Wyoming gubernatorial election, 2014

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Wyoming Gubernatorial Election
Primary Date:
August 19, 2014
General Election Date:
November 4, 2014
November 4 Election Winner:
Matt Mead Republican Party
Incumbent prior to election:
Matt Mead Republican Party
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The Wyoming gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014. Incumbent Republican Matt Mead was first elected in 2010 and ran successfully for re-election. He defeated Pete Gosar (D), Dee Cozzens (L) and Don Wills (I) in the general election.

Mead won his first term handily in 2010, though Democrats held the office in the previous two terms as indicated in the past elections section linked here. Mead won election to another four-year term in 2014.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. Wyoming utilizes a closed primary process.[1][2]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Candidates

General election

Republican Party Matt Mead - IncumbentGreen check mark transparent.png
Democratic Party Pete Gosar - former Democratic state party chairman[3]
Libertarian Party Dee Cozzens
Independent Don Wills

Lost in primary

Republican Party Cindy Hill - outgoing state superintendent of education[4]
Republican Party Taylor Haynes (declared) - 2010 write-in candidate for governor[5]

Declined

Republican Party David Steger - former Wyoming Game and Fish Commissioner[5]
Republican Party Kevin Seney - Jackson businessman[6]

Results

General election

Governor of Wyoming, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngMatt Mead Incumbent 59.4% 99,700
     Democratic Pete Gosar 27.3% 45,752
     Independent Don Wills 5.9% 9,895
     Nonpartisan Write-in votes 5.1% 8,490
     Libertarian Dee Cozzens 2.4% 4,040
Total Votes 167,877
Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State

Primary election

Republican primary

Wyoming Gubernatorial Republican Primary, 2014
Candidate Vote % Votes
Green check mark transparent.pngMatt Mead 54.8% 53,673
Taylor Haynes 32.2% 31,532
Cindy Hill 12.7% 12,464
Write-in votes 0.2% 215
Total Votes 97,884
Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State.

Democratic primary

Pete Gosar won the Democratic nomination without opposition.

Race background

Primary challenge for Gov. Mead

On January 29, 2013, Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill announced that she was considering a bid for Governor of Wyoming in 2014. Hill, a Republican, was prompted to enter the race after incumbent Matt Mead signed a bill that relegated the elected office of state superintendent of education to a ceremonial position, reassigning leadership over the Department of Education to an education director post, selected by gubernatorial appointment. Hill subsequently filed a lawsuit against the state challenging the constitutionality of the law.[7] She said her decision to run for governor was driven by the swell of public support she received in response to the lawsuit.[8] Mead handily defeated Hill during the August primary.

Polling

Governor of Wyoming
Poll Matt Mead * (R) Pete Gosar (D)Other/Don't knowMargin of errorSample size
New York Times/CBS News/YouGov
October 16-23, 2014
 58%33%9%+/-11258
YouGov
August 18-September2, 2014
 53%25%22%+/-8350
Rasmussen Reports
August 20-21, 2014
 55%34%11%+/-4700
YouGov
July 5-24, 2014
 53%25%22%+/-0416
AVERAGES 54.75% 29.25% 16% +/-5.75 431
Note: The polls above may not reflect all polls that have been conducted in this race. Those displayed are a random sampling chosen by Ballotpedia staff. If you would like to nominate another poll for inclusion in the table, send an email to [email protected].

Note: An asterisk (*) denotes incumbent status.

Past elections

2010

Governor of Wyoming, 2010
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngMatt Mead 65.7% 123,780
     Democratic Leslie Petersen 22.9% 43,240
     Libertarian Mike Wheeler 2.8% 5,362
     Write-Ins Various 8.5% 16,081
Total Votes 188,463
Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State

2006

On November 7, 2006, Dave Freudenthal won re-election to the office of Governor of Wyoming. He defeated Ray Hunkins (R) in the general election.

Governor of Wyoming, 2006
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngDave Freudenthal Incumbent 70% 135,516
     Republican Ray Hunkins 30% 58,100
Total Votes 193,616
Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State.

2002

On November 5, 2002, Dave Freudenthal won election to the office of Governor of Wyoming. He defeated Eli Bebout (R) and Dave Dawson (L) in the general election.

Governor of Wyoming, 2002
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngDave Freudenthal 50% 92,662
     Republican Eli Bebout 47.9% 88,873
     Libertarian Dave Dawson 2.1% 3,924
Total Votes 185,459
Election results via Wyoming Secretary of State.

Voter turnout

Political scientist Michael McDonald's United States Elections Project studied voter turnout in the 2014 election by looking at the percentage of eligible voters who headed to the polls. McDonald used voting-eligible population (VEP), or the number of eligible voters independent of their current registration status, to calculate turnout rates in each state on November 4. He also incorporated ballots cast for the highest office in each state into his calculation. He estimated that 81,687,059 ballots were cast in the 50 states plus the District of Columbia, representing 35.9 percent of the VEP.[9] By comparison, 61.6 percent of VEP voted in the 2008 presidential election and 58.2 percent of VEP voted in the 2012 presidential election.[10]

Quick facts

  • According to PBS Newshour, voter turnout in the 2014 midterms was the lowest since the 1942 midterms, which took place during the nation's involvement in World War II.[11]
  • Forty-three states and the District of Columbia failed to surpass 50 percent turnout in McDonald's analysis.
  • The three states with the lowest turnout according to McDonald's analysis were Texas (28.3 percent), Tennessee (28.6 percent), and Indiana (28.8 percent).
  • Maine (58.5 percent), Wisconsin (56.5 percent), and Colorado (54.5 percent) were the three states with the highest turnout.
  • There were only 12 states that increased voter turnout in 2014 compared to the 2010 midterm elections.[12]

Note: Information from the United States Elections Project was last updated on December 16, 2014.

Campaign finance

Comprehensive donor information for this election has been collected by Follow the Money. Based on available campaign finance records, the candidates raised a total of $1,208,898 during the election. This information was last updated on April 8, 2015.[13]

Campaign Contribution Totals
Candidate Office Result Contributions
Matt MeadRepublican Party Wyoming Governor Won $692,157
Taylor HaynesRepublican Party Wyoming Governor Defeated $183,658
Cindy HillRepublican Party Wyoming Governor Defeated $158,345
Pete GosarDemocratic Party Wyoming Governor Defeated $128,456
Don WillsGrey.png Wyoming Governor Defeated $46,282
Dee CozzensLibertarian Party Wyoming Governor Defeated $0
Grand Total Raised $1,208,898

Key deadlines

Deadline Event
May 30, 2014 Filing deadline
August 19, 2014 Primary election
November 4, 2014 General election
November 12, 2014 State certification of results
January 5, 2015 State executives inaugurated

Recent news

This section links to a Google news search for the term "Wyoming + Governor + elections"

Wyoming Gubernatorial Election News Feed

See also

External links

Footnotes

  1. ↑ National Conference of State Legislatures, "State Primary Election Types," accessed October 7, 2024
  2. ↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "Welcome to the FAQs," accessed October 7, 2024
  3. ↑ SFGate, "Pete Gosar announces run for Wyoming governor," May 17, 2014
  4. ↑ KJAB AM Radio, Cheyanne, "Hill Announces Run for Governor in 2014," January 29, 2013
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Casper Star Tribune, "Former write-in candidate considers 2014 Wyoming gubernatorial run," April 30, 2013
  6. ↑ Wyoming Tribune Eagle, " Early entries start 2014 governor's race," May 20, 2013
  7. ↑ The Star-Tribune, "Wyoming Gov. Mead signs superintendent bill into law; Hill sues," January 29, 2013
  8. ↑ KJAB AM Radio, Cheyanne, "Hill Announces Run for Governor in 2014," January 29, 2013
  9. ↑ United States Elections Project, "2014 November General Election Turnout Rates," November 7, 2014
  10. ↑ TIME, "Voter Turnout in Midterm Elections Hits 72-Year Low," November 10, 2014
  11. ↑ PBS, "2014 midterm election turnout lowest in 70 years," November 10, 2014
  12. ↑ U.S. News & World Report, "Midterm Turnout Down in 2014," November 5, 2014
  13. ↑ Follow the Money, "Overview of Wyoming 2014 elections," accessed April 13, 2015
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