Political candidates and outside groups are ramping up their efforts to reach voters ahead of the Aug. 25 runoff election.  Outside groups, including political action committees and social welfare organizations, have reported spending at least $9.7 million since July 1. Candidates have spent about $4 million over that period to reach voters.  Most of the advertising money has been spent on the GOP runoff for governor, where Attorney General Gentner Drummond and former state senator Mike Mazzei are vying for the party’s nomination.  Several advertisements make claims that warrant additional scrutiny. Here’s what the public record shows:  Tax Hikes  The Claim: Put Oklahoma 1st, a Virginia-based super PAC that formed less than three weeks ago, has spent at least $2.6 million on television advertisements opposing Mazzei. The group alleges that Mazzei supported more than $500 million in new taxes while serving in the state Senate. The Facts: In 2016, Mazzei introduced Senate Bill 1073, which proposed delaying a planned top-rate income tax reduction from 5.25 to 5%.  Mazzei cited lower-than-expected state revenue collections as the motivation for the bill, arguing that implementing the tax cut could lead to reduced funding for education and other state services. “As a fiscal conservative, I would much rather delay a tax cut than vote to increase taxes and start new taxes,” Mazzei said in a statement after the bill advanced out of the Senate Finance Committee.  The bill ultimately stalled after failing to receive a hearing in the full Senate.  Defending Trump The Claim: School Freedom Fund Oklahoma, a Washington, D.C.-based super PAC, has spent more than $3 million on television ads and mailers opposing Drummond. The group sent a series of mailers to Republican voters in August claiming that Drummond refused to defend President Donald Trump from impeachment.  The Facts: Drummond, who was elected attorney general in 2022, appeared before the U.S. House Homeland Security Committee on Jan. 10, 2024, to testify on border security and Oklahoma’s efforts to crack down on illicit marijuana grows.  During the hearing, former U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Democrat from California, asked Drummond and two other Republican attorneys general in attendance if they believed Trump’s 2019 impeachment was warranted. Drummond said, “It’s outside my lane. I’m just a simple attorney general from Oklahoma.”  Swalwell also asked the attorneys general if Trump should have been impeached in 2021 for incitement of an insurrection. Drummond said, “I don’t have an opinion on that matter.”  Backing State Farm The Claim: Drummond’s campaign aired a television advertisement claiming that Mazzei has sided with State Farm. An ongoing lawsuit alleges that State Farm systematically underpaid valid wind- and hail-damage claims from Oklahoma homeowners.  The Facts: There is no public record of Mazzei supporting State Farm, though he has criticized Drummond’s decision to sue the company.  In an interview with News on 6 in July, Mazzei said the lawsuits came too late and were politically motivated. He said a recent law change, which requires proposed insurance rate increases to be publicly posted and reviewed by the Oklahoma Insurance Department, will help slow premium rate increases.  Donations to Democrats  The Claim: Mazzei’s campaign has run ads claiming that Drummond has donated to at least 11 Oklahoma Democrats since 2004.  The Facts: Campaign finance records show Drummond occasionally supported Democratic candidates in the 2000s and 2010s.  Drummond’s most recent reported contribution to an Oklahoma Democratic candidate is $500 to Rep. John Waldron in 2017. However, most of his political contributions have gone to Republicans.  During the Aug. 3 GOP gubernatorial runoff debate, Drummond said he made the donations to bolster his business, Blue Sky Bank.  “Just like President Trump gave to Hillary Clinton and Kamala Harris, I’ve given money to colleagues who are in business with me,” Drummond said.  Federal Election Commission records show that Drummond donated $1,000 to Joe Biden’s presidential campaign. Drummond has said several times that his wife, Wendy, made the donation in error on a joint account and that it was promptly refunded. Documentation of the refund, processed on Sept. 8, 2020, was presented during the debate. Gender Transition Surgeries The Claim: The Mazzei campaign ran a television ad that claims Drummond refused to enforce a law banning gender transition surgeries for minors.  The Facts: On May 1, 2023, Gov. Kevin Stitt signed Senate Bill 613 into law. The law, among other provisions, prohibits Oklahoma health care providers from providing gender transition procedures to minors. It specifies that violators could face criminal charges and civil penalties.  One day later, the American Civil Liberties Union, ACLU of Oklahoma and Lambda Legal filed a lawsuit challenging the bill’s constitutionality. On May 18, 2023, the Oklahoma Attorney General’s Office agreed to a nonenforcement agreement while the challenge moved through the courts. In a statement, the attorney general’s office said the temporary delay was necessary to protect the state’s defense.  The attorney general’s office defended the law in the federal courts. In October 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Oklahoma upheld the law, allowing it to be enforced.  On Aug. 7, 2025, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit affirmed that decision. Drummond applauded the court’s decision in a press release the same day.  Inola Smelter  The Claim: Put Oklahoma 1st sent mailers to Republican voters alleging that Mazzei wants to use $1 billion of taxpayer money to build a foreign-owned aluminum smelter. The Facts: Last year, Oklahoma lawmakers passed House Bill 2781, which established a $255 million rebate program for Global Emirates Aluminum to build an aluminum smelter in Inola.  To qualify, the company must invest at least $2 billion in Oklahoma and create at least 700 direct jobs in the first year. That number increases to 1,000 jobs in the second year, which must be maintained through 2045 to receive the full incentive package.  The U.S. Department of Energy has also pledged $500 million toward the project. The proposed smelter is majority-foreign-owned, with Global Emirates Aluminum, a state-owned enterprise of the United Arab Emirates, holding a controlling 60% interest. Century Aluminum, a Chicago-based aluminum producer, has a 40% stake.  Mazzei was critical of the smelter project early on in his gubernatorial run, calling it a waste of tax dollars during a March 30 gubernatorial forum. He shifted his position in late May, saying he fully supported the project and its potential to bring jobs and industry to Oklahoma.  On June 2, Drummond filed a lawsuit in Rogers County District Court seeking to stop construction of the smelter, arguing that its emissions would harm nearby residents. The case was transferred to federal court on July 21, where it remains pending.  Keaton Ross covers democracy and criminal justice for Oklahoma Watch. Contact him at (405) 831-9753 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at @_KeatonRoss. The post Tax Hikes, Democrat Donations and Defending Trump: Fact-Checking Claims Made in Runoff Election Ads appeared first on Oklahoma Watch. ...read more read less