Seven election bills, including a controversial ban on ballot drop boxes, met the chopping block in the Wyoming Senate in one blow going into the final week of the 2025 session, drawing Secretary of State Chuck Gray’s criticism of the Senate for letting them die.
“The fact that Senate leadership wouldn’t hear bills that passed in Senate committee to ban drop boxes shows how weak they are on these conservative election integrity priorities that the people of Wyoming want,” Gray told Cowboy State Daily.
These seven bills were among a laundry list that failed to make the deadline to be read for the first time Friday evening before the chamber adjourned.
Gray played an extremely active role in advocating for the election bills, openly endorsing them in committee testimony.
“These bills are common sense, conservative bills that the people of Wyoming want,” Gray said. “President Trump also has put forward these conservative election integrity ideas in numerous settings, including the Republican Party convention platform and the White House.”
All of the seven bills passed by a large majority in the House.
One of the seven bills banned ballot drop boxes in Wyoming, one of the cornerstones of Gray’s 2022 campaign. Due to next year being a budget session leading directly into an election year, it’s less likely ballot drop boxes will be banned for the 2026 election in Wyoming.
While those bills died, other election legislation is still active and three bills have already passed into law.
One bill that made it through that night would ban ranked choice voting in Wyoming.
Around 40 election bills were brought this session, with Gray endorsing many of them. He wrote at least two of the bills himself.
Reasoning
It’s Majority Floor Leader Sen. Tara Nethercott’s call to decide the order of bills and to call for adjournment each day, so it was her call to let the election bills die.
Nethercott, a Republican from Cheyenne, explained Monday that many of the bills didn’t make it to the Senate chamber until late that week since the Senate Corporations, Elections and Political Subdivisions Committee had an extremely high volume of bills to work through.
“So, there wasn’t even a 24-hour period for the public to see what was on general file before they were placed before committee of the whole,” she said. “So, I think in that reality, it’s important to put that time frame of perspective in place.”
Eight election bills have passed through the Senate this session of the roughly 20 it considered.
Senate President Bo Biteman, R-Ranchester, said it wouldn’t have mattered if Nethercott got all but one of those election bills through.
“They still would have criticized her,” he said. “We’ve accomplished, we as the House and Senate, the Legislature collectively, has accomplished so much this session. All you’re hearing about is the negative.”
Biteman believes the mentality behind this negativity is to pave the groundwork for future Senate campaigns. Nethercott believes there are also efforts underway to distract from the true source of legislative failures.
It’s Majority Floor Leader Sen. Tara Nethercott’s call to decide the order of bills and to call for adjournment each day, so it was her call to let the election bills die. (Matt Idler for Cowboy State Daily) 
Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Lingle, mounted an effort to resurrect one of the seven killed bills, legislation that would create runoff elections in Wyoming and enact a separate election for statewide races, including governor. (Matt Idler for Cowboy State Daily) 
Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, spoke against bringing bills back, warning it would “put us in the cesspool we’re at last year.” (Matt Idler for Cowboy State Daily)
Pullback Rejected
On Tuesday, Sen. Cheri Steinmetz, R-Lingle, mounted an effort to resurrect one of the seven killed bills, legislation that would create runoff elections in Wyoming and enact a separate election for statewide races, including governor.
“The reason I brought the motion is I think it rises to the level of discussion for the body,” she said.
She mentioned how doing so would be just as deserving as a separate effort to bring a new standalone bill for a state shooting complex, an effort also brought on Tuesday.
Her effort was rejected on a 26-5 vote.
Sen. Charles Scott, R-Casper, questioned Steinmetz if the effort was an “attack” on Nethercott’s discretion or the Senate Corporations Committee.
“Either way, I would urge us to vote no,” he said. “I think the best time to stop this is right now.”
Sen. Cale Case, R-Lander, also spoke against bringing the bill back, warning it would “put us in the cesspool we’re at last year.”
During the 2024 session, the Senate overrode a decision made by then-Senate President Ogden Driskill, R-Devils Tower, to pull one of his committee member’s chairmanships and bucked his preference when bringing back a bill that banned gun-free zones in Wyoming.
Some Wins
Despite these recent losses, Gray has had a reasonably successful legislative session, getting bills passed banning private funding of state elections, foreign funding of ballot measures and ranked-choice voting.
Another bill, House Bill 156, requires proof of U.S. citizenship and residency to vote.
“HB 156 will ensure that we protect Wyoming elections and is also key in supporting President Trump’s pivotal work to have proof of citizenship for registering to vote with the SAVE Act at the federal level,” Gray said. “With the passage of this landmark legislation, Wyoming will further cement our commitment to election integrity, as the only state to require proof of citizenship for all elections, an important priority of President Trump.”
Six of Gray’s 10 election goals have been passed by the Legislature and three election bills he supported have already been passed into law by Gov. Mark Gordon. Another four are waiting on his desk for approval.
Leo Wolfson can be reached at leo@cowboystatedaily.com.
