Ryan Walters (politician)

Ryan Walters (born May 23, 1985) is an American politician who has served as the elected Oklahoma Superintendent of Public Instruction since 2023 and who served as the appointed Oklahoma Secretary of Education between September 2020 and April 2023.

A member of the Republican Party, he has been a vocal critic of critical race theory, LGBT students' rights, and teachers' unions in Oklahoma and has been described as "the state's top culture warrior". He supports the political organization Moms for Liberty, which the Southern Poverty Law Center has described as an "extremist" and "antigovernment" group.

His tenure as state superintendent has been controversial. He successfully campaigned for the removal of Tulsa Public Schools Superintendent Deborah Gist, appointed Chaya Raichik to the Oklahoma Library Advisory Board, and advocated for teaching the Bible in public schools. His response to the death of Nex Benedict, an LGBT Owasso High School student, generated national calls for his removal from office in February 2024. He generated further national attention in November 2024 when he requested teachers play a video of him praying for then President-elect Donald Trump.