WRIGHT — As a handful of Wyoming Republicans with name recognition across the state play wait-and-see with U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman and the 2026 race for governor, a longtime state legislator isn’t waiting any longer.
State Sen. Eric Barlow, R-Gillette, officially announced Tuesday he’ll be on the Aug. 18, 2026, Republican primary ballot for governor.
He made the announcement at the Wright Centennial Museum in Campbell County, not far from the generational ranch where he grew up and still raises cattle.
“I am here with you, friends and family, in Wright, to humbly announce my candidacy for governor of Wyoming,” Barlow announced. “I ask for your support as we embark on this vital journey for our state’s future.”
Elected in 2022 to represent Senate District 23 in Campbell and Converse counties, Barlow spent the decade before that in the state House, including a two-year term as House speaker in 2021-2022.
He touted his love for Wyoming and its blue-collar, hard-working people as motivation to be the state’s 34thgovernor.
“I love Wyoming. I love her honest, hard-working people whose grit and independent spirit make our beloved state so great,” he said. “I want the next generations to have even greater opportunities and a future here in Wyoming.”
Barlow said he’s been a champion for “issues critical to Wyoming’s future,” like lowering property taxes, promoting energy independence, and defending local control and private property rights.
Most of all, the former U.S. Marine and veterinarian said he’s a leader who “stands firmly on sound, conservative principles and who will fiercely defend your rights.”
That includes being pro-Second Amendment and pro-life.
He also said that as governor, he will “keep Washington, D.C., out of Wyoming’s business.”
Campbell County Republican Eric Barlow on Tuesday announced he’s running for governor in 2026. (Greg Johnson, Cowboy State Daily) 
Campbell County Republican Eric Barlow on Tuesday announced he’s running for governor in 2026. (Greg Johnson, Cowboy State Daily)
Not Conservative Enough?
Those conservative principles have become a major political issue in Wyoming politics with the rise of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus and a more socially conservative red wave.
Barlow historically has not been aligned with the Freedom Caucus.
That also was the main issue with his contested race for state Senate in 2022, when Patricia Junek of Gillette ran against Barlow for the seat claiming he wasn’t conservative enough.
Barlow easily beat Junek in the General Election when she ran as an Independent.
Prior to that, Barlow won five straight elections unopposed in general elections for the Wyoming House District 3 seat from 2012 through 2020.
That includes 2016, when he beat Frank Eathorne, Sr. in the Republican primary by a landslide with nearly 66% of the vote.
Freedom Caucus
Wyoming Freedom Caucus Chair and State Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, R-Cody, decried Barlow as not conservative enough for the position.
“If the last two election cycles in Wyoming have taught us anything, it’s that Wyomingites want real, conservative leadership,” wrote Rodriguez-Williams in a Tuesday text message.
“Senator Barlow isn’t conservative enough for Wyoming, and the Wyoming Freedom Caucus is confident that, come 2026, the people will elect a true conservative for governor,” she said.
In a follow-up text, Rodriguez-Williams cast Barlow as little-known, and a “liberal Republican who loves big government.”
She said he’s fought “consistently” for increasing state spending, votes against state sovereignty, “woke legislation” and as Wyoming House Speaker “presided over a special session during Gordon’s COVID lockdowns that failed to protect the rights of the people of Wyoming.”
During the 2021 legislative special session to address COVID-19 policies and grant issues, many debates surrounded whether, in a rush to protect the individual from overarching policies like vaccine mandates, Wyoming should risk curbing business owners’ autonomy over their own enterprise.
Hageman did not immediately respond to a request for comment sent to her office. Gordon's spokesman did not immediately respond to a Tuesday email request for comment.
Gray Not Impressed
Secretary of State Chuck Gray emphasized that he is not declaring a gubernatorial run at this juncture, having told Cowboy State Daily prior that he’s waiting to see whether U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman is running first.
Hageman has not yet declared a run either, though she polled well earlier this year.
In a poll Gray sourced from Fabrizio, Lee & Associates and which doesn’t include Hageman, Gray polled well too, more than doubling Barlow’s projected votes.
Gray emphasized that in a Tuesday text message to Cowboy State Daily.
“Barlow has always been an ambitious insider, so it’s not surprising he’s announcing so early to try to unite the insiders and the liberal media around his campaign,” wrote Gray in the text message.
Gray used the term “liberal media” four times in his text messages and said that Barlow is declaring early in the election cycle to unite “the insiders and the liberal media around his campaign.”
He declined to say which news outlets are “liberal media.”
“My statement stands for itself,” he answered.
Not The First To Announce
Outside winning his first primary in 2012 by 90 votes, Barlow so far hasn’t had much competition in elections.
The Republican primary for governor could shape up as one of the most lively and contested ever, especially if Hageman decides not to run.
Barlow may be the most high-profile and experienced candidate to announce so far, but he’s not the first.
Brent Bien of Cody announced his campaign in November 2024. And Cheyenne resident Joseph Kibler, who playfully quipped he’s “a nobody” in Wyoming politics, declared his candidacy in January.
Greg Johnson can be reached at greg@cowboystatedaily.com.
