Two Republicans are now vying for the GOP nomination to become the next Wyoming Secretary of State.
State Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, R-Cody, told Cowboy State Daily on Thursday that she is running for the seat, which is now held by Secretary of State Chuck Gray.
Gray is not running for reelection to his office: he announced Dec. 29 that he’s running for Wyoming’s lone U.S. House of Representatives seat now held by U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman, who in turn is running for U.S. Senate.
If Rodriguez-Williams wins, she’d be the No. 2 state official after the governor, and in line to become governor if he or she is unable to serve. The Secretary of State is the state’s top elections official and oversees business registrations.
“I believe that Wyoming deserves a conservative leader — again — that protects our elections and our economy,” said Rodriguez-Williams in a Thursday phone interview. “It’s a very important position. It’s the front door for Wyoming’s businesses, and we need to continue to have great customer service. And of course it’s the guardian of our election system.”
Rodriguez-Williams said she wants to “run the office with integrity, transparency, and efficiency.”
Gray during his highly publicized term in that office has pushed for election reform legislation, clashed with county clerks, and engaged Gov. Mark Gordon in an ongoing feud over whether to approve wind-farm projects for leases on state lands.
Rodriguez-Williams, 48, currently chairs the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, which is a group of socially conservative state House members that sought this year to reduce the state’s budget. Since the Freedom Caucus is only a group for legislators, ascending to the statewide office would technically remove her from it, she noted.
She told Cowboy State Daily she aligns with Gray ideologically, including by prizing election security, but expects her leadership style to differ from his.
The members of the Wyoming Association of County Clerks may change since this is an election year, she noted. But she also said she’s willing to work with the clerks and is eager to listen to them.
“I’m a people person, and I’m willing to work with folks that obviously have different personalities, different skill sets,” said Rodriguez-Williams, noting her years of experience in directing nonprofit groups.
She said she also is “more than willing” to deliver first-class service to Wyoming businesses and work with other agencies, and wants to focus on strengthening Wyoming communities.
Wyoming has made headlines for its business-friendly policy landscape. It invites secret and shell companies, a 2022 Washington Post story showed. But the system also yields a competitive business haven.
Rodriguez-Williams said Gray and his office have been doing a “great job” in that area, and that she’d like to prevent the presence of “red tape” for entrepreneurs and businesses where feasible.
A press release she released Wednesday says she’s committed to pro-business policies and protecting the state’s resources from foreign threats.
Gray last month backed Senate File 82, a bill geared toward requiring registered agents, or the agents who file business information with the state, to keep the names and addresses of domestic entities’ owners. That bill contained exceptions for entities with more than 100 owners, or which are decentralized or have a fixed location in the state.
“Just last year, in partnership with the FBI, we dissolved three entities tied to North Korea’s nuclear weapons program,” said Gray at a Feb. 13 Senate Corporations Committee meeting where he argued to add “more teeth” to Wyoming’s business filing laws, to combat fraud.
Gray said the bill, had it become law, “would have an effect on our filings.” Business filings in Wyoming, which bring revenue to the state, have surged in recent years — especially during Gray’s term.
The proposed law change would dock the state’s status among the most private business climates to a “much lower” privacy tier but would give law enforcement a means to investigate business fraud, Gray said at the time.
A House legislative committee killed the bill by a 5-4 vote on March 3.
Legislation
Gray is a frequent proponent of legislation to tighten or reform Wyoming’s elections.
Ahead of this year’s lawmaking session, some county clerks urged against the election bills Gray was backing, saying passing them would complicate the election-year crescendo of activity and obligation that is already marked by stringent legal deadlines.
They also pointed to what they called practicality flaws in some of the bills.
Rodriguez-Williams noted that Gray, like herself, was a legislator before he was in the executive branch.
“I obviously value the (legislative) branch of government, and I also respect the clear differences between and role between the executive, the judicial branch and you know — the three branches of government,” she said. “I’d be more than willing to be a resource and to help a majority of the state legislature accomplish what they see needs to be accomplished — so the Secretary of State’s office could continue to strengthen our communities.”
Rodriguez-Williams said she’s excited to run for the position and considers it an honor. She said people appear to be engaged across the state, asking lots of questions and taking advantage of transparency measures in the legislature.
“It’s well known that as a lawmaker, I’ve taken on the establishment as a conservative and been a voice for the people within my district that elected me,” she said. “And I’m ready to stand up for the people of Wyoming statewide.”
It’s Contested
Rodriguez-Williams faces off for the Republican nomination against Robert Short, a three-term Converse County Commissioner who declared his intent to run earlier this month.
The primary election is Aug. 18.
Short told Cowboy State Daily on March 4 that he’d “love” to see more transparency and safeguards in the business filing realm, he’ll emphasize collaboration with the state’s county clerks, and he believes an executive branch official should enforce the laws more and push legislation less.
A Worland-based Democrat, Bryan McCarty, has also declared his bid for the seat.
He spent decades working in the locomotive industry and as an auditor, he told Northern Wyoming News this month.
Business accountability is also among McCarty’s priorities, and regarding public land uses, he wants to “start getting out of this whole syndrome of squabbling over identity politics, instead of working together on things that really affect us,” he told the outlet.
The general election is Nov. 3. If McCarty wins his nomination bid, the winner of the GOP contest will square off with him then.
More About Rodriguez-Williams
Rodriguez-Williams is a former law enforcement officer, a wife and mother of two. She and her family live near Yellowstone National Park.
She currently chairs the House Labor, Health and Social Services Committee.
Clair McFarland can be reached at clair@cowboystatedaily.com.
