Candidates abound as 2026 election year unfolds

Hold onto your hats, voters. The 2026 Primary Election is one of the biggest in recent memory. Depending on where you vote and how active your precinct’s municipal races are, there will likely be more than 60 candidates to choose from on your ballot – at least for registered Republicans. There are no Democrats on the ballot in North Big Horn County at the county and legislative level, only a few running for statewide office.

Our August Primary ballot will feature seven Republican candidates for county commissioner, four for sheriff, two for coroner and one each for the remaining five county offices.

There are also two GOP candidates for the state senate and two for the state house to be chosen by Big Horn County Republicans, though, as usual, it’s crickets for Democrats.

At the state level, there are seven candidates for the U.S. Senate (five Republicans and two Democrats), 12 candidates for the U.S. House (10 Republicans and two Democrats), five candidates for governor (four and one), six candidates for secretary of state (five and one), five candidates for superintendent of public instruction (three and two) and two GOP candidates for state treasurer.

There are also 20 candidates for mayor or town council in North Big Horn County’s five municipalities.

It’s hard to fathom why there is this kind of interest in Wyoming this year. We have complained in this space that many if not most people are no longer joiners in this day and age, so this level of interest in serving in public office is remarkable.

Is it a healthy sign for our republic that so many people are interested in serving their community, state or nation? Or is it a sign that people are simply fed up with government and want to do something about it? Running for statewide office, especially, is expensive and taxing, at least for those who earnestly go out and campaign.

It’s fascinating, because the general narrative is that people are disillusioned by government due to the fractured nature of our national politics, with that fissure now reaching the state level. Many people are cynical and don’t even want to vote, with election participation at near record lows. And yet here we are with dozens of candidates. Certainly, a fairly high number of open seats leads to interest: U.S. Senator, U.S. Rep, governor and secretary of state, to name a few.

We tend to take the positive approach here, that it is a healthy sign when so many citizens are interested in serving their state or community. And now it is up to the rest of us to participate by voting on August 18 and November 3.

We don’t care how cynical you are. Staying home and whining doesn’t do anybody any good.