Lionel Ramos
State Government ReporterLionel Ramos covers state government at KOSU. He joined the station in January 2024 after covering race and equity as a Report For America corps member at Oklahoma Watch, a nonprofit investigative newsroom in Oklahoma City.
Born into the circus, Ramos traveled across the country in an RV with his family for the first half of his life. He eventually landed in San Antonio, Texas, where he attended high school and community college before transferring to Texas State University in San Marcos, Texas. He holds a bachelor's degree in English with a focus on Creative Writing from Texas State, where he covered local and student government for the school's newspaper, The University Star.
At Oklahoma Watch, Ramos reported statewide on the rising political capital of Latinos in Oklahoma, the resettlement of Afghan refugees, the stakes for Indigenous Oklahomans in the Supreme Court's 2023 Brackeen v. Haaland decision, unemployment, housing, and veterans issues.
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Oklahoma Republican lawmakers are dead-set on reversing a 2020 vote to enshrine Medicaid expansion in the state's constitution. Their two-prong effort to remove the language and shrink Soonercare in the state came as a surprise to the Democratic minority. -
Armstrong currently serves on the board of Williams Companies, where he was CEO until last year. -
A rural Oklahoma school district caused a stir on social media recently after seemingly signing an agreement to deputize its police department as immigration enforcement officers, and then backing out of the partnership days later. -
Days after the Oklahoma Secretary of State's office announced the failure of State Question 836, it filed a certification summary with the Oklahoma Supreme Court. That summary helps explain why voters won't see the initiative on a ballot. -
Oklahoma's Secretary of State announced on March 6 that a state question to open Oklahoma's primary elections failed to meet signature requirements. But voters may still have a chance to vote on the future of the state's primaries. -
As Oklahoma's U.S. Senator Markwayne Mullin transitions into a new role as President Donald Trump's latest Secretary of Homeland Security appointment, Gov. Kevin Stitt will pick his replacement. Here's how, according to state law. -
Oklahoma lawmakers in the Senate unveiled their $254 million education spending plan this week. They're proposing to "right-size" the state's teacher pension contributions to cover the cost. -
President Donald Trump reportedly plans to invite only Republican governors to an annual meeting, usually hosted by the bipartisan National Governors' Association (NGA). Gov. Kevin Stitt, who chairs the group, sent a letter to members Monday with a message about staying united in light of Trump's partisan antics. -
Among the largest single recurring budget requests before lawmakers this year is the Oklahoma Water Resources Board's $50 million investment into fixing the state's dire water infrastructure needs. One state senator hopes his bill will jumpstart the work. -
As the first week of Oklahoma's legislative session closed, leadership in both chambers held the first of many weekly press conferences. With thousands of bills filed and federal funding cuts looming, a budget shortfall is one top concern shared across party lines.
