Laramie Live · Doug Randall · August 30, 2026
The 2026 Primary Election is over. We now know who our choices are for Governor of Wyoming on November 3.
So who do you support?
The Choices For Governor On November 3
Eric Barlow-- Won the GOP Primary by 16 points, and in ruby-red Wyoming has to be the favorite on paper. A Gillette veterinarian and state senator, former Speaker of the Wyoming House. Running as a conservative problem-solver who will get things done.
His detractors say he isn't a real conservative, and some even accuse him of being a Democrat. But his easy win in the primary election suggests those charges mostly didn't stick with voters, as he finished far ahead of the Trump-endorsed Megan Degenfelder, with Brent Bien finishing third.
Ken Casner-Casner, running as a Democrat, has run an extremely low-key campaign.. This is his third run for Wyoming Governor, following attempts in 2022 and 2018. He is a resident of Elk Mountain and won the Democratic gubernatorial primary by default as the only candidate in that race.
Rebecca Bextel-Bextel, a Jackson resident, is probably best-known for her role in the ''Checkgate'' scandal. A Laramie County Sheriff's Office investigation has not led to any criminal charges. A Wyoming House special committee likewise found no evidence of bribery, but new rules were enacted to prevent similar events in the future.
Nine of the 10 House members who received checks in the Checkgate incident were defeated in the August Primary Election.
Although she's running as the Constitution Party candidate, Bextel is a long-time Republican activist. She says she's running to provide a conservative alternative to Barlow.
Brent Bien (write-in)- Bien, a former Marine Corps officer, told Cowboy State Daily that he isn't pushing for people to write in his name. But at least some of his supporters have gone on social media saying they intend to write in his name on Nov. 3 anyway.
Bien generates a lot of enthusiasm among GOP conservatives and was actually endorsed by the state Republican Party. That didn't seem to mean much on Primary Election Day, however, as Bien finished third, getting a little over 25 percent of the vote: