Oklahoma's Aug. 25 runoff is 11 days out, and the marquee statewide race will decide who carries the Republican banner for state superintendent of public instruction. Robert Franklin and James Taylor were the top two finishers in June's seven-way GOP primary, with Franklin at 22.6 percent and Taylor at 19.7, and because no candidate cleared 50 percent, the nomination goes to a second round.

The winner meets Democrat Jennettie Marshall in November. Marshall settled her side in June, winning the Democratic primary with 57.7 percent over Craig McVay, so there is no Democratic runoff for the office — which also means the superintendent question on the Aug. 25 ballot is open only to registered Republicans.

Here is every date left. Early voting runs Thursday, Aug. 20, and Friday, Aug. 21, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., and Saturday, Aug. 22, from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m., at your county election board office; check your county board for exact locations. On election day, polls are open 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The window to request an absentee ballot closed Aug. 10, so if you did not ask for one, your options are early voting or election day. If you already have a mail ballot, it must be received — not postmarked — by your county election board by 7 p.m. on Aug. 25, and ballots returned in person are due by the Monday before the election. The State Election Board's OK Voter Portal will show your sample ballot, your polling place and the status of a mailed ballot.

Depending on where you live, the superintendent race may not be the only contest in front of you: legislative and county runoffs share the date in parts of the state. The Oklahoma Policy Institute keeps a rundown of what is on ballots statewide, and Oklahoma Voice published a voter guide for the runoff earlier this month.

Why this one is worth a trip in August heat: the state superintendent runs the Oklahoma State Department of Education, chairs the State Board of Education, and shapes accreditation, academic standards and how state and federal school dollars move. Runoffs are historically low-turnout elections, which cuts both ways — each vote counts for more, and the result can swing on a few thousand people who bothered to show up.

Sources: Oklahoma Voice: Franklin, Taylor advance to runoff · Oklahoma Voice: Aug. 25 voter guide · State Election Board: next election · OK Policy: what's on the Aug. 25 ballot