All articles tagged with #oklahoma
Tuesday delivered a mixed bag for Trump and allies: his pick won South Carolina’s GOP runoff to move toward a full term, another endorsement-led victory came in Oklahoma’s governor runoff, and Democrats captured Georgia’s 13th District in a low-turnout special election, highlighting a divided mood ahead of the 2026 elections.
NBC News projects that former state senator Mike Mazzei, backed by Donald Trump, won the Oklahoma GOP gubernatorial nomination in a tight runoff against Attorney General Gentner Drummond. The race followed a closely contested June primary, with Drummond leading by a small margin. Despite fundraising gaps, Mazzei benefited from the Trump endorsement and large campaign loans, and is now the heavy favorite to win in November against Democrat Cyndi Munson. The campaign also spotlighted policy divides, including Mazzei’s support for a proposed aluminum plant in Inola that Drummond opposed.
Trump-endorsed former state senator Mike Mazzei narrowly won Oklahoma’s GOP gubernatorial primary runoff against Attorney General Gentner Drummond, aided by a massive personal loan and heavy outside spending, positioning him for the general election against Democrat Cyndi Munson.
Trump-endorsed Mike Mazzei won Oklahoma’s GOP gubernatorial runoff, defeating Gentner Drummond and becoming the heavy favorite to be the next governor; with outgoing Gov. Kevin Stitt backing Mazzei, he pledges to cut taxes—including eliminating Oklahoma’s income tax in six years and eliminating property taxes for seniors and veterans—and will face Democrat Cyndi Munson in November.
In Oklahoma's primary runoff, Mike Mazzei defeats Gentner Drummond to win the Republican gubernatorial nomination and will face Democrat Cyndi Munson in November; Robert Franklin wins the Republican State Superintendent runoff; State Questions 844 fails and 846 passes, with results still rolling in across counties.
Nurse and Chickasaw Nation member N’Kiyla Jasmine Thomas won Oklahoma’s Democratic Senate primary runoff, defeating veteran Jim Priest despite heavy outspending and will face Republican Rep. Kevin Hern in the general election; the win suggests growing momentum for progressive candidates in a solidly red state.
N’Kiyla Jasmine Thomas, a nurse with no prior political experience, won Oklahoma’s Democratic Senate runoff and will face Republican Rep. Kevin Hern in November. She has proposed a policy platform including higher teacher pay, restoring Roe v. Wade, and expanding Obamacare, and she has publicly pledged to impeach, remove, and convict President Trump within her first 100 days if elected. Hern, who has a large fundraising advantage and Trump’s endorsement, seeks to keep Oklahoma’s Senate seat in Republican hands, a tall task in a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate in over three decades.
Trump’s substantial presence is shaping the Oklahoma GOP governor runoff, fueling a media blitz that has topped $9 million in TV and digital ads in the 10-week stretch, with independent groups driving most of it on top of roughly $40 million already spent in the race. Mazzei has funded his campaign largely through personal loans of at least $11.9 million, while Drummond has loaned at least $3.5 million, highlighting a high-dollar, outside-group–financed contest.
President Donald Trump’s endorsements will be tested in two Tuesday GOP runoffs: South Carolina’s Senate race, where he has backed appointed Sen. Darline Graham for a full term, and Oklahoma’s gubernatorial contest, which he also weighed in on. After a shaky August for his favored candidates, the results will indicate whether Trump’s influence with GOP voters remains durable or is fading and could reshape his strategy for the rest of the 2026 cycle.
A Southwest Airlines flight attendant from Moore, Oklahoma, was found dead in Waikiki, Hawaii, prompting Honolulu police to open an unattended death investigation; the cause of death is not yet known, and Southwest Airlines has offered condolences and support to the family and coworkers.
News 9’s Movie Man Dino Lalli previews this weekend’s film lineup, led by The Rivals of Amziah King from Oklahoma filmmaker Andrew Patterson, with cast highlights and insights into the production scale and budgeting, plus four other openings: Paw Patrol: The Dino Movie, The Brink of War, The End of Oak Street, and Nimrods.
Apple Wallet IDs are expanding to four additional states—North Carolina, Oklahoma, Utah, and Virginia—on top of the 14 already supported (plus Puerto Rico). NC’s DMV will launch digital IDs via the NC Wallet app this December, with Apple Wallet, Google Wallet, and Samsung Wallet support coming in early 2027. Setup is in Wallet under Driver's License and ID Cards, and you can present a digital ID at TSA checkpoints and some businesses by tapping your iPhone or Apple Watch, with only the requested information released after biometric verification. Physical IDs remain the backup, and police acceptance of mobile IDs is not universal yet.
Oklahoma’s electric bills are climbing due to a mix of higher regional transmission costs, aging grid investments, inflation in materials, and increased summer cooling demand, with data centers contributing but not driving the entire rise. Regulators and lawmakers are examining PSO’s rate adjustments, and a new law (HB 2992) requires data centers to help cover infrastructure costs as public concern over rising rates grows.
The FDA has classified a recall for about 1.6 million dozen white and brown cage-free eggs produced in Texas after a salmonella exposure, distributed to Brookshire and Kroger stores including Oklahoma locations; eggs with sell-by dates July 20–August 17 should be discarded if purchased.
On Aug. 13, Oklahoma, Tennessee and Alabama carried out lethal-injection executions for death-row inmates—Carlos Cuesta-Rodriguez, Anthony Hines and Jeremy Williams—within about six hours, marking the first triple execution in 16 years. Cuesta-Rodriguez killed his pregnant wife in 2003; Hines murdered a motel maid in 1985; Williams killed a 5-year-old girl in 2021. Observers say the timing is largely coincidental; the last triple execution was in 2010. The report notes that many recent executions involve victims who were women or girls and that several dozen more executions are anticipated this year.