Fewer Democrats than ever running for legislative seats

Wyoming will see more contested statehouse races this primary election than the last, but the number of Democratic legislative candidates who are participating has hit a 26-year low, an analysis of election data by WyoFile shows.
Sixteen Democrats will run for the Legislature this year, according to the 2024 primary election candidate roster. That’s less than half of the 26-year average, and far below the high point of the last decade, when 62 Democrats ran in 2016.
Meanwhile, the number of Republican candidates running for the statehouse has steadily climbed since 1998.
Sen. Chris Rothfuss (D-Laramie), the Legislature’s longest-serving Democrat, said a lot has changed since he was first elected in 2011.