Gov Race Takes Shape

(Casper Star Tribune)

By Joan Barron, Casper Star Tribune, 1/11/2010

CHEYENNE -- The 2010 election campaigns will begin later this month as two more Republicans announce their intentions to run for governor.

Former U.S. Attorney Matt Mead and State Auditor Rita Meyer will add their names to the ranks of GOP gubernatorial hopefuls. They will join former legislator and Fort Bridger rancher Ron Micheli, who announced his intentions last year.

Two other potential Republican candidates for governor, House Speaker Colin Simpson of Cody and Roy Cohee of Casper, a former House speaker, will wait until after the legislative session ends in March to make their plans known.

So will Democratic Sen. Mike Massie of Laramie. Massie may run for governor if Democratic Gov. Dave Freudenthal doesn't, or for state superintendent of public instruction if he does.

Another rumored potential Democratic candidate for governor is Milward Simpson, currently director of State Parks and Cultural Resources, who won't say anything before the end of the legislative session.

Also waiting until the lawmakers go home is Freudenthal.

If Freudenthal decides to seek a third term, he first must challenge the state's term limits law as it applies to the governor and the other four elected state officials.

The Wyoming Supreme Court in 2004 ruled unanimously in favor of two term-limited legislators and threw out as unconstitutional the state's term limits law on grounds it was not adopted as an amendment to the Wyoming Constitution as required.

The court is expected to make the same ruling on term limits as it applies to the state's top five elected officials.

If Freudenthal doesn't run for a third term, the prospect of an open seat is expected to swell the ranks of Republican contestants.

No fundraising by gov

The governor has spent $20,000 on a public opinion poll, a move that was interpreted by some as sign he will run for a third term.

Yet he has not been doing any active fundraising, judging by the campaign statement filed late last month by his committee, "Folks for Freudenthal."

The report listed $600 from individual contributors, $5,000 from the Wal-Mart political action committee and a balance of $84,424.

The report contained more than $20,000 in donations from his campaign fund to various charitable organizations.

Micheli doesn't have an ongoing committee like Freudenthal and the other elected officials, and he did not have to report his campaign finances, but he did anyway.

Micheli's campaign committee raised about $182,000 as of the end of 2009, including about $12,000 from the candidate and his family.

More than 95 percent of the money came from residents in all 23 counties of the state.

The Micheli campaign so far has raised more money than all of the candidates in the Republican primary election for governor in 2006, noted Micheli's campaign manager, Bill Cubin of Casper.

Mead, meanwhile, is the grandson of the late Gov. and U.S. Sen. Cliff Hansen and son of Mary Mead, who ran unsuccessfully for governor against Democrat Mike Sullivan in 1990.

Mead said his staff so far includes two people who left the U.S. attorney's office to join his campaign: Carol Statkus, his campaign manager, and Margo Lauer.

His treasurer is Kari Gray of Douglas, a former director of the Wyoming Department of Family Services.

Meyer's plans take shape

Meyer is finishing her first term as state auditor. She formerly was a commander in the Wyoming National Guard and served as chief of staff to former Gov. Jim Geringer.

While Micheli has Diemer True, a former legislator and GOP national committeeman, as his campaign chairman, True's brother, Hank True, is supporting Meyer for governor.

According to her campaign report, Meyer paid $2,000 plus $869 in travel expenses for a consultation with Scott Cottington of Mendota Heights, Minn., a general Republican political consultant.

Although she has not conducted any active fundraising, her campaign committee had a $40,000 balance at the end of the year, including $31,210 from individuals, $15,000 in loans and $1,000 from the candidate.

Meyer grew up on a ranch in western Nebraska. She holds bachelor's degrees from the University of Wyoming in education and finance and a master's degree in international business. Her military career included service in the theater of war twice, most recently in Afghanistan.

Dems recruit candidates

Although the pool of known Democratic candidates is small at this point, the party has an active candidate recruitment committee, said Leslie Petersen, Democratic state party chairwoman.

"We are having some very interesting discussions with some attractive candidates," she said.

"Certainly I can't go spouting around prematurely, but I'm fairly encouraged that we'll come up with some pretty decent candidates," Petersen added. "We're trying to build a bench."

Right now, she said she doesn't have a strong enough candidate in the congressional race.

That race is important because Republican Congresswoman Cynthia Lummis is in her first term, and if someone can unseat her, this would be the time to do it, Petersen said.

She noted Lummis has voted no on virtually everything, including equal pay for women.

"The state would be better off to have someone constructively engaged in the dialogue and connected to the leadership whether they voted with them all the time or not," Petersen said.

GOP has deep bench

In reply to Petersen, Lummis' press secretary, Ryan Taylor, said it was the House Democrats who refused "to be constructively engaged with Republicans in order to find solutions to the problems facing our nation."

Lummis is voting the way the people of Wyoming want, Taylor added.

Diana Vaughan, Republican state party chairwoman, said it's looking good for the Republicans nationally and in Wyoming.

She said the way the national Democrats handled national health care reform "is going to be their demise."

"Our bench is really deep in the governor's race," Vaughan said. "Regardless of what the governor does, we have fabulous candidates."

Republican Secretary of State Max Maxfield said he is ready to campaign for a second term.

Republican State Superintendent of Public Instruction Jim McBride already announced his candidacy for re-election.

Republican State Treasurer Joe Meyer is recovering from surgery and treatment for lung cancer. He said earlier he would wait and see about a second term.

Contact capital bureau reporter Joan Barron at 307-632-1244 or joan.barron@trib.com