When lawmakers gavel in for the 69th Wyoming Legislature this January in Cheyenne, there will be new faces in the House and the Senate. Voters will decide just how many when they cast ballots in the Aug. 18 primary election.
All House districts are on the ballot this year alongside about half of the Senate. Sixty-one of the 79 districts up for election are contested. Out of those contested seats, 35 races will soon be determined by voters. The rest will be decided in the general election.
WyoFile has highlighted several statehouse races including a House rematch between a Natrona County incumbent and an ousted lawmaker, a race defined by nuclear energy, a former House speaker seeking another term and a Senate showdown between two Crook County ranchers that symbolizes the Republican divide in the statehouse. Those races also represent a larger, pressing question looming over the 2026 election — will voters give the Wyoming Freedom Caucus more power in Cheyenne?
After most of its top legislative goals failed this year, the caucus, which bills itself as the genuine conservative voice of the state, will attempt to bolster its majority in the House and win control of the Senate. That could have major policy implications, including how institutions like the University of Wyoming and the Wyoming Business Council are funded in the future.
Here are some of the races that will determine their success.
The House
The caucus got its start in the House in 2020 before Gillette Republican Rep. John Bear led the group to secure the lower chamber’s majority in 2024. Bear, a Navy veteran, is now running for his fourth term in House District 31, which encompasses Gillette’s eastern flank.
As chair of the House Appropriations Committee, Bear led the charge on taking inspiration from the Trump administration’s efforts to cut federal jobs and spending by “DOGE-ing” Wyoming’s budget. Bear proposed a budget that included major cuts to the Wyoming Business Council, Wyoming Public Media, the University of Wyoming and the Department of Health.
The Legislature ultimately rejected that proposal — approving instead a budget that included 99% of the recommendations by Gov. Mark Gordon, a frequent Freedom Caucus foil. Bear declared victory nonetheless, according to the Gillette News Record.
“Had we not pulled back on the reins, what would the spending have been? I think we did a good job at slowing down the growth of the government,” Bear said at a lawmaker event in Gillette.
Douglas Moore, a longtime energy industry manager, is challenging Bear for the Republican nomination.
“Campbell County needs a representative who understands how state and federal policies directly impact the families working in our pits, on our ranches, and in our small businesses,” Moore told County 17 in June. “I’m ready to bring that practical, results-driven approach to Cheyenne to protect our way of life.”
Dave Hardesty, an educator and veteran, is seeking signatures to appear as an independent candidate for House District 31 on the general election ballot.
In Casper, Republican Rep. Tony Locke, an engineer, is seeking his third term for House District 35. The race represents another Natrona County rematch as Chris Dresang, a public school administrator, is also running for the Republican nomination. Locke, a Freedom Caucus ally, beat Dresang in 2024 with 54.4% of the vote.
During his time in the Legislature, Locke has served as chairman of the House Revenue Committee and championed property tax cuts, including a 25% cut in 2025. While Locke advocated for the state to provide millions in backfill to local governments to reimburse them for lost revenue due to the cuts, he also accused local officials of exaggerating those concerns.
In his response to WyoFile’s candidate questionnaire, Dresang said relief for homeowners needs to be balanced with funding local services.
“I favor targeted relief for the homeowners who need it most, especially seniors, over blunt, across-the-board cuts that leave counties scrambling or force us to backfill with volatile state revenue, such as an increase in the sales tax,” Dresang said.
Two Republican women will compete in Cheyenne to represent House District 43 — Rep. Ann Lucas, a retired banker, and Jessica Crowder, a rancher and natural resource policy consultant.
Lucas, a freshman legislator and Freedom Caucus member, was the leading proponent of a committee bill designed to regulate how books with graphic sexual content are housed and challenged in the state’s public and school libraries. The bill, which critics call a book ban, easily cleared the House but failed to advance in the Senate earlier this year. Lucas partially credited the bill’s failure as a reason to run for a second term, according to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle.
Crowder previously led the Wyoming Stock Growers Land Trust and served as a policy advisor under Gov. Matt Mead. In her campaign announcement, Crowder said she will focus on “strengthening Wyoming’s economy, supporting local communities, and preserving the state’s way of life for future generations.”
It remains to be seen if the caucus will release a slate of candidate endorsements as it did on primary election day in 2024. At least two candidates, however, have announced on social media that they’ve been given such endorsements, including Lyman’s Rep. Joe Webb, who is running for reelection to House District 19, and Karen Weber, who is running as a Republican for Goshen County’s House District 5.
The latter seat is now held by Rep. Scott Smith, a Freedom Caucus member, who is running for state treasurer. Weber, a rancher, will compete against Joe Speckner, a farmer and attorney, for the Republican nomination.
Webb, a Freedom Caucus member, is running for his second term against Chad Stephens, who is a veteran and small business owner, according to his campaign website.
Webb, a retired police officer, was one of several Republican lawmakers to receive a campaign check on the House floor during the 2026 legislative session. “Checkgate” sparked multiple investigations and rule changes.
“Never, at any time has anyone offered me money, anything of value or anything else to vote or not vote a certain way,” Webb said at a House Special Investigation Committee hearing in February.
More recently, Webb penned an op-ed, pushing back on what he called “an organized, statewide movement” to oust the Freedom Caucus from the Legislature.
“We will continue the fight for parental rights, tax reform, government transparency, streamlined infrastructure funding and more,” Webb wrote. “The Freedom Caucus exists for the people of Wyoming.”
In Lander, Republican Rep. Lloyd Larsen, is running for his eighth term in House District 54. Larsen, who retired from the oil and gas construction business, has eight years experience serving on the Appropriations Committee — a powerful panel of lawmakers responsible for crafting the initial budget bill. He’s also become one of the lower chamber’s healthcare policy wonks from his time on the House Labor, Health and Social Services Committee.
Jeff Martin, a motorcycle shop owner, will challenge Larsen for a second time. In 2022, Martin ran in the general election as an independent candidate, losing to Larsen by 1,085 votes. That year, Martin hosted a GOP political rally in Fremont County after an inside-out day — a common school spirit activity where students wear their clothes inside out — at his granddaughter’s elementary school spurred him into action.
“We teach our kids to wake up in the morning on time, get to the kitchen table, get some breakfast. We teach them to dress properly, put their shoes on the right feet and get to school,” Martin told WyoFile at the time. “So what’s changed? What is going on?”
In 2024, Martin donated to several Freedom Caucus candidates, according to campaign finance records. He is running as a Republican this year.
The Senate
During the most recent legislative session, the Wyoming Senate stood as an obstacle to multiple Freedom Caucus budgetary priorities. In response, the caucus has focused on controlling the upper chamber. Several Freedom Caucus members and allies in the House are running for Senate seats including Powell Republican Rep. Paul Hoeft, a retired mechanic.
Voters first elected Hoeft to House District 25 in 2024. The one bill Hoeft brought in his first term in office sought to prohibit counties, cities, school districts, special districts and the state government from using taxpayer funds on legislative lobbying. The legislation failed an introduction vote in the House in February with some Freedom Caucus members and allies voting against it.
Hoeft decided to run for Senate District 19 after Republican Sen. Dan Laursen, who is not seeking reelection, asked Hoeft to run in his place, according to The Powell Tribune.
He will face R.J. Kost, who previously represented the district from 2019 to 2022, when Laursen won a three-man race in the primary election. Kost, a retired teacher and curriculum coordinator, brought successful legislation in 2022 to formally facilitate the state’s ongoing transition from a traditional analog emergency 911 system to an advanced, digital system. He also served on the Senate Judiciary Committee and the Senate Agriculture, State and Public Lands and Water Resources Committee during his time in office.
One of the most crowded legislative races will see Evanston Sen. Wendy Schuler, a retired educator, compete to retain the Senate District 15 seat against three other Republican women — Jen Hegeman, Tina Johnson and Chris Katzl.
Schuler is not part of the Freedom Caucus and was challenged by one of its former members, Rep. Bob Wharff, in 2022. The lawmaker is likely best known for her successful 2023 bill that prohibits transgender girls from competing in middle- and high-school girls sports events. Schuler, a longtime coach and former college athlete, also successfully brought a bill in 2025 to establish a similar ban in collegiate athletics.
Hegeman is a former Evanston City Council member, Johnson is Uinta County Chapter Chair of Moms for Liberty and Katzl is a special education teacher.
In Sheridan, Rep. Ken Pendergraft, a retired contractor, is running for Senate District 21, which is now held by Senate President Bo Biteman, who is running for U.S. House.
Voters first elected Pendergraft, a Freedom Caucus member, to House District 29 in 2022. He serves on the House Appropriations Committee and led a subcommittee last year charged with bringing DOGE-like scrutiny to the Wyoming Department of Health’s budget. While the department and healthcare advocates braced for cuts as a result of the subcommittee, ultimately lawmakers voted to fully fund the agency.
Pendergraft’s primary opponent, Melissa Butcher, is a small business owner in Dayton with 30 years experience as a public process facilitator.
“As a legislator, I would focus on practical conservative solutions: disciplined budgeting, responsible tax relief, strong infrastructure, workforce development, and policies that support local communities rather than imposing one-size-fits-all mandates from Cheyenne,” Butcher said in her candidate questionnaire.
While the primary election is Aug. 18, early voting is already underway.
For more information about candidates in Wyoming’s federal, state and legislative races, check out WyoFile’s 2026 Election Guide.
