Gentner Drummond, Oklahoma’s attorney general and a candidate in a hard-fought Republican primary runoff for governor, has repeatedly taken positions that put him at odds with other Republican state leaders since taking the office in 2023.
Mr. Drummond, a lawyer from a longtime Oklahoma ranching family, is facing opposition from President Trump and the outgoing governor, Kevin Stitt, who have both endorsed his opponent, Mike Mazzei.
Should he win the nomination in the deep-red state, Mr. Drummond would enter the general election as the favorite against the Democratic nominee, State Representative Cyndi Munson.
Here are five things to know about Mr. Drummond:
1. He vowed to lower taxes, but not at the expense of public schools, roads or other essential services. That position set him apart from Mr. Mazzei, who proposed eliminating the state income tax completely.
2. He opposed a $4 billion aluminum smelter near Tulsa that drew opposition over its potential impact on the environment and the electric grid, and its majority ownership by a company controlled by the United Arab Emirates. Mr. Drummond filed a lawsuit seeking to block the project, which became a major dividing line in the race after Mr. Trump endorsed Mr. Mazzei, who supported it.
3. He fought openly with Mr. Stitt. During the campaign, Mr. Drummond sued the governor, accusing him of defamation over campaign advertisements. The two men have repeatedly clashed in recent years, including over the treatment of Oklahoma’s Native American tribes. Mr. Drummond has generally sided with tribes in disputes with the Stitt administration over tribal sovereignty.
4. He served as a U.S. Air Force pilot and flew combat missions during the Persian Gulf war in 1991. Mr. Drummond frequently spoke of that experience during the campaign, saying it had prepared him to make high-stakes decisions as governor.
5. He has helped close thousands of illicit marijuana operations as attorney general, taking on an industry that has attracted many illegal operators in recent years. The crackdown has been a significant focus of his tenure. Mr. Drummond has also said he would like to see Oklahoma’s legal marijuana industry “gone.”
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