With the primary just days away, the four leading Republican candidates for Oklahoma governor squared off in a fiery televised debate, trading pointed criticism on the issues and with one another. The contenders, Gentner Drummond, Mike Mazzei, Chip Keating and Charles McCall, used the prime-time stage to draw contrasts and to land blows in a race that has tightened in its final stretch.
Aired on News 9 as part of the final push to primary day, the debate pressed the candidates on a wide range of tough topics. They were asked about everything from education and tax cuts to the future of data centers in the state, as well as the politically charged question of the president's endorsement, with each candidate seeking to position himself as the strongest choice for Republican voters.
Much of the heat centered on Gentner Drummond. A rival went after him for being generally opposed to the president and for having donated to Joe Biden in the past, an attack Drummond firmly rejected. He pushed back directly, telling his opponent to his face that the claim was a lie, in one of the night's more combative moments.
The exchanges quickly turned personal. At one point, a candidate told a rival to stop bringing his wife into the dispute, only for the other to insist that he had never mentioned her at all. The back-and-forth captured just how combative the contest has become as the candidates make their closing arguments to voters.
Policy clashes flared as well, including a sharp disagreement over plans for an aluminum smelter. Mike Mazzei voiced his support for the project, while Drummond, who currently serves as the state's attorney general, has taken legal action connected to it, leaving the two men on opposite sides of a high-profile economic issue.
With four well-known names on the ballot, the debate gave voters a last side-by-side look at the field before they head to the polls. The Republican primary is set for June 16, and the heated tone of the night underscored just how closely fought the race for the party's nomination has become.