Like many of you, I have spent the past several months listening, watching, and researching our candidates for governor, which has produced some interesting observations.
Years ago, when I left Wyoming and began chasing opportunities in the technology world, I heard the same criticism more than once: He’s too young.
I heard it while I helped build companies that transformed worldwide travel distribution. I heard it while taking risks, overcoming odds, and competing in industries undergoing enormous change.
Fortunately, those who trusted in me didn’t listen. And more importantly, I didn’t listen.
Experience matters. But experience is not simply a matter of age or time in office.
It comes from accepting responsibility, making tough decisions, and achieving real results. Some people spend decades protecting the status quo and call that results.
One of the reasons I am supporting Megan Degenfelder for governor is because when people say she’s “too young,” it’s because they have nothing else to say about her.
It’s a deflection, and there is no substance behind the statement. Especially when it comes from people and candidates that cry – “we are losing all our young people to opportunities outside the state”.
Megan’s opponents have tried to suggest she is too young for the job; I respond by saying I see something very different.
I see a Wyoming native who accumulated a decade of energy industry experience, supporting and growing the largest taxpayer in our state.
I see someone who has already managed a statewide agency and has created a real culture of success.
I see someone who has demonstrated that she knows what she believes, by the decisions she has made as one of the five statewide elected officials in our state.
She has demonstrated leadership for every tough decision and shown she has the skills and the experience.
More importantly, Megan understands Wyoming and the conservative values that have allowed our state to remain independent and strong. Her experience is unmatched by the other candidates.
Wyoming remembers another governor, Stan Hathaway, who in his early 40s became governor. And that was considered very young in those days!
Stan’s innovations, like the Permanent Mineral Trust fund, sustain the very Wyoming we live in today. His vision, passion and grit are traits I see in Megan, and it’s exactly what Wyoming needs today.
Wyoming’s next governor will face serious challenges.
Our core industries remain under attack from regulation.
Megan’s opponents would tell you that President Trump’s endorsement means she won’t represent Wyoming. What foolishness.
A strong relationship in the White House means Wyoming will have a seat at the table. Neither of Megan’s opponents have that kind of relationship with the president, and it will matter.
Wyoming’s communities need good jobs allowing young people to remain in Wyoming. Property tax owners need meaningful relief without undermining our schools, roads, and local services.
Healthcare across the State must be reformed and State government must become more efficient, responsive and accountable.
Meeting these challenges will require a governor who understands government but has not become a captive to it. It requires a governor who can defend Wyoming’s strengths, while preparing the state for the future.
Megan can do that.
Don’t get lost in the noise from Megan’s opponents. One day they call her a Freedom Caucus extremist; the next they call her a Republican in name only.
Both cannot be true, and neither is. She has received endorsement from across the Republican spectrum. Like the claim that she is “too young,” these are convenient labels used by opponents who cannot make a serious argument against her record, her policies, or her vision for Wyoming.
One last observation, a practical consideration conservatives must confront honestly in this election. Wyoming Republicans have a habit of dividing among several conservative candidates, allowing someone who does not fully represent the majority of Republican voters to win without a plurality.
We should not repeat that mistake.
I respect Brent Bien’s military service and his willingness to enter the arena. This is not an attack on him personally. He is a good man. But elections require voters to judge not only which candidate they like, but which candidate has a realistic path to victory.
I do not believe Brent Bien has that path.
A vote for Bien may feel like a statement, but it could have a very different practical result: dividing conservative voters and helping a moderate candidate receiving Democrat endorsements win the Republican nomination. Bien supporters will find voice and comfort with a Degenfelder administration.
Megan Degenfelder offers conservatives something increasingly rare: a trustworthy candidate who shares our values, who has passion and drive to craft an even brighter future for our state, and who knows that some things need to change and isn’t afraid to say it.
On August 18th, I will vote for Megan Degenfelder for governor. I encourage Wyoming Republicans who want a strong conservative governor - and who want their vote to help elect one - to join me.
Sam Galeotos owns multiple businesses in Wyoming and ran for governor on the Republican ticket in 2018. Galeotos is a past guest columnist for Cowboy State Daily.
