With only eight delegates in the 93-member Wyoming Legislature and tough losses in the 2024 national elections, the Wyoming Democrats’ strategy is to go into rural communities and assist people on the ground, multiple party officials told Cowboy State Daily on Sunday.
Volunteerism and service were the top strategies emphasized by Wyoming Democratic Party officials and elected leaders during interviews with the outlet on Sunday at the party’s officer elections meeting in Rock Springs.
“When we demonstrate that we can meet people’s needs and be a caring and compassionate community, people will return (to the party),” said Lindsey Hanlon, who was elected chair by party leadership about 20 minutes before speaking with Cowboy State Daily.
This includes responding to wildfires, assisting the local food bank, collaborating with pet shelters, and participating in other volunteer efforts, she explained.
“Anywhere there’s a spot in your community that needs a helping hand, we want to be that helping hand,” Hanlon went on.
Lucas Fralik, the newly elected state party chair, expressed the same mission. He said county parties are already “energized” about volunteering, and it’s time to mobilize in more Wyoming communities.
“It’s about showing up where people need us the most,” he told me. “We (need to) talk more about what Democrats are doing for you today, not what we’re doing for you tomorrow.”
That includes attending and participating in local board meetings, he said.
‘Leadership’
Republicans defeated Democrats in the 2024 national elections, winning the Senate and maintaining control of the House, while President Donald Trump reclaimed the White House, winning both electoral and popular votes.
The Democratic National Committee is also embroiled in controversy after its Chair, Ken Martin, mocked DNC Vice-Chair David Hogg’s plan to raise funds for candidates challenging Democratic incumbents, escalating their ongoing feud.
Dale Horkey, Chair of the Hot Springs County Democratic Party, stated that the key to turning around the party’s recent losses is simple: “leadership.”
Horkey clarified that it is not about tweaking the platform. It is about rallying around a leader who is “dynamic enough, out-front enough, and in-your-face enough, if necessary, to say ‘OK, we are Democrats, and we are here for good.'” “We’re here to do good.”
Former President Joe Biden dropped out of his reelection campaign in the middle of the race, and his Vice President lost both the electoral and popular votes to Trump, making it difficult to predict who will be the next face of the Democratic Party.
Other names mentioned in news stories as potential 2028 presidential candidates for the blue party include Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, California Gov. Gavin Newsom, and U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-New York.
State Rep. Mike Yin, D-Jackson, did not advocate for a specific national figurehead, but said he hopes the party can rally around someone from a rural state.
The divide between urban and rural populations, which also keeps Democrats and Republicans apart, is “unfortunate,” he said.
Within the last two years, the party has revived four previously “dark,” or counties without chaired county parties. The names are Campbell, Goshen, Sublette, and Weston.
The party spokeswoman told Cowboy State Daily that Lincoln and Niobrara counties remain dark.
Not Revamping These Beliefs
Cowboy State Daily interviewed Democratic officials on Sunday, and they overwhelmingly denied that the party platform needed to change. They stated or implied that they do not seek a change in the party’s core beliefs, but rather hope to attract people to those who support a servant-hearted, grassroots movement.
Yin, on the other hand, tempered his point, stating that it is time to “listen” to Wyomingites on party platforms and other issues. Especially given the near-constant strife and division in the state’s supermajority Republican Party, which is divided into two factions.
Yin told the outlet, and later the party leaders, that he plans to hold a series of town hall meetings that will also serve as “listening sessions” throughout the state’s towns.
“I want to hear what the problems are – and that’s how we can focus our messaging,” said Yin, who also noted that people in Wyoming are becoming dissatisfied with the actions of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a group of Republicans interested in legislating social issues, pursuing school choice, and enacting a slew of voting restrictions and reforms.
“They’ve made moves that have made people unhappy,” Yin said.
Yin declined to say whether this opens up a path for potential Democratic candidates to the Wyoming Legislature. He reiterated, “It will start with listening.”
Democrats already have the necessary “values” in place, he added.
Julie Twist, Chair of the Fremont County Democratic Party, is focusing on attracting independents.
Fremont County’s cultural environments are diverse, including the predominantly working-class community of Riverton, the impoverished Wind River Indian Reservation, and the more progressive subcultures of Lander.
Twist sees an opportunity to attract “like-minded people” who aren’t necessarily Democrats, she explained.
Trump’s Got This, Says Rep.
According to state Rep. Ken Chestek, D-Laramie, the Trump administration has the potential to re-energize the Democratic party.
Many of the president’s federal spending cuts have been challenged, and some have been blocked in court.
The Wyoming Office of Homeland Security expressed concern about a potential FEMA cut during a presentation to the legislative Judiciary Committee last month, stating that it had not received its usual program grants and that Wyoming could be in a bad position when the next round of wildfires or disasters hit.
The National Weather Service Office in Cheyenne also recently reduced its staff, raising concerns about emergency weather alerts and monitoring.
“We’re learning through all the activities (the Department of Governmental Efficiency) DOGE is engaged in, how important federal government is,” Chestek told reporters. “And people who have been trained to hate the federal government are realizing that the federal government does some good stuff.”
Starts here and could end there
Kyle “El” Cameron, the party’s interim labor caucus chair, supported her fellow Democrats’ start-small, grassroots strategies. She stated that county parties should field qualified candidates for all local races to provide voters with a choice.
But she has a big goal in mind: abolishing the electoral college.
The necessary reorganization effort is “much bigger than Wyoming.”
“We can’t keep going like this,” Cameron said. “The U.S. Constitution, the way it’s written; the electoral college, the way it’s designed… was designed to elect someone like Donald Trump.”
Cameron pointed out that making these changes would necessitate a constitutional convention.
“Now I’m going to be called a radical,” she said, laughing. “But, yes, I believe we need a constitutional convention to revise the Constitution. Because we have Donald Trump acting as president, and he is truly a tyrant.”
In his own interview, Alec Beccaria stated that his preferred strategy is to emphasize dissatisfaction with Trump.
Beccaria, a Washakie County Democrat, hopes to become a state committeeman soon.
“From my limited perspective, the best thing the party could do is help people organize protests. “Getting people out there,” explained Beccaria. “Against the Trump regime. “The impending authoritarianism.”
