Rep. Kelly will finish session virtually due to back injury

SHERIDAN (WNE) — In an email to his Wyoming Legislature colleagues, Rep. Tom Kelly, R-Sheridan, shared he will not return to the House chamber “any time soon.”

Kelly has suffered from a herniated disc since at least January, he told The Sheridan Press. He had been attempting to rehab the injury and hoped to avoid surgery, though symptoms worsened.

“It looks like I will fail both attempts,” Kelly wrote in his email to fellow lawmakers and Legislative Service Office staff, adding he will coordinate with a surgeon for what he expects to be a simple procedure.

Kelly wrote that he plans to rest in his hotel room through the end of the week and his family will pick him up this weekend to return to Sheridan.

“I apologize for not representing you as I have taken an oath to do,” Kelly wrote in a Facebook post directed to House District 30 voters.

Kelly still plans to participate in the Legislature’s 2026 session as he can. He will attend House Education and Judiciary committee meetings virtually. He attended the Select Committee on School Finance Recalibration virtually after sustaining his injury.

He won’t, however, be allowed to cast votes when the full House convenes.

“You have to physically be on the floor to vote, so I’m gonna miss like 95% of the action,” Kelly told The Sheridan Press. 

Through the first two days of the session, Kelly could be seen lying on the floor behind his desk to ensure he could cast votes. He took a roughly 15-minute break from Wyoming Supreme Court Chief Justice Lynne Boomgaarden’s State of the Judiciary address after sitting in the chair at his desk was causing discomfort.

Kelly said he should be healthy by spring, which would allow him to campaign. He recently announced his intentions to run for Wyoming superintendent of public instruction, his second campaign and third attempt at the job.

“This whole thing could pretty much pull the rug out from under running for superintendent. But, you know, that’s really not a concern right now. Concern for me is getting healthy,” Kelly said.

This story was published on Feb. 11, 2026.