Freedom Caucus flop — Cheyenne newcomers beat out sitting Freedom Caucus representatives, others lose across Wyoming

CHEYENNE — In Tuesday’s primary election, newcomers in several Cheyenne races beat out sitting lawmakers who are also members of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus. 

Jessica Crowder, a local rancher and business owner, beat Rep. Ann Lucas, R-Cheyenne, who served one term representing House District 43 beginning in 2025. During her term, Lucas was an outspoken supporter of legislating restricted access to “obscene” materials in school libraries but did not manage to get any sponsored legislation passed during her tenure in the statehouse.

Crowder told the WTE Wednesday morning that her priorities include supporting Wyoming’s agricultural industry, exploring resources for mental health access, and ensuring the state has a stable, business-friendly climate.

“I want to thank my family, my friends and my volunteers. There is no way anyone can run an election without support and prayers, and they were critical for the campaign,” Crowder said. “I also want to thank the voters for putting their trust in me and showing up to the polls.”

Crowder does not have a Democratic opponent in the Nov. 3 general election.

In House District 8, former Wyoming Department of Transportation Director Maj. Gen. Luke Reiner beat incumbent and Freedom Caucus member Rep. Steve Johnson, R-Cheyenne, who served one term beginning in January of 2025.

Reiner told the WTE he is thankful for his family, volunteers and the voters, as well as the fact that the election season across Wyoming has thus far been safe and productive.

“I am thankful to the good Lord for the safety of everyone involved,” Reiner said. “There is a lot of hard work that goes into these things.”

He also expressed thanks to the people in HD 8 who opened the door to him during his campaign, noting that he knocked on just under 2,000 doors in the district — some twice.

“It is so rewarding to meet great Americans and to visit about what is going on in their life, in Laramie County and in the state of Wyoming,” he said.

Reiner also thanked Johnson, his opponent in Tuesday’s primary, for serving in the state Legislature.

“It is always important to realize that everybody serves, and he stepped to the plate,” Reiner said.

Johnson told the WTE Wednesday that he will likely not seek reelection in upcoming years, and that he believes “people are going to find out the Freedom Caucus wasn’t the terrible association they thought it was.”

“Taxes are going up, spending is going up. The waste from the government is going to go up,” Johnson said. “They are going to take care of the good old boys, and it is going to be welfare for the well-connected. Citizens are going to be stuck with whatever is left.”

Reiner will face Democrat Brenda Lyttle in the general election.

In House District 61, newcomer Andrew Server, an English teacher at Cheyenne’s East High School, beat Seth Bard, a Wyoming Air National Guard member. Rep. Daniel Singh, R-Cheyenne, who left the Freedom Caucus in 2025 after serving as representative for HD 61 since 2023, opted to run for Senate District 31 against sitting Sen. Evie Brennan, R-Cheyenne.

Server does not have a Democratic opponent in the general election.

Brennan said Wednesday morning the Senate race was a “tough, interesting” one, and that she is thankful voters chose her in Tuesday’s primary.

Brennan will face Democrat Shifa Hamid in the general election, but said that if elected to the 69th Wyoming Legislature, which opens Jan. 12, she will continue to prioritize issues like health care, education and support for the next generation of Wyomingites.

“Wyoming hasn’t changed, and I haven’t changed,” Brennan told the WTE. “We still have to continue to look at the future of Wyoming, and what it is that our kids are going to need. What can we do in the next 20, 30, 50 years? That is the question I ask myself every day.”

In House District 41, single- term Rep. Gary Brown, R-Cheyenne, lost to Erin Edwards, a state employee and Laramie County volunteer firefighter.

“I still feel emotional about this, but that the voters in my district put their faith and trust in me, that means so much to me,” Edwards said Wednesday. “I just want to do my best to represent them.”

Edwards will face Democrat Stacy Becker in the general election in November, but said that if elected, she wants to bring “common sense” back to the Capitol.

“I want to be able to have conversations and get good work done for our people. We need to bring that back,” Edwards said. “I do think that citizens across Wyoming are going to see more common sense, and more work done for the will of the people (in the upcoming legislative session).”

Brown was among lawmakers who received a $1,500 campaign donation during the 2026 legislative session on the House floor from conservative activist Rebecca Bextel, now a Constitution Party hopeful for governor.

Freedom Caucus members lose in other races

Across the state, several Freedom Caucus leaders lost their seats in Tuesday’s election.

Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, who served as chairman of the Joint Appropriations Committee during the 68th Wyoming Legislature’s budget session and is listed as emeritus chairman on the state’s Freedom Caucus webpage, lost his seat, which he’d held since 2022, to newcomer Douglas Moore. Moore will be unopposed in November.

Former Speaker of the House Rep. Chip Neiman, R-Hulett, lost in a narrow race for the Senate to sitting Sen. Ogden Driskill, R-Devils Tower, on Tuesday. Neiman, who began his time in the House in 2021, presided over the House during the “Checkgate” scandal earlier this year. He also accepted campaign funds from Bextel during the 2026 session. Driskill has held his Senate seat since 2010.

Current Freedom Caucus Chair Rep. Rachel Rodriguez- Williams, R-Cody, who was elected to House District 50 in 2020, and was running as Rachel Williams for secretary of state, lost that race to Robert Short on Tuesday.

Rep. Scott Heiner, R-Green River, who served as majority floor leader in 2026 and was a member of the Freedom Caucus, lost his seat to Republican newcomer Kenneth Roberts. Heiner was elected to House District 18 in 2021. Roberts does not have a Democratic challenger in the general election.

Rep. Ken Pendergraft, R-Sheridan, who opted to run for the Senate and was also a member of the Freedom Caucus, did not win his bid for a seat in the upper chamber Tuesday. Pendergraft was elected in 2022 and held a seat on the Joint Appropriations Committee in 2025 and 2026.

He lost the Senate District 21 race to Sheridan County native and business owner Melissa Butcher. Former Senate President Bo Biteman, R-Ranchester, held that seat. 

Biteman was defeated in the U.S. House of Representatives race by sitting Secretary of State Chuck Gray, who has long supported the Freedom Caucus in the House.

Pendergraft’s former House seat in District 29 will go to Myca Sturtevant, a Sheridan County mother and small business owner who is unopposed in the general election.

According to WyoFile, Associated Press and county- level preliminary results show that incumbents aligned with the Freedom Caucus across the state lost their seats Tuesday, including Reps. Tony Locke, R-Casper; Ocean Andrew, R-Laramie; Marlene Brady, R-Green River; Jayme Lien, R-Casper, Nina Webber, R-Cody; Paul Hoeft, R-Powell; Robert Wharff, R-Evanston; and Darin McCann, R-Rock Springs.

Meanwhile, the caucus failed to pick up new seats in some districts, preliminary results show.

Republican Brian Costello defeated Freedom Caucus-aligned candidates Ross Schriftman and Donna Rice in House District 37. Incumbent Rep. Elissa Campbell, R-Casper, defended her seat against Freedom Caucus candidate Pete Fox in House District 56. Another incumbent, Rep. Julie Jarvis, R-Casper, also kept her seat in House District 57 after facing former representative and Freedom Caucus member Jeanette Ward for a second time.

Some Freedom Caucus incumbents did successfully defend their seats, including Rep. Tomi Strock, R-Douglas, and Rep. Bill Allemand, R-Midwest.

Unopposed lawmakers comment on primary races

House District 42 Rep. Rob Geringer, R-Cheyenne, who ran unopposed in Tuesday’s primary election, said he is looking forward to a new makeup in the House, although he will face Democrat Jim VanDyke in November.

In 2026, the Freedom Caucus held a near-majority in the House that led to days of debate over defunding the Wyoming Business Council, $40 million in cuts to the University of Wyoming, additional property tax cuts, school financing, election issues and hundreds of amendments to the state’s 2027-28 biennium budget bill.

“I was pleasantly surprised last night with how many really good candidates won the primary,” Geringer said Wednesday. “I’m looking forward to what that means for the next session.”

Geringer, who was elected in 2024 and has served one term in the House, said he is hopeful about working with newly elected representatives in January.

“I am really optimistic about being able to … concentrate on what the real needs are across the state,” Geringer said, rather than being “worried about what the different ideological stances are.

“Let’s have good debate. Let’s just talk about the issues. Let’s talk about policy and see what we can get done for Wyoming,” Geringer said.

Rep. Lee Filer, R-Cheyenne, who ran unopposed Tuesday and does not have a challenger in the general election, said he was very happy about the results in Laramie County. Filer was first elected to HD 44 in 2024, but previously served in the statehouse from 201314.

“We can actually get back to governing and doing the work now,” Filer said. “The last two years were almost like a circus. There was scandal, there was a so-called mandate to pretty much tear government down.

“The way the election went last night, especially in Laramie County, we rocked it,” he said, adding that the region has enough legislators to really make a difference within the Legislature.

“We can actually influence legislation and do what is right for the state of Wyoming, moving us to an economic- forward, next-generation place with better education, better healthcare,” he said. “We actually have people that are willing to do that work now.”

This story was published on August 20, 2026. 

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