Trump-backed candidate wins Oklahoma Republican gubernatorial primary
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Trump-backed former Oklahoma state Sen. Mike Mazzei, R-Bixby, and Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond entered the Aug. 25 runoff in the Sooner State’s Republican gubernatorial primary, defeating multiple other candidates vying to replace term-limited Gov. Kevin Stitt.
Stitt, who recently became the top Republican in the National Governors Association, was term-limited.
Trump called Mazzei a “MAGA warrior” who “will never let you down,” throwing the already crowded contest into further uncertainty.
Until that point, Attorney General Gentner was in a tight race with Drummond and Mazzei, businessman Chip Keating and former Oklahoma House Speaker Charles McCall, R-Tishomamingo.
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President Donald Trump wrote that both seats in the Florida House were won decisively by the Republican candidate and noted that Trump support was more influential than Democratic opposition.
Trump stated that he “won big” in Oklahoma, which, along with West Virginia, is one of two states with no blue counties in the election results.
Mazzei works on important issues such as eliminating state property taxes, protecting state lands from foreign buyers, increasing the literacy rate in the state, and reducing waste and abuse from the government.
In the second respect, Stitt appointed Mazzei as state budget director for part of his term.
Some critics targeted Mazzei for hiring former Nixon campaign figure and Trump ally Roger Stone as a political consultant during his campaign.
Stone, one of the most prolific conservative consultants of the 20th century, caused national uproar when his Fort Lauderdale home was raided by the FBI in the middle of the night while CNN was waiting and filming.
“Roger Stone is one of many political advisors and teammates going back months and months and months,” Mazzei said. Oklahoma City’s ABC affiliate.
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Oklahoma state lawmaker Mike Mazzei gestures to reporters. (Nathan Balik/IMAGN)
“And of course it’s helpful to have someone on your team who knows what’s going on in Washington, D.C., aspects of the Trump agenda and how they fit into the Oklahoma agenda.”
Drummond maintains his tough-on-crime record as attorney general, his efforts on immigration enforcement, his fighter pilot career and ties to Trump similar to those suggested by Mazzei.
“When his nation called, Capt. Gentner Drummond responded with courage. Leading the first U.S. combat mission of the Gulf War, he was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross “for extraordinary achievement. By the end of Operation Desert Storm, Capt. Drummond was one of the most highly decorated Oklahomans of the war,” a statement on the campaign website said.
Drummond highlighted efforts to combat “over-interference from the Biden administration, including failures on immigration” and policies that allow biological boys to participate in girls’ sports.
Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond arrives to testify at the House Homeland Security Committee hearing titled “Destruction at the Heart: How Secretary Mayorkas’ Failed Leadership Affected the States” on January 10, 2024 in Washington. (Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call, Inc)
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McCall ran on a platform of “family, faith and moral leadership” and polished his credentials and records in the state legislature.
He wants to eliminate both the state income tax and property tax and put forward an economically conservative action plan.
Keating, who also served with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol, noted on his campaign website that he was the only former law enforcement officer running for governor.
Keating has launched a platform that prioritizes public safety, targeting trafficking, open borders and Antifa, whom he describes as “radical domestic terrorists.”
