Emotions tend to run a little hot during election season, but an anonymous caller to Secretary of State Chuck Gray’s office crossed the line from emotional to possibly criminal when he left a vulgar, threatening voicemail for Gray.
The sinister voicemail sounds like a thinly veiled threat on Gray’s life if he doesn’t conduct a fair election.
“I want you to know that if you start cheating, stealing, election-denying this time around and shit hits the fan in November, you’re going to f***ing get it, Mr. Chuck Gray,” the man says in a menacing tone.
Gray told Cowboy State Daily via email that he believes the voicemail message was a response to his efforts “defending election integrity” and the media’s coverage of farther right Republican politicians like himself.
“I received this threatening message because of our work defending election integrity,” he wrote. “For months now, the media and insiders have been pushing claims that somehow conservatives lack civility without looking at any of their own behavior. This is how the radical left, the media and insiders now operate.”
Machine Testing
Although minimal fraud has been documented in Wyoming elections, Gray has spearheaded efforts to make the Cowboy State’s elections more secure. Recently, he directed Wyoming’s 23 county clerks to retest their election equipment if they had done their initial equipment certifications incorrectly, as some counties had.
The slightly gravelly-toned man on the voicemail told Gray he came to his attention after reading a story about some election-related efforts Gray has made. The man didn’t clarify where he read the story or what the specific topic was.
“I want you to listen to my voice,” he says. “I want you to listen when I tell you that you’re playing with fire.”
Gray told Cowboy State Daily he believes the message was written in response to a Monday WyoFile story about the certification of voting machines.
“The article falsely alleged that I requested a retest of every machine in the state, when I actually recommended a retest of machines that were not tested properly under Wyoming state law,” Gray said. “Many clerks were already beginning to conduct these retests because many tests were not conducted in accordance with obligations of the county clerk in Wyoming state law.”
Dark Turn
The man goes on to say “there’s a lot of people like me out there,” but clarifies he doesn’t consider himself to be a violent person and that it won’t be him that causes Gray any harm.
“It’s going to be someone like me,” he said.
The man then becomes more insulting, referring to Gray as a “bitch boy” and a “twerp,” the latter a phrase the man used three times throughout the voicemail.
He also implored Gray to listen to his voice, which he wants Gray to contemplate when he goes to sleep at night.
“You better watch your f***ing back and don’t f*** around with the election,” the man said.
At this point, the voicemail becomes more garbled and little can be deciphered besides the man making mention of Gray’s name being on a “goddam list” and something about the 2020 presidential election.
“Shit has been happening since 2020 … there will be retribution,” he said. “Do you understand? I want you to understand.”
Toward the end of the 2-minute, 52-second message, the voicemail becomes slightly more clear again, accusing Gray of brainwashing the type of people who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot.
“I don’t care about them, the politicians are going to f***ing get it,” he said. “And you’re one of them. Remember that before you f*** around in 2024.”
The man then signs off calling Gray more profanities.
Reaction
The Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a group of farther right legislators that Gray helped start, shared the voicemail on its social media.
“We are shocked and disgusted by the threat made against Secretary of State Gray,” the caucus posted. “This is what happens when the radical left demonizes conservatives for doing the job they were elected to do.”
State Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette, chairman of the Freedom Caucus, questioned if it will “take another July 13th” for the media to stop using “contemptuous adjectives” about conservatives that incite violence, in reference to the attempted assassination of former President Donald Trump last month.
“There is a reason that the 45th President used the term ‘fake news,’ and that label is going to stick for a long time if they don’t take their role as perveyors (sic) of the news seriously,” Bear said.
The Freedom Caucus also has consistently used less than flattering terms to go after the governor and other Republicans it doesn’t believe are conservative enough.
Gray said he won’t let the voicemail get to him.
“I will NEVER back down!” he wrote. “I will continue standing for the people of Wyoming by defending the truth and working for election integrity.”
Gray said the voicemail has been turned over to law enforcement.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
