Wyoming

Wyoming’s ties to super PAC suspected of helping GOP by spending big on long-shot Dems – WyoFile

Published

2 months ago

May 22, 2026

Wyoming’s ties to super PAC suspected of helping GOP by spending big on long-shot Dems – WyoFile

What do more than $3 million in political advertisements, a left-wing Texan sex therapist running for Congress and a Wyoming business have in common?

All have ties to a newly formed super PAC making national headlines for appearing to boost long-shot Democratic congressional candidates in midterm primary elections to ease the way for Republican victories in November’s general election.

In the last two weeks, Lead Left PAC has reported spending more than $3 million on political ads in the battleground states of Nebraska, Pennsylvania and Texas, Federal Election Commission records show. It’s not clear who the political action committee’s donors are, but it’s spent big on advertising with a recently created Wyoming company.

Some of the PAC’s ads have backed Maureen Galindo, a congressional candidate in Texas whose party leadership has condemned her for making antisemitic comments. Galindo faces Johnny Garcia in the runoff for the Democratic nomination in the state’s 35th Congressional District, which is located in the San Antonio area. The district was redrawn by Texas Republicans to boost their party’s chances of holding onto the seat in this year’s midterms.

Still, despite redistricting, Democrats believe the seat could remain competitive if their party has a strong year politically, and they’re eager to avoid being saddled with a candidate’s inflammatory rhetoric.

So, who’s backing Lead Left with heaps of money? FEC records don’t say. The PAC was created recently enough that it has not yet had to disclose any of its donors. In the meantime, Democrats are crying foul, accusing Republicans of bankrolling Lead Left to meddle in their primary elections. The New York Times reported evidence of such potential links earlier this month.

The PAC’s website — set against Wyoming’s most famous mountain range — bills itself as “against MAGA extremists who will infect our country with Donald Trump’s agenda.”

One paper trail, however, ties the PAC’s spending directly to Piruzi LLC, a newly registered Wyoming business.

Since May 7, Lead Left has reported 11 independent expenditures with the FEC, totalling more than $3 million in ads. All but two of those reports indicate the PAC paid Piruzi LLC for media production and placements, as well as printing and mailing political advertisements.

Wyoming Secretary of State records indicate that Piruzi filed to become a limited liability company on April 10. Piruzi’s filings list a Cheyenne address and Tammie Cannon as the LLC’s organizer, along with a phone number and email for Paracorp Incorporated, a nationwide registered agent company. Reached by phone Thursday, two representatives for Paracorp told WyoFile it did not employ a Tammie Cannon but offered to forward a message to the owners of Piruzi.

Wyoming’s business regulations provide a high degree of privacy as the law does not require a company to disclose its members or managers, effectively allowing the owner to remain anonymous to the public. The laws have helped produce the “cowboy cocktail,” a sophisticated wealth-protection strategy that combines the privacy of LLC ownership with a Wyoming trust. The state has also become a popular jurisdiction for shell companies, which are inactive legal entities with no significant assets.

Shell companies are sometimes used as vehicles for illicit activity, which is what the Campaign Legal Center, a nonpartisan DC-based nonprofit, argues in a FEC complaint filed May 14 against Lead Left PAC.

“In addition to strategically gaming federal reporting deadlines to avoid disclosing the sources of its election spending, Lead Left also appears to have violated federal campaign finance laws requiring full transparency about the recipients of that spending,” the complaint states. “Specifically, by funneling all of its spending on political ads through two newly formed companies that are almost certainly not the ultimate recipients of those funds, Lead Left appears to have violated federal reporting requirements.” (Emphasis in the complaint.)

The other LLC named by Lead Left in its filings is OTG Media, which was incorporated in Virginia on April 29, according to the state records.

In “using these apparent shell companies as opaque clearinghouses to conceal who is actually being paid to provide it with goods and services, Lead Left PAC has unlawfully denied voters crucial information about how it is spending the money,” the complaint states.

The FEC is unlikely to take swift, material action on the complaint, according to news site NOTUS, because the agency has gone more than a year without the required number of commissioners to formalize investigations or penalize campaign-finance scofflaws.

Meanwhile, shadowy PACs have become more common in contemporary campaigns, including some in the Mountain West. One political action committee in Montana has fueled speculation after it sent out ads on behalf of underdog Democrats, Montana Free Press reported earlier this month.

The Wyoming Secretary of State’s Office did not respond to WyoFile’s request for comment by publishing time.

The email address provided by Lead Left PAC in its FEC filings bounced back an email Thursday when WyoFile reached out for comment.

Reporting contributed by The Associated Press. Mike Catalani reported from New Jersey.

Source link

Wyoming

NWSR issues Flood Watch advisory for portions of Central, Northwest Wyoming

Published

5 hours ago

July 17, 2026

Press Room

NWSR issues Flood Watch advisory for portions of Central, Northwest Wyoming

The National Weather Service in Riverton has issued a Flood Watch advisory for portions of central and northwest Wyoming, including Owl Creek, the Bridger Mountains, the Southwest Bighorn Basin, the Absaroka Mountains, and the Cody Foothills. This includes the cities of Cody, Thermopolis, Meeteetse, and Clark, and many areas near or partially in Fremont County. […]

Source link

Wyoming

Wyoming Rodeo Stars Set for National High School Finals

Published

17 hours ago

July 16, 2026

Press Room

Wyoming Rodeo Stars Set for National High School Finals

The 78th National High School Finals Rodeo (NHSFR) starts on Sunday, July 19, in Lincoln, Nebraska, and goes through Saturday, July 25, 2026. There are 12 rodeo performances across the seven days, with six in the first round and six in the second round. The top 20 cowboys and cowgirls return to the championship short round at 7 p.m. on Saturday, July 25. Wyoming has 51 contestants competing across the 13 rodeo events, plus light rifle and trap shooting.

WYOMING RODEO ATHLETES OPEN COMPETITION AT NHSFR

Yoder’s Hadley Thompson was the All-Around Cowgirl at the 2025 NHSFR. She won national titles in the breakaway roping and goat last year in Rock Springs. Wyoming finished 11th in the team standings last year with 3,750.00 team points. The Cowboy State’s girls placed sixth, and the boys were 25th. Thompson also had the AQHA Horse of the Year for Cowgirls in CD Smokin Miss Kitty. Emeree Tavegie was sixth in pole bending.

The daily rodeo performances are at 9 a.m. and 7 p.m. The first go ends after Wednesday morning’s performance, while the second go ends after Saturday morning’s performance.

Wyoming State High School Finals Rodeo Results & NHSFR Qualifiers 2026

Wyoming’s contestants and events with their draw

Ryley Alameda – Reined Cow Horse (Mon AM, Thurs PM)

Wade Asay – Reined Cow Horse (Tues PM, Wed AM)

Claire Bilek – Girls Cutting (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Kolton Bonenberger – Bull Riding (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Jace Bowles – Team Roping (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Cooper Brownlee – Shooting Rifle and Shooting Trap

Blue Butler – Breakaway Roping (Mon AM, Fri PM); Goat Tying (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Kolbe Chant – Tie-Down Roping (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Heston Crozier – Shooting Trap

Blake Cushman – Pole Bending (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Karly Davis – Barrel Racing (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Teague Duncan – Saddle Bronc (Tues PM, Thurs AM)

Memphis Erdman – Shooting Rifle

Hays Espenscheid – Team Roping (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Kendrie Ewing – Barrel Racing (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Ellie Feathers – Shooting Rifle

Kashley Fornstrom – Barrel Racing (Tues PM, Thurs AM)

Kade Fraley – Saddle Bronc (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Landon Gold – Team Roping (Sun PM, Sat AM); Steer Wrestling (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Teague Goodman – Steer Wrestling (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Tanner Griemsman – Team Roping (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Cody Hayden – Boys Cutting (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Rhame Hicks – Goat Tying (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Stone Hooten – Shooting Trap

Coe Hornbuckle – Barrel Racing (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Carter Hutchison – Steer Wrestling (Tues PM, Thurs AM); Tie-Down Roping (Sun PM, Sat AM); Reined Cow Horse (Mon AM, Thurs AM)

Kress Johnson – Team Roping (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Taylor Kimzey – Shooting Rifle

Emma Martin – Pole Bending (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Bella Martinson – Breakaway Roping (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Anna McQueeney – Girls Cutting (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Raden Miller – Steer Wrestling (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Taten Mills – Team Roping (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Owen Monfeldt – Bull Riding (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Ashtyn Noland – Reined Cow Horse (Mon PM, Thurs AM)

Keon Norris – Bareback Riding (Tues PM, Thurs AM)

Riggin Pearce – Bull Riding (Tues PM, Thurs AM)

Bridger Peil – Tie-Down Roping (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Karly Peterson – Girls Cutting (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Nathan Peterson – Boys Cutting (Tues PM, Thurs AM)

Trenton Rogers – Bareback Riding (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Rickie Jo Rourke – Goat Tying (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Tuf Scarborough – Saddle Bronc (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Ty Scarborough – Saddle Bronc (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Stetson St. Clair – Bull Riding (Wed AM, Wed PM); Team Roping (Sun PM, Sat AM)

Whitney Tarver – Team Roping (Mon PM, Fri AM)

Emeree Tavegie – Pole Bending (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Dylan Thar – Breakaway Roping (Tues AM, Thurs PM)

Hadley Thompson – Breakaway Roping (Mon AM, Fri PM); Pole Bending (Tues PM, Thurs AM); Goat Tying (Wed AM, Wed PM)

Cruz Viles – Team Roping (Mon AM, Fri PM)

Tuf Weber – Shooting Trap

The Light Rifle competition is on Tuesday, July 21, and the Short Go is on Wednesday, July 22 at 1:30 p.m. The Trap Shooting competition is on Thursday, July 23, and the Short Go is on Friday, July 24 at 8 a.m. The Reined Cow Horse event will start on Monday, July 20, and go through Thursday, July 23, each day at 8 a.m. and 6 p.m. The Reined Cow Horse Championship Short Go is on Friday at 4 p.m. The Cutting Events start on Sunday at 7 p.m., then will run at 9 a.m. from Monday through Friday. The 12th Cutting performance is Saturday, July 25 at 8 a.m. The Cutting Championship Short Go is on Saturday at 2 p.m.