Primary race winners look ahead to general election

Aug. 18—CHEYENNE — As the dust settled the morning after candidates prevailed in primary races, they looked ahead to the general election.

There are three key races at the state level that will decide whether Republican political leaders will remain in power, and seven local races in Laramie County where Democratic candidates have the opportunity to win an office. The winners of the Cheyenne City Council nonpartisan races will also move forward to the general election in order for voters to choose one member in each ward.

The general election will take place on Nov. 8.

U.S. House: Hageman v. GreyBull

Former President Donald Trump backed the winner of the U.S. House Republican primary race, Harriet Hageman, and his support paid off.

Incumbent Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo, was defeated by a landslide. She received only 49,316 votes, as reported in the Wyoming Secretary of State's unofficial summary, while Hageman was victorious with 113,025.

"Congratulations to Harriet Hageman on her great and very decisive WIN in Wyoming," Trump wrote on TRUTH Social following the win. "This is a wonderful result for America, and a complete rebuke of the Unselect Committee of political Hacks and Thugs."

The three other contenders came nowhere near the two rivals in the U.S. House race. Sen. Anthony Bouchard, R-Cheyenne, received the third-highest number of votes at 4,505, Denton Knapp came in fourth with 2,258 votes, and Robyn Belinskey was last at 1,305.

Lynette GreyBull won the Democratic primary election against two competitors for the sole U.S. House seat, and will face Hageman. She received 4,503 votes, while Meghan Jensen and Steve Helling brought in less than 3,000 votes combined.

Constitution Party candidate Marissa Selvig and registered independent candidate Casey Hardison are also set to be on the November U.S. House ballot.

Governor: Gordon v. Livingston

The Republican incumbent, Gov. Mark Gordon, easily won his primary race. He defeated three challengers with 101,092 votes, and told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle he will keep working for constituents' support heading into the general election.

"We take nothing for granted," Gordon said in a phone call from his election party in Buffalo. "I've always fought for every election, that's just the way Jennie and I are. We want to make sure that we do the best job we can."

Rival Brent Bien received less than half of the votes Gordon did, managing to secure 48,549. He was followed by Rex Rammell with 9,373, and James Scott Quick with 4,725 across the state's 23 counties

Theresa Livingston achieved success in the Democratic primary, and brought in 4,989 voters. She defeated Rex Wilde, who received 2,016. There were 214 write-ins.

She's said Wednesday she's looking forward to competing with Gordon for Wyoming votes on Nov. 8.

"It's going to be a good election," she told the WTE. "I hope it's really positive. I want people to talk about what they're going to do instead of bad-mouthing other candidates."

State Superintendent: Degenfelder v. Maldonado

Despite Gordon's success, another Republican incumbent at the state level fell to a challenger in the primary. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Brian Schroeder lost less than a year after he was appointed by the governor, and the difference was fewer than 4,000 votes.

Megan Degenfelder won the primary election with 59,301 votes, and Schroeder fell short with 55,746.

"It's just so humbling, realizing all of the support that we received across the state," Degenfelder told the WTE on Wednesday. "We had hundreds of individual donors, 90% of which were based in Wyoming, and just dozens of volunteers and folks around the state."

She said it was amazing to see the grassroots effort come to fruition, and she plans to keep the momentum going as the general election approaches. Degenfelder is set to run against the sole Democratic candidate for state superintendent, Sergio Maldonado Sr.

Robert White III and Jennifer Zerba were also vying for the position in the Wyoming Department of Education, but received only 4,392 and 13,656 votes, respectively, in the GOP primary.

Other statewide races

While Republican state secretary and state treasurer candidates who won Tuesday night will not face Democrats on Nov. 8, there were notable successes by two Trump-endorsed candidates.

State Rep. Chuck Gray, R-Casper, defeated his rival, Sen. Tara Nethercott, R-Cheyenne, in the Secretary of State race with 75,938 votes. She received 63,044, but it was not enough to head into the general election. They were both campaigning for the seat along with Mark Armstrong, who received 14,292 votes.

Gray took to Twitter the day after the election and thanked the people of Wyoming for their support.

"I am honored and humbled by our victory last night," he wrote. "This is the people of Wyoming's victory. Thank you to those who voted yesterday and made their voices known."

Incumbent Curt Meier took home a win in the state treasurer's race. His 97,489 votes bested Bill Gallop's 40,643.

Senate District 5: Hutchings v. Hanlon

Neither incumbent state Sen. Lynn, Hutchings, R-Cheyenne, nor Democratic challenger Ted Hanlon faced opponents in the primary election. They will face one another in the general election for the seat in Senate District 5.

Senate District 7: Pappas v. Kindred

Wyoming Guard veteran Rachel Bennett and former City Council candidate JC Manalo were hoping to unseat Sen. Stephan Pappas, R-Cheyenne, in the Republican primary, but were unsuccessful. Pappas coasted into the general election with 2,199 votes, followed by Bennett with 1,283 and Manalo with 717.

Pappas is up against Democratic candidate Marcie Kindred, who launched her campaign officially the morning after the primary.

"In Wyoming, we like our taverns local. While we are grateful for the service Pappas has given to our community, decisions are made by the people that show up," she said in a statement. "There is no substitute for presence. He made a promise to represent the people of SD 7, and he has failed to deliver on that promise. With our current political climate, we need leaders who are committed to this district and show up to advocate for the needs of their constituents."

House District 7: Nicholas v. Evans

Prior to redistricting, Rep. Bob Nicholas, R-Cheyenne, served in House District 8 since 2011. He decided to run against Nick Coppinger in House District 7 in order to be re-elected to the Wyoming Legislature, and he succeeded. Nicholas received 1,514 votes, and Coppinger earned 1,150.

In the general election, Nicholas will compete for votes with Democratic candidate Jordan Evans.

House District 9: Brown v. Latham

Rep. Landon Brown, R-Cheyenne, faced harsh campaigns from both Dean Petersen and Alan Sheldon in an effort to remove him from office. He was criticized for being a RINO (Republican In Name Only), as well as for applauding Cheney in her investigation of the Jan. 6, 2021 Capitol riots.

Although he was attacked throughout the weeks leading up to the election, his constituents came out in support. He won with 1,192 votes, while Sheldon received 545 and Petersen 489.

His success moved him forward to the general election, where is challenger will be Democratic candidate Stephen Latham.

House District 11: Olsen v. Herman

The only Democratic primary race in Laramie County resulted in a win for current Laramie County School District 1 trustee Marguerite Herman. She defeated former House District 11 state representative Jim Byrd with 162 votes. Byrd received 90.

This seat is held by incumbent Rep. Jared Olsen, R-Cheyenne, who was the sole Republican candidate in the primary race.

House District 44: Trujillo v. Burlingame

The only Republican incumbent taken down in local legislative races was Rep. John Romero-Martinez. He lost to Tamara Trujillo, who the incumbent said he endorsed officially the day after the election.

Trujillo received 404 votes, while Romero-Martinez had 293. Michael Reyes was the other Republican vying for the seat, and he got 261 votes.

Trujillo will face Democratic candidate Sara Burlingame, who previously held the seat before she lost to Romero-Martinez in 2020.

"I have a pretty good chance of winning," said Trujillo. "I feel when I entered the race in May, I entered it with expectations to win all the way through November."

Other Laramie County legislative seats

Among the winners Tuesday who won't face general election challengers were: Republican Evie Brennan in SD 31, Republican Jeremy Haroldson in HD 4 (uncontested), Republican Dave Zwonitzer in HD 8, Republican incumbent John Eklund in HD 10, Republican incumbent Clarence Styvar in HB 12, Republican incumbent Bill Henderson in HD 41 (uncontested), Republican Ben Hornok in HD 42, Republican incumbent Dan Zwonitzer in HD 43 and Republican Daniel Singh in HD 61.

Laramie County sheriff

Former Cheyenne Police Chief Brian Kozak came out on top of the Republican primary for Laramie County sheriff with 9,370 votes. Don Hollingshead came in second with 8,463, and Boyd Wrede finished with 6,038.

There was no incumbent to challenge, since Laramie County Sheriff Danny Glick announced he would not seek re-election.

Kozak moves on to face two registered candidates in the general election. Jess Fresquez is running as a Democrat, and Jeff Barnes is campaigning as an independent.

County commissioners

Since there are no Democratic challengers to the Republican primary winners in the county commissioners race, incumbents remained successful in keeping their three seats.

Gunnar Malm received 12,536 votes, Troy Thompson received 12,305, and Linda Heath won another term with 10,171.

The current office holders faced four other Republicans in the primary. Bryce Freeman followed Heath with 7,424 votes, Brian Casey had 6,332, Abbie Mildenberger got 6,024 and Sam Eliopoulos finished with 5,302.

Cheyenne City Council

City Council races are nonpartisan, but if there are more than two candidates in a race for a seat, an election takes place during the primary. This was the case in two out of three wards, with incumbents moving forward in both.

Ward 1 council member Scott Roybal received the most votes at 2,010, and Cameron Karajanis received the second-largest amount with 1,176. They both defeated Michael Blakeley in the primary, and will compete for the Ward 1 seat in the general election.

Mark Rinne, one of the longest-serving City Council members ever, will face Lynn Storey-Huylar in the Ward 2 general election race. Rinne received 2,956 votes, while Storey-Huylar received 1,787. The other contenders, Matt Miller and Brian Eicholtz, lost with 1,203 and 796 votes, respectively.

Incumbent Ken Esquibel in Ward 3 did not have to campaign in the primary election. He automatically moved forward in the general election along with Joe Shogrin.

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.

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.