Laramie County GOP elects new leaders

Mar. 18—CHEYENNE — Laramie County Republicans remained focused on unity as precinct committee members voted Saturday morning on new leadership.

Nearly all the speeches given by nominees were on the division not just between the county party and the Wyoming GOP, but within the Laramie County GOP itself. Many wanted to move forward together, fundraise and build up strong support for Republican candidates in future elections — whether that be as executive committee chairman or state committeewoman.

"Our party is somewhat divided, and we need to fundraise. We need to create excitement, and we need to get the youth involved," said Taft Love, the new chairman following two-term leader Dani Olsen. "We need to realign with the state party and somehow bridge the gap that has been created.

"And as a fresh face with new ideas and new thought processes, I hope I can bring that to our county party and to our state party."

Love was among three candidates for the top leadership position, along with Central Committee member Stacy Leach and non-member Nancy Mahrle. Love received 130 votes, Leach had 30, and Mahrle got two votes.

The new chairman was confident that if the Laramie County GOP works as a unit, they could have a place in the next state convention and push forward candidates who represent the party platform and Wyoming values.

Although Love replaced a two-term incumbent as chairman, older leadership wasn't pushed out completely.

Vice chairman Nathan Winters remained in his post, as he won the reelection over Pat Lucas. Winters received 133 votes, while Lucas had 59 ballots cast for him. Winters was not present for the election because he was out of town for a work trip, but he had committee precinctman Sam Galeotos read a speech in his absence.

The vice chairman said relationships are at the core of what will move their political party into the future.

"That is why, two years ago, I spoke to the fact that in the realm of politics, principles must always come before party — but I also stated that party is vital to ensuring that our principles gain the voice necessary to win the day," he said in the statement. "Our party is at the heart of the relationship that can continue to drive Wyoming forward as the bastion of intellectually muscular conservatism in the Rocky Mountains."

Winters said he believes that there is a new flavor of "old Marxist theory" creeping up everywhere he turns and much darkness, yet he said there are still men and women who are willing to defend the foundational truths that made America a beacon of freedom in world history.

He said there are still men and women who conserve the light of freedom received from their fathers.

"Laramie County is on the front lines of a fight to conserve the historic principles of conservatism in Wyoming," he concluded. "That means that we must hold together, fight together, struggle alongside one another, rather than fight against one another."

A message of fixing the division in the Wyoming Republican Central Committee and throughout the party carried into other speeches. Former Vice Chairwoman Connie Czarcheci from 2019 said there was a sadness in her heart when she came back and learned of the partitioning among members.

She won the election against Kathy Scigliano and Stacey Young with 121 votes, and said she would learn by listening to committee members and would be honored to serve again. Scigliano was runner-up with 43 votes, and Young received 29.

Dallas Tyrrell won with close to the same amount of votes for the position of state committeeman. He received 124 votes, while Don Odom had 69.

Departing Laramie County GOP Chairwoman Dani Olsen kept a position on the executive committee and was among four incumbents who will be staying. A total of 127 committee precinct members voted for her to become the state committeewoman, and 62 voted for her challenger, Ann Lucas.

Olsen spoke to the party's success in recent years, such as turning Laramie County entirely red for the first time in history in 2020. She said those who claim the Laramie County GOP has been ineffective in the past few years are "utterly incorrect, and undermines the hard work that all of you put in as a Central Committee."

"I joined the party not with demands that this long-established and successful organization needed to be changed. Instead, I got involved with the party to find ways I could support it," she said.

Following the election of Olsen to the state committeewoman position, she was joined by two other executive committee members who have served in the past year.

Kylie Dorr will move from vice chairwoman to secretary for the Laramie County Republican Party. She defeated Joan Schaefer Poach with 127 votes, while the non-Central Committee member received 50. Treasurer Teresa Kunkel didn't face an opponent in the election and will continue to serve after she was nominated again from the floor.

"I look forward to working with each and every one of you," said newly elected Chairman Love in his concluding remarks. "I'm hoping we can open a new door, turn the page and move forward together."

Jasmine Hall is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's state government reporter. She can be reached by email at jhall@wyomingnews.com or by phone at 307-633-3167. Follow her on Twitter @jasminerhphotos and on Instagram @jhrose25.