Donald Ross, an American politician who served in the Oklahoma House of Representatives from 1983 to 2003, died on May 5, 2026, at age 85.
Born in Tulsa, Oklahoma, he attended grade school in Vinita, later returned to Tulsa for Carver Middle School and Booker T. Washington High School, and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in journalism from the University of Central Oklahoma.
After college, he joined the United States Air Force. Ross chaired the Black Legislative Caucus from 1982 to 1984 and from 1986 to 1988, and in 1989 he led an effort to remove the Confederate flag from the Oklahoma State Capitol.
Donald Ross, 85, American politician, member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives (1983–2003).