Wyoming
Statewide candidates split on Wyoming GOP’s plans to defy state law and make endorsements
by Maggie Mullen, WyoFile
After the Wyoming GOP voted to defy a state law prohibiting the party from backing one Republican over another before the primary election, statewide candidates are split on whether they would accept such an endorsement.
Some told WyoFile they agree with the party’s decision and will seek out an endorsement, while others said they oppose a political party breaking election law. A few said they were taking a wait-and-see approach.
“Jury’s still out on this one for me,” Wyoming State Auditor Kristi Racines said Wednesday.
For years, the Wyoming Republican Party has argued that because it is a private organization, state laws that govern its organizational structure and prohibit it from endorsing or financially backing candidates in opposed primary election races are unconstitutional.
At its convention in Douglas last weekend, the party took things into its own hands, voting to adopt bylaws establishing a process for vetting, endorsing and spending money to support candidates ahead of the primary.
Supporters of the new bylaws point to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling from 1989, which struck down California’s ban on political party endorsements, ruling that the law violated the First Amendment’s guarantees of free speech and association. Opponents, meanwhile, raised concerns at the convention about the bylaws breaking the law, litigation costs and unintended consequences.
The new bylaws are widely expected to spark lawsuits, while the Wyoming Republican Party has said it plans to file its own legal challenge against the state.
In the meantime, the new bylaws lay out a process for evaluating candidates based on “commitment to the Wyoming Republican Party Platform, demonstrated loyalty to the Party’s principles, legal eligibility to hold office, and for incumbents, their voting record.”
The state party will consider candidates running for Wyoming’s state-elected officials — including governor, secretary of state, superintendent of public instruction, treasurer and auditor — as well as congressional candidates. Otherwise, county parties “may vet all other races on their respective County Ballots,” according to the new bylaws.
The state party, as well as each county party, “shall each create and oversee a Candidate Vetting Committee empowered to review and recommend approval or disapproval of candidates based on established criteria,” the bylaw states. “The Committee shall provide candidates an opportunity to respond to concerns prior to issuing a recommendation.”
Candidates
Brent Bien, who is running for governor, told WyoFile the bylaw changes are “a long time coming,” pointing back to the 1989 ruling.
“I think we just got to make sure we get those folks that truly believe on the Republican side of the equation, who truly believe in the platform and what Wyoming stands for,” Bien said. “And I just don’t think there’s been any enforcement mechanism to do that.”
At the convention, Bien was a clear favorite among many attendees who wore his campaign buttons and t-shirts. Still, Bien said he wouldn’t be surprised if he didn’t get the party’s endorsement.
“I didn’t get Trump’s endorsement,” Bien said. “And some of these legislators around the state, you know, they haven’t endorsed me.”
Bien’s take isn’t shared by all the gubernatorial candidates.
“Contested primaries should be decided by voters,” Gillette Sen. Eric Barlow wrote in a statement. “The role of the state party is to unite Republicans around shared values and help grow the party, not decide elections before voters have had their say.”
“Under current law, the state party should not choose sides in Republican primaries, and I will not ask them to start now,” he wrote. “My job,” running for governor, “is to earn the trust of Wyoming voters directly.”
At the convention, supporters of the bylaws said the party had tried to get the Legislature to change state statute. Barlow directly pushed back on that argument.
“As a legislator for the past 14 years, this issue has never come before us,” Barlow said. “If it had, it would have ensured all Wyomingites could weigh in and decisions would have been made openly and transparently — not in the courts and not a few months before an election.”
Secretary of State Chuck Gray, who is running for U.S. House, told WyoFile he supports the new bylaws.
“I will participate in the Party’s vetting process and will seek their support because I’m the only candidate in this race with a proven record of standing up for conservative principles — even when it wasn’t popular with the media and the insiders,” he wrote in a statement.
As secretary of state, Gray is Wyoming’s chief election officer and oversees statewide election administration. Asked if he wanted to comment in his official capacity on the Wyoming Republican Party’s decision to defy state law, Gray did not respond by publishing time.
U.S. House candidate David Giralt took a more cautious approach when asked for his opinion on the new bylaws.
“I trust Wyoming Republicans to make good decisions for our party, and I’ll let the process play out,” Giralt said. “I’m focused on getting in front of as many Wyoming voters as possible and making the case for why I’m the right person to represent this state in Congress.”
Kevin Christensen, another U.S. House candidate, said he wanted to see how fair, transparent and consistent the process played out before weighing in.
“The Wyoming people are the ones that make the determination in the primary, not the party,” he said. “That being said, if this is about supporting candidates and determining who is really a Republican and who’s just putting an ‘R’ next to their name, that seems like that would be consistent with being the Republican Party.”
Jillian Balow, yet another candidate for U.S. House and former superintendent of public instruction, said she “would be honored to accept an endorsement and money from the state party only if it is in accordance with Wyoming and federal law.”
“The contingency of our party at the convention knew the changes they made defied state law and they curtailed delegate discussion to pass new by-laws anyway,” Balow wrote in a statement. “Some delegates were appalled, some were gleeful, and many were silent, because they were silenced. This is not the way Wyoming does business.”
U.S. House candidate Reid Rasner also pushed back on the new bylaws.
“As a pro-Trump conservative, I always expected the political establishment to try and stop our campaign,” he wrote in a statement. “But, after making over 200 stops across our communities, one thing is clear: people are tired of the political games.”
Sheridan Republican Rep. Tom Kelly, who is running for superintendent, said while he opposes “the idea of parties having the power to disallow anyone from running under their banner,” he thinks “parties should be able to express publicly which people they would like to represent them.”
Though he’s not actively seeking endorsements, Kelly said he would accept support from the state party.
“Financial backing? Absolutely,” Kelly said. “Contrary to a popular false narrative, I have no wealthy D.C. donors bankrolling me.”
And if the party endorsed one of his opponents, Kelly said he would tell them, “Congrats. I should have done a better job presenting myself.”
WyoFile reached out to other statewide Republican candidates, including those running for governor, secretary of state, superintendent, U.S. House and U.S. Senate. They did not respond by publishing time.
This article was originally published by WyoFile and is republished here with permission. WyoFile is an independent nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.
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The 2026 Wyoming High School boys’ soccer season is close to its finish. Only three weeks remain. 4A teams will conclude the regular season, as they jockey for positions going into next week’s regional tournaments. Meanwhile, 3A schools have this week and next week left in the regular season. They are trying to reach the top four of the league standings, as those are the teams that qualify for the state tournament in two weeks.
WYOPREPS WEEK 8 BOYS SOCCER SCHEDULE 2026
Three matches this week feature ranked opponents squaring off. Sheridan will host Thunder Basin on Friday. In 3A on Saturday, top-ranked Cody is at No. 5 Mountain View, and four-rated Torrington goes to No. 2 Buffalo. Just like the ladies, you have some rivalry matches on the schedule with Rock Springs-Green River, Jackson-Star Valley, and Thunder Basin-Campbell County. Wednesday will bring new soccer rankings. This is the boys’ schedule for Week 8. Schedules are subject to change.
TUESDAY, MAY 5:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: #2 Sheridan 2 Campbell County 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Riverton 3 Natrona County 1 (conference match)
CLASS 3A
Pinedale at Rawlins – postponed to May 11 – changed to May 9 for boys’ match only!
WEDNESDAY, MAY 6:
CLASS 4A
Laramie at Cheyenne Central – postponed to May 9
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East – postponed to May 9
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WyoPreps Week 6 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
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WyoPreps Boys Soccer Standings on 4-20-26
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WyoPreps Week 4 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
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WyoPreps Week 1 Boys Soccer Scores 2026
THURSDAY, MAY 7:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: #1 Jackson 8 Star Valley 2 (conference match)
Final Score: #4 Thunder Basin 3 Campbell County 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Rock Springs 2 #5 Green River 1 (conference match)
FRIDAY, MAY 8:
CLASS 4A
Final Score: Cheyenne Central 6 Cheyenne South 0 (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Sheridan 3 #4 Thunder Basin 1 (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Kelly Walsh 6 Riverton 0 (conference match)
Final Score: Laramie 3 Cheyenne East 1 (conference match)
Final Score: Evanston 2 Natrona County 2 – TIE (conference match) – Red Devils scored with 1 second left for the draw.
CLASS 3A
Final Score: #4 Worland 1 Rawlins 0 (conference match) – Kobe Bradshaw scored the GW goal on a PK in the 1st half.
Final Score: Douglas 2 Torrington 2 (conference match) – Shootout = Torrington wins 4-3!
Final Score: #1 Cody Lyman (conference match)
Final Score: #2 Lander 3 Pinedale 0 (conference match)
Final Score: Powell 1 #5 Mountain View 0 (conference match) – Gianrey Dallesandro with the GW-goal, assisted by Ethan Frame.
Final Score: #3 Buffalo 1 Newcastle 0 (conference match) – forfeit win for the Bison.
SATURDAY, MAY 9:
CLASS 4A
Laramie at Cheyenne Central, 11 a.m. (conference match)
Evanston at #2 Kelly Walsh, noon (conference match)
Cheyenne South at Cheyenne East, noon (conference match)
Riverton at Natrona County, noon (conference match)
Rock Springs at Star Valley, 1 p.m. (conference match)
CLASS 3A
Pinedale at Rawlins, 11 a.m.
#1 Cody at #5 Mountain View, noon (conference match)
Powell at Lyman, noon (conference match)
Torrington at #3 Buffalo, 2 p.m. (conference match)
#4 Worland at Douglas, 2 p.m. (conference match)
Final Score: Rawlins 1 Newcastle 0 (conference match) – forfeit win for the Outlaws.
Cheyenne Central vs. Cheyenne East HS Softball 2026
The Indians faced the rival Thunderbirds on April 15, 2026
Gallery Credit: David Settle, WyoPreps.com
James Forest Mothersbaugh Jr.: 1953 – 2025
James “Jim” Forest Mothersbaugh Jr. passed away on Saturday, December 6, 2025 at Central Wyoming Hospice in Casper, Wyoming, from complications of Multiple System Atrophy. He is survived by his wife, Becky Mothersbaugh; his sons, James Forest Mothersbaugh III and Blair Mothersbaugh; and Blair’s fiancée, Kelsey Baron.
Jim’s life was defined by music. He was a highly accomplished violinist, performing with the Orquesta Sinfonica de Puerto Rico, Wyoming Symphony Orchestra, and Savannah Symphony, among many others. He held degrees in violin performance, music education, and conducting from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio, and the Hartt School of Music in Hartford, Connecticut, with additional doctoral studies at the University of Iowa. He met his wife when they were both performing in San Juan, Puerto Rico, and passed his musical acumen to both of his sons. Jim taught orchestra and music theory to generations of students of all ages & abilities during his 28 years in the Natrona County School District. He conducted award-winning orchestras, taught students who went on to become professional musicians, and instilled a sense of purpose, character, and belief in both his students and colleagues that extended far beyond the stage. He was also an expert in the craft of re-hairing bows for string instruments, knew everything there is to know about The Beatles, and possessed a rare ability called synesthesia, which allowed him to see specific colors when hearing music. He leaves an extensive, enduring, and active legacy in the Wyoming musical community.
Jim will be immensely missed by his family, his friends, his colleagues, and his students. A celebration of life will take place at Backwards Distilling Company in Casper, Wyoming on June 28, 2026 from 2 to 5 p.m. Please RSVP at https://jimsmemorial.rsvpify.com/.
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