Wyoming

Early voters are lining up around Wyoming, outpacing primary turnout – WyoFile

Published

1 year ago

October 25, 2024

Early voters are lining up around Wyoming, outpacing primary turnout – WyoFile

Early voting for the general election is on pace to easily eclipse the scant primary-election turnout in Wyoming’s most populous counties.

Laramie County residents are even breaking early voting records.

“It’s phenomenal,” County Clerk Debra Lee said.

The primaries in August yielded the lowest statewide turnout since 2016. But now, Lee says, Laramie County residents are showing up in droves. More than 7,000 people had voted early in person there as of Monday, not including absentee ballots. The entire vote count for the primaries there was 18,554.

Early voting has been popular in Campbell County, too.

“It’s definitely busier than the primary was,” Election Coordinator Michelle Leiker said.

And while the rather long ballot has resulted in the occasional wait for voters, Leiker said the re-registration process has been the primary cause of slow downs.

“A lot of them missed the November 2022 election, and they didn’t respond back to the postcard that they received in the mail,” she said. “And so I had to purge about 8,000 people that were registered from the 2020 election.”

Campbell County started the year with about 12,000 registered voters, but that had already climbed to about 15,000 a week or two ago, Leiker said. That’s compared to 20,000 voters in 2020.

Sheridan County purged about 4,000 voters after the 2022 election, according to Election Supervisor James Temple. As of Wednesday, about 1,000 came back to re-register.

“So it has just been non-stop madness,” Temple said. “But so far, we’re holding our own. If we can just get through one more week, I think it’ll be a really good election.”

Lines and absentee ballots

In Albany County, early voting has attracted decently long lines, according to Election Coordinator Stacey Harvey, so get ready to wait if you show up during a high-traffic time of day.

Residents cast their vote at the Natrona County Elections Office on Oct. 14, 2024. (Dustin Bleizeffer/WyoFile)

“On a busy time, [it’s a] 20- to 30-minute wait, probably,” she said. “It’s been wild. It’s good, we like it.”

Beyond voting in person, Fremont County Clerk Julie Freese said absentee ballot data suggests they’re on track to eclipse absentee vote counts from 2016, but not the higher-turnout and absentee-heavy 2020 race. Primary numbers have already been eclipsed, she said.

She added that voters are still requesting absentee ballots, but they should be mindful that the ballots must be back to county offices by 7 p.m. on Election Day.

“We do still keep getting absentee requests, which is getting close to the time frame where it’s a little bit concerning,” Freese said on Monday.

The U.S. Postal Service recommends locals send in ballots at least seven days before the deadline, giving absentee ballot holders less than a week to mail it back in, or two weeks to bring it to a drop-box.

There’s been a bit of a slower start in Natrona County, Clerk Tracy Good said.

“I’m not gonna lie, last week, I was kind of like, ‘Where is everybody at?’” she said.

But it’s picking up this week, and she expects they’ll soon be processing around 800 people a day as the election nears.

All election staff WyoFile talked with felt confident about the number of election judges and volunteers they’ve been able to attract for the general election, even if there are still a few vacancies and some more training to do. In Sheridan County, Temple said he even plans to keep some of the judges on the clock to help enter voter registrations into the state system the day after the election — something he says they have 30 days to do.

“We’re hoping we can have them done in as little as five to six days this time,” he said.

To see what’s on your own ballot before heading to the polls, go to your local elections web page, or vote.org. To figure out where to cast your ballot, the Wyoming Secretary of State’s Office has also launched a new polling place locator on its website.

WyoFile’s election guide covers races for U.S. Congress and the Wyoming Legislature, as well as judicial retention and the proposed constitutional amendment.

BEFORE YOU GO… If you learned something from this article, pay it forward and contribute to WyoFile. Our work is funded by readers like you who are committed to unbiased journalism that works for you, not for the algorithms.

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Wyoming

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for $2.5M – WyoFile

Published

59 minutes ago

December 17, 2025

Press Room

University of Wyoming sues former energy research partner for .5M – WyoFile

The University of Wyoming filed a lawsuit this week seeking $2.5 million from an energy company it partnered with to research enhanced oil recovery.

The university in 2024 signed a contract with Houston-based ACU Energy to advance research at the university’s Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, according to the university’s complaint filed Monday in Wyoming’s U.S. District Court. ACU Energy agreed to pay the university $15 million over the six-year research period. The company, according to the complaint, was to pay the university $2.5 million annually with two payments each year.

While the university kept up its end of the bargain — by assembling a research team, training research members and incurring costs to modify laboratory space — ACU Energy “failed to pay the University even a cent owed under the Agreement, leaving $2,500,000 outstanding in unpaid invoices,” the complaint alleges.

ACU Energy did not respond to a WyoFile request for comment before publication.

Old Main, the University of Wyoming’s oldest building, is home to administrative offices. (Tennessee Watson/WyoFile)

The company notified the university in February that it was terminating the contract, and the university notified ACU Energy in May of its breach of contract, according to court filings. The university asked the court for a jury trial.

Enhanced oil recovery refers to methods used to squeeze more crude from reservoirs that have already been tapped for primary production, extending the life of an oilfield.

The university commonly accepts money from private businesses in return for lending resources and expertise to advance research. The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media is part of the university’s Research Centers of Excellence in the College of Engineering and Physical Sciences.

The Center of Innovation for Flow Through Porous Media, led by Mohammad Piri, a professor of petroleum engineering, bills itself as “the most advanced oil and gas research facility in the world.” The center conducts research at the university’s High Bay Research facility, which “is funded by $37.2 million in state dollars and $16.3 million in private contributions, with an additional $9.2 million in private gifts for research equipment,” according to the center’s website.

The center has received donations from oil industry heavyweights like ExxonMobil, Halliburton and Baker Hughes.

Piri was tapped to serve as “principal investigator” for the UW-ACU Energy partnership, according to the university’s complaint. As of press time, ACU Energy had not filed a response to the lawsuit.

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Wyoming

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Published

13 hours ago

December 16, 2025

Press Room

Search for fugitive wanted for child-sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

With a population under 600, Byron, Wyo., is generally a quiet town. In recent weeks, streets have been even quieter as both local and federal law enforcement search for 39-year-old fugitive Anthony Pease, who is wanted for six counts of sexual assault involving a minor.

Authorities have been searching the area for weeks, and a reward for information leading to an arrest now sits at $2,000.

See how the search impacts the town:

Search for fugitive wanted for child sex crimes leaves Wyoming town on alert

Saturday morning, law enforcement shared there was a confirmed sighting of Pease near town and reminded residents to remain vigilant by locking their doors and reporting suspicious activity. According to Wyoming’s Big Horn County Sheriff’s Office, before the weekend sighting, Pease hasn’t been seen since Nov. 1.

The Big Horn County Schools Superintendent, Matt Davidson, told MTN News a school resource officer on staff stays up to date with the latest on search efforts, and some parents say they’ve been keeping their kids indoors when they’re not at school.

As the search continues, the mayor as well as some residents, say they are taking law enforcement’s advice while keeping a watchful eye.

“I never used to lock my house during the day. I didn’t even lock my vehicles at night. In fact, a lot of the time I’d leave the keys in them. I’ve talked to other people and there is quite a few people that are nervous. I would hope that a lot of us are nervous because this is a bad thing,” said Byron Mayor Allan Clark.

In fact, investigators could be seen around Byron knocking on doors and scanning land outside of town.

“There’s just so much area and a low population, so much area for him to hide and seek shelter,” Clark said.

With so many wide-open spaces and abandoned buildings in the area, Clark understands why the search has gone on so long.

According to the US Marshals Service, Pease is 5 feet 11 inches tall and may also be going by the name Abraham. They also ask that anyone nearby who has a collection of silver dollars to ensure they are still there, and if not, to report to authorities.

Marshals say Pease is considered dangerous, and the public is told to not approach him and instead call 9-1-1. As the search has stretched over six weeks, many residents hope a capture will bring life back to normal.

“I hope that they capture him soon, and I hope that us as community members and around the area keep our eyes open and report anything suspicious,” said Clark.

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