{"id":2649640,"date":"2026-08-25T23:23:03","date_gmt":"2026-08-26T03:23:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-backed-mazzei-wins-gop-primary-runoff-in-oklahoma-governor-race\/"},"modified":"2026-08-25T23:42:39","modified_gmt":"2026-08-26T03:42:39","slug":"trump-backed-mazzei-wins-gop-primary-runoff-in-oklahoma-governor-race","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/trump-backed-mazzei-wins-gop-primary-runoff-in-oklahoma-governor-race\/","title":{"rendered":"Trump-backed Mazzei wins GOP primary runoff in Oklahoma governor race"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">20<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Ftrump-backed-mazzei-wins-gop-primary-runoff-in-oklahoma-governor-race%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2649640&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Oklahoma\u2019s GOP primary runoff for governor was won by former budget Secretary mike Mazzei, who narrowly defeated Attorney General Gentner Drummond with 50.3% of the vote. Mazzei\u2019s victory reinforces President Trump\u2019s influence, as he was endorsed by Trump and aligned his campaign with the former president&#8217;s support. The race centered on key issues such as lowering living costs,reducing property taxes,and promoting fiscal responsibility,with Mazzei emphasizing his experience as budget secretary and his endorsements. Drummond,who previously criticized Trump\u2019s tariffs,campaigned on public safety and economic growth but faced backlash from Trump during the primary. The contest reflected a broader ideological divide within Republican voters,with Mazzei positioned as the MAGA candidate and Drummond representing a more traditional conservative stance. Mazzei is set to face Democrat Cyndi Munson in the November general election, in a race deemed &#8220;solid Republican&#8221; by the Cook Political Report, favoring the GOP candidate in a state Trump carried comfortably in 2024.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<article class=\"fn-body\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Former <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/oklahoma\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/oklahoma\">Oklahoma<\/a> Budget Secretary Mike Mazzei defeated state Attorney General Gentner Drummond in the GOP <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/2026-elections\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/2026-elections\">primary runoff<\/a> to determine the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/republican-primary\/\">Republican<\/a> nominee for Oklahoma <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/governor\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/governor\">governor<\/a> on Tuesday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mazzei pulled out the GOP runoff win with 50.3% of the vote compared to Drummond\u2019s 49.7%, according to the <em>Associated Press<\/em> on Tuesday evening. Mazzei\u2019s victory notches another win for President <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/donald-trump\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"4\">Donald Trump<\/a>\u2018s endorsement power, as Mazzei joins Rep. <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/byron-donalds\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"6250\">Byron Donalds<\/a> (R-FL) as the latest Trump-backed gubernatorial candidate to win their primary in a midterm election season that has <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/4613491\/trump-endorsement-power-may-slip-governor-races-georgia\/\">shown mixed results<\/a> for the president\u2019s endorsement in gubernatorial races.<\/p>\n<section class=\"explore-more-section\" id=\"wex-recommended-widget\">\n<div class=\"magazine-container single\">\n<h1 class=\"magazine-title mt-2\">Recommended Stories<\/h1>\n<p>             <i class=\"fa-solid fa-play icon\"><\/i>         <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-grid\">\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4700252\/mazzei-drummond-republican-runoff-oklahoma-governor\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Trump-backed Mazzei wins GOP primary runoff in Oklahoma governor race<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4700340\/karen-bass-skips-lahsa-meetings-homelessness-self-appointed-attendance-vs-results\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Karen Bass skips out on multiple LAHSA meetings despite homelessness being central to reelection campaign<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<div class=\"explore-card\">                         <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4699631\/gina-hinojosa-flock-texas-governor-abbott\/?itm_source=parsely-api\">                             <\/p>\n<div class=\"explore-thumb-wrap\">                                                                                                                                  <\/div>\n<h3>Gina Hinojosa releases new Flock-camera-focused campaign ad, attacking Abbott on privacy<\/h3>\n<p>                         <\/a>                     <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4698304\/oklahoma-primary-sets-maga-candidate-against-anti-tariff-conservative\/\">flash point of the race<\/a> centered on Drummond distancing himself from Trump\u2019s tariff agenda, while Mazzei tied himself to the president\u2019s endorsement as the two candidates <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nytimes.com\/interactive\/polls\/oklahoma-governor-election-polls-2026.html\">polled neck and neck<\/a> in the limited runoff surveys.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-1\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-15\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-1\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After criticizing Trump\u2019s tariffs over the course of the primary, Drummond drew intense scrutiny from the president, who called him a \u201cFAKE Republican\u201d who has \u201ca bad attitude\u201d and \u201cdoesn\u2019t stand for the Values of Oklahoma.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cI do think the majority of Oklahomans would agree that the tariffs are too far,\u201d Drummond <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4698304\/oklahoma-primary-sets-maga-candidate-against-anti-tariff-conservative\/\">told<\/a> NewsNation days before the primary.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mazzei, on the other hand, touted his endorsements from Trump, the <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/x.com\/MazzeiMike\/status\/2091271597571088629?s=20\">Oklahoma GOP<\/a>, and term-limited Gov. Kevin Stitt (R-OK) as he aimed to compete with the statewide name recognition Drummond had as attorney general.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-2\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-16\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-2\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Each of the Republicans ran on lowering the cost of living, in line with the GOP\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/affordability\/\" data-type=\"post_tag\" data-id=\"21532\">affordability<\/a> messaging sweeping through the midterm elections, as they both advocated slashing property taxes and reining in government spending to cut costs for Oklahomans.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mazzei campaigned on <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/mikeforok.com\/the-issues\/\">priorities<\/a> like eliminating the state\u2019s property tax for veterans and seniors, curbing foreign land ownership in the state, education reform, opposing abortion, and cutting regulations facing small-business owners. Mazzei touted his time as budget secretary as experience that would help him lead a more fiscally responsible state government.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">After his top priority of lowering the cost of living, Drummond ran on his public safety record as attorney general, seeking to bring more enforcement against drug trafficking and cartel crime while strengthening local law enforcement. He also campaigned on spurring state economic growth, fixing rural infrastructure, and expanding affordable healthcare access across the state.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-3\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-17\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-3\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/news\/campaigns\/state\/4698304\/oklahoma-primary-sets-maga-candidate-against-anti-tariff-conservative\/\">OKLAHOMA PRIMARY SETS MAGA CANDIDATE AGAINST ANTI-TARIFF CONSERVATIVE<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Mazzei is now set to face off against Democratic state Rep. Cyndi Munson in the general election in November.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Cook Political Report <a target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\" href=\"https:\/\/www.cookpolitical.com\/governor\/race\/479571\">considers<\/a> the governor race \u201csolid Republican\u201d in the state Trump won by an over 34-percentage-point margin in 2024.<\/p>\n<div class=\"wex-inarticle-ad wex-inarticle-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\">\n<div class=\"wex-ad-wrap wex-ad-art-dsk-inart-4\" style=\"min-height:90px\"><span class=\"wex-ad-label\" hidden>Advertisement<\/span><\/p>\n<div id=\"div-gpt-ad-3182201-25\" data-wex-ad=\"art-dsk-inart-4\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/article>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Mazzei wins GOP runoff for Oklahoma governor, defeating Drummond<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3976,"featured_media":2649641,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26231778065712.jpg?w=696","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[33651],"tags":[84667,84668,36959,56924,26439],"class_list":["post-2649640","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-the-western-journal","tag-mazzei","tag-oklahoma-governor","tag-political-victory","tag-republican-primary","tag-trump-endorsed"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/AP26231778065712.jpg?w=696","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3976"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2649640"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649640\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2649655,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2649640\/revisions\/2649655"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2649641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2649640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2649640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2649640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}