Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray is calling it a win after two lawsuits filed against him were tossed out. One came from the Elias Law Group, which had challenged the state’s election integrity laws, and the other from Tim Newcomb, who went after Gray for backing Donald Trump’s candidacy in the last election. Both were dismissed in recent court filings.
“It’s very important that we continue to improve, that we continue to advance election integrity,” Gray told reporters. “These measures have over 90 percent support of Wyomingites.”
But Gray isn’t done in the courtroom. He’s now gearing up to defend Wyoming’s “sore loser” law, which blocks candidates from switching parties and running in the general election after losing in the primary.
“The point of that law is that you get one shot at running in the primary,” Gray said.
Gray also pointed to former President Trump’s push for sweeping federal election changes, including eliminating mail-in ballots, ditching voting machines, and moving to watermarked paper ballots. Trump has also floated the SAVE Act, a system that would let state officials use federal databases to flag ineligible voters.
Not everyone’s buying it. Janna Farley, communications director for ACLU Wyoming, blasted Gray’s agenda as an attack on democracy itself.
“Many of our lawmakers are spending considerable time and resources attacking our right to cast a ballot,” Farley said. “Voter fraud is exceedingly rare. The real danger to our elections is the misinformation being spread by elected leaders.”
Election experts note that Wyoming’s system already has a 98% accuracy rate, and critics argue new restrictions only make voting harder for everyday residents.
Despite the pushback, Gray is pressing forward. Just last week, he pitched a new bill to the legislature that would require pen-and-paper ballots across Wyoming, doubling down on his election integrity campaign.
The original story by for Wyoming News Now.
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