging 6 percent of gaming revenues. The provisions of compact were scheduled to expire on January 1, 2020.

In March 2020, Stitt went out to restaurants amid the coronavirus pandemic and posed a photo on Twitter of him doing so with his two children. This contradicted Dr. Anthony Fauci, the federal government’s leading expert on infectious diseases, who advised people to stay at home if they could. Stitt later deleted the tweet, and his spokesperson announced "the governor will continue to take his family out to dinner and to the grocery store without living in fear and encourages Oklahomans to do the same." President Donald Trump commented on the deleted tweet, expressing that he did not advocate going out to eat but did not criticize Stitt. In the tweet, Stitt wrote, "Eating with my kids and allow my fellow Oklahomans ... It's packed tonight!" The photograph he posted with his kids showed them all smiling while surrounded by fellow patrons at the restaurant.

Stitt was born in Milton, Florida, and spent early years in Wayne, Oklahoma. He later moved to Norman, Oklahoma, where his father was the pastor of Riverside Church. He graduated from Norman High School and went on to attend Oklahoma State University, where he received a degree in accounting. While a student at OSU, Stitt worked to pay his way through college by selling educational products door-to-door with Southwestern Advantage. He was the first person in the company’s 115-year history to achieve the top sales as a first-year sales person. Stitt is also a member of the Gamma Lambda chapter of the Beta Theta Pi fraternity.

Stitt was inaugurated on January 14, 2019, at the Oklahoma State Capitol. Stitt and the incoming Lieutenant Governor Matt Pinnell were sworn into office by the Chief Justice of Oklahoma Noma Gurich. Stitt then delivered a 15-minute inaugural address.

In January 2019, Stitt nominated Tulsa banker Sean Kouplen as Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce and Workforce Development, nominated the executive director of the Oklahoma Turnpike Authority, Tim Gatz, as Secretary of Transportation; and nominated David Ostrowe as his Secretary of Digital Transformation and Administration. Stitt appointed Lt. Governor Pinnell as his Secretary of Tourism and Branding, overseeing the Oklahoma Department of Tourism and Recreation, and as senior advisor for the Commerce Department overseeing investment into Oklahoma's federally-approved opportunity zones. Stitt also named former Oklahoma State Representative Lisa Johnson Billy, a citizen of the Chickasaw Nation, to the new position of Secretary of Native American Affairs to serve as the liaison between the Stitt Administration and the 38 federally-recognized Indian tribes in Oklahoma. John Budd, a former Boston Consulting Group partner and corporate executive at Sonic Drive-In, was picked by Stitt to serve as the Oklahoma's first Chief Operating Officer.

In February 2019, Stitt appointed former Oklahoma Highway Patrol trooper Chip Keating, the son of former Oklahoma Governor Frank Keating, as his Oklahoma Secretary of Public Safety. Stitt retained former Governor Mary Fallin's Director of the Office of Juvenile Affairs Steven Buck to serve as his Oklahoma Secretary of Human Services and Early Childhood Development. Brian Brurud, a former United States Navy fighter pilot, was also named Oklahoma Secretary of Veterans Affairs. However, in March 2019 Brurud faced accusation of violating federal labor law by underpaying veterans at his company. Following the allegations, Brurud withdrew his name from consideration. Stitt then picked former United States Air Force Brigadier General Ben Robinson in April 2019 to hold the post. Stitt appointed energy executive Jerome Loughridge as Oklahoma Secretary of Health and Mental Health and Dr. Kayse Shrum, president of the Oklahoma State University Center for Health Sciences, as Oklahoma Secretary of Science and Technology in March 2019.

On December 23, 2019, citing disagreements with Stitt over his handling of negotiations with the State's various Indian tribes concerning gambling compacts, Secretary of Native American Affairs Lisa Billy became the first member of the Governor's cabinet to resign. Billy, a member of the Chickasaw Nation and former Republican state representative, viewed Stitt's negotiation position as one of "unnecessary conflict."

The first law signed by Stitt after taking office was HB2597, colloquially called "Constitutional Carry". Effective November 1, 2019, the law permitted all individuals at least 21-years-old or older, or 18-years old if they are a member or veteran of the United States Armed Forces, to carry a firearm without obtaining a permit or completing training. The firearm may be concealed or unconcealed, loaded or unloaded for self-defense purposes. Stitt also signed HB2010 which expanded the places a firearm may be carried to include municipal zoos and parks regardless of size as long as the firearm is concealed.

In July 2019, Stitt, in an op-ed in the Tulsa World followed by a letter to the chiefs of 35 Oklahoma tribes, called on tribal leaders to renegotiate the terms of the compact in advance of the expiration date. In particular, Stitt called for increasing the rate of the exclusivity fees, envisioning a rate between 13% and 25%. The Governor's office maintains the current is not subject to automatic renewal, a claim the several tribes reject, believing they will continue indefinitely unless mutually agreed changes are reached. In either event, the Oklahoma Legislature would presumably have to be involved in any compact renegotiation, given the State's compact offer is defined and controlled by State statute, and Federal law would require any new or altered compact terms be approved by the United States Department of the Interior.

In later August 2019, the various tribes refused to meet with Stitt to negotiate the amount of the exclusivity fees until he conceded that the compact automatically renewed. Stitt had proposed a September 3 date to begin discussions but such proposal was rejected by the tribes.

At the end of December 2019, a federal lawsuit in the United States District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma was announced by the Choctaw, Cherokee, and Chickasaw tribes to attempt to end the dispute over gambling compacts. On December 31, Stitt signed an extension to the hunting and fishing license compact with the Choctaw Nation which was a previous point of contention.

In August 2018 DS News reported that he stepped down as CEO and handed the reins to Stephen Curry, while Stitt remained as Chairman. Gateway is a mid-sized company based in Jenks, Oklahoma which employs more than 1,200 people. The firm originates mortgages in 41 states.

In 2009, Gateway was listed in a Business Insider article as one of the fifteen shadiest lenders in the government-backed mortgage industry. According to the article, the company originated nearly twice as many bad mortgages as its competitors. An article published by the Oklahoman newspaper on August 19, 2018, highlighted the inaccuracies of the Business Insider article, reporting that "in the Illinois case, a consent order states that the Illinois banking agency investigated a Gateway loan originator for an 'alleged real estate, appraisal, and mortgage fraud scheme.' Gateway fired the employee, asked for a hearing and then agreed to what investigators found. Gateway agreed to a $10,000 fine...Stitt campaign spokeswoman Donelle Harder said the license in Illinois was never revoked. The state agreed after the appeal not to revoke the license, she said."

Before taking office, Stitt nominated former state Representative Michael Rogers as his Oklahoma Secretary of State and Tulsa Deputy Mayor Michael Junk (a former advisor to U.S. Senators Jim Inhofe and Tom Coburn) as his chief of staff. Stitt nominated Kenneth Wagner (a former senior advisor to EPA Administrator Scott Pruitt) to serve as Oklahoma Secretary of Energy and Environment. and Blayne Arthur (a former deputy secretary for the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food, and Forestry) to be Oklahoma Secretary of Agriculture. Stitt retained several Fallin administration officials in office, including Major General Michael C. Thompson as Adjutant General of Oklahoma and as Rusty Rhoades as Commissioner of the Department of Public Safety, respectively. In December 2018, Stitt announced that he would restructure the cabinet, eliminating the Secretary of Finance position and replacing it with three new positions splitting the former duties of the office: a Secretary of Budget, a Secretary of Agency Accountability, and a Secretary of Digital Transformation and Administration. Stitt nominated former longtime State Senator Mike Mazzei as Budget Secretary.

In mid-2018, Oklahoma voters approved State Question 788 which legalized the licensed use, sale, and growth of marijuana for medical purposes. As a candidate, Stitt cited a need to implement the results of the election by enacting a comprehensive regulatory scheme. After months of negotiation with legislative leaders, Stitt signed HB2612, the Oklahoma Medical Marijuana and Patient Protection Act. Also known as the "Marijuana Unity Bill", HB2612 provided for an extensive medical marijuana framework, including licensing requirements and establishing rights for patients.

NEWS9 also said that according to Georgia's Department of Banking and Finance, Stitt was banned for five years and the company was banned for life from origination mortgages in Georgia. According to an Oklahoman article, a Gateway corporate attorney said that there were misrepresentations and insufficient background checks attributable to employees in the Georgia office but that Stitt was not involved. The employees were terminated and Gateway paid a $2,000 fine. The state overturned the lifetime ban on Gateway, effective November 2017. Gateway is able to do business in all 50 states.

In July 2017, Stitt announced his candidacy for the Republican nomination for governor in 2018. He ran a 77 county campaign with campaign stops in nearly every city and town, against nine other candidates in the primary election, placing second in that race and defeating, among others, Lt. Governor Todd Lamb. In the August 28 primary runoff, Stitt defeated Mick Cornett, a former Mayor of Oklahoma City, to win the nomination. Stitt defeated Democrat former Attorney General Drew Edmondson and Libertarian Chris Powell in the general election in November 2018.

Beginning with the adoption of State Question 780 by Oklahoma voters in 2016, advocates for criminal justice reform sought additional measures. SQ780, which changed the classification of simple drug possession crimes from felony to misdemeanor and increased the cap for property crimes to be considered felonies, had already reduced the rate of felony prosecution statewide by 26 percent by 2018. In May 2019, Stitt proposed several ideas, including making SQ780's sentencing standards retroactive, prohibiting criminal records from being considered for professional licensing, and restructuring the funding scheme for the various district attorney offices. While the Legislature did make SQ780 retroactive by allowing parole for those convicted before SQ780 became effective and reforming professional licensing, the Legislature failed to approve bills relating to which would reform Oklahoma's cash bail system. In response to legislative defeats, Stitt issued an executive order to form a study group to make recommendations for future criminal justice reform for consideration during the 2020 Legislative session, with particular emphasis on reducing Oklahoma’s incarceration rate.

In 2010, the federal government adopted the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA). Under pre-PPACA levels, Oklahoma covered non-disabled adults without children with incomes at or below approxiatemly 37% of the FPL. The Act mandated that Oklahoma expand its Medicaid program, known as SoonerCare and administered by the Oklahoma Health Care Authority, to cover nearly all adults earning up to 138% of the federal poverty level (FPL). However, in 2012, the United States Supreme Court ruled in NFIB v. Sebelius that the mandate was unconstitutional, thus allowing Oklahoma to continue at its pre-PPACA eligibility levels. Following the decision, former Governor Mary Fallin rejected the option to expand. After taking office, Stitt continued Oklahoma's opposition to expansion. Stitt's refusal to expand the program resulted in the filing of an citizens' initiative petition, known as State Question 802, to enact the expansion into the Oklahoma Constitution notwithstanding Stitt's opposition.

During the gubernatorial campaign, Oklahoma Watch reported that Gateway was fined by Wisconsin regulators for a "clerical error" regarding the firm's history with regulators from other states. Gateway corrected the application and was issued a license in 2009 and continues to be in good standing with the state of Wisconsin today.

Stitt worked in the financial services sector before starting Gateway in 2000. According to a profile of Stitt by Bloomberg News, he founded the company and was president and CEO until January 2014 when he became chairman-CEO. On the campaign trail, Stitt says that he started Gateway in 2000 with "$1,000 and a computer." Stitt’s first obstacle was to get approved as a Federal Housing Administration (FHA) lender, but the company needed a net worth of $50,000. To achieve this amount, Stitt put forward the equity in his home to grow Gateway. In 2002, Gateway secured its first warehouse line, began obtaining licensing in other states besides Oklahoma, and started recruiting loan officers. By 2006, Gateway had over 400 employees.

Stitt married Sarah Hazen in 1998 and they have six children. Stitt and his wife are active in their church in Tulsa, Woodlake Church.

Oklahoma has a long history with capital punishment, having conducted the third highest number of executions since re-legalization following Gregg v. Georgia in 1976. However, beginning in 2015, a moratorium was placed on all state executions following the botched Execution of Clayton Lockett in April 2014 and the execution of Charles Warner by unauthorized methods in January 2015. A state criminal grand jury subsequently concluded in 2016 that state corrections officials failed to follow the law with Warner's execution and should have exercised greater caution given the backdrop of Lockett's execution. In 2018, the Oklahoma Attorney General Michael J. Hunter announced the state would seek to use inert gas asphyxiation by nitrogen for execution if suitable drugs for lethal injection were not found once the moratorium was lifted.

John Kevin Stitt (born December 28, 1972) is an American businessman and politician serving as the 28th Governor of Oklahoma since January 2019. He founded and is a former chairman and CEO of Gateway Mortgage Group. A Republican, he was elected governor in 2018, defeating Democratic nominee and former Oklahoma Attorney General Drew Edmondson. Stitt grew up in Norman, Oklahoma, and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a degree in accounting. He and his wife Sarah have six children. A member of the Cherokee Nation, Stitt is the second Native American to serve as governor of Oklahoma after Johnston Murray.