Trump-Backed Aluminum Smelter Divides Oklahoma Republicans Ahead of Runoff
A proposed $4 billion aluminum smelter in Inola, Oklahoma, backed by President Trump, has become the central issue in the August 25 Republican primary runoff for Oklahoma governor, splitting the party's two remaining candidates just before the vote.
Attorney General Gentner Drummond and former state Sen. Mike Mazrei advanced to the runoff after defeating seven other candidates in the June 16 primary. The two met in their final debate before the runoff as the smelter fight dominated the race's closing days.
Drummond filed a legal motion to stop construction of the smelter, which would be built at the Port of Inola in northeast Oklahoma. The project is an investment from Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), a company based in the United Arab Emirates. It would be the largest single-project investment in Oklahoma history, projected to create 1,000 direct jobs and 1,800 indirect jobs. It would also be the Western Hemisphere's largest source of aluminum.
The town of Inola paused the proposed smelter in June after weighing resident concerns, according to KOSU.
Trump attacked Drummond directly on August 18, calling him a "fake Republican" and criticizing his opposition to the smelter. The president's involvement brought a national dimension into what had been a state-level policy dispute between the two GOP candidates.
Mazzei and Drummond hold opposing positions on the project. The smelter's economic promise and the president's backing cut against Drummond's legal effort to stop construction, while local opposition in Inola complicates the pro-development case.
The project was announced in May 2025, when Gov. Kevin Stitt hailed the EGA investment. Oklahoma's Department of Commerce promoted the smelter as a landmark economic development win. At the time, it drew bipartisan enthusiasm. The dynamic shifted as residents raised environmental and land-use concerns, leading to the June 2026 pause.
A new poll showed a statistical dead heat in the Republican governor race around the time the smelter injunction news broke, adding to the volatility of the runoff's final days.
The broader context here is a Republican primary where a Trump-endorsed economic development project has become a liability rather than an asset for the candidate perceived as aligned with the White House. Drummond's motion to halt construction positioned him against both the president and the state's own commerce department, while Mazzei's support for the project places him with Trump but against local residents who pressured Inola officials to pause.
For GOP operatives watching Oklahoma, the race tests whether a Trump-backed industrial project can overcome grassroots resistance in a deep-red state. The smelter's fate now appears tied less to its economic merits and more to which Republican candidate survives the runoff. The outcome could determine whether construction proceeds, gets blocked, or enters a prolonged legal and regulatory limbo.
