Why Won't Anyone Debate This Year? They Don't Trust Who's Hosting It.

There’s a trend developing among Wyoming legislative candidates to skip forums and debates hosted by groups they don’t like and or believe will treat them unfairly in those settings.

The most blatant example is in Fremont County in central Wyoming, where self-described “conservative Republican” candidates are shunning July forums hosted by the county’s chapter of the League of Women Voters. These events are also being put on in concert with the Fremont County Republican Party, Fremont County Republican Women and Fremont County Democratic Party.

The group made up of state Sen. Tim Salazar, R-Riverton, and Reps. Pepper Ottman, R-Riverton, Sarah Penn, R-Fort Washakie, House District 55 candidate Joel Guggenmos and HD 54 candidate Tina Clifford, argued in a newspaper ad earlier this month that the League is not actually nonpartisan as it claims.

“We are not confident that the League is non-partisan as the League claims,” the message reads. “We will engage in other organized forums this election year.”

The three legislators are aligned with the farther right Wyoming Freedom Caucus. Penn doesn’t have a Republican primary opponent but does have a Democratic opponent for the general election.

Rep. Ember Oakley, R-Riverton, Guggenmos’ opponent, said the withdrawals set a concerning precedent.  

“It’s a very concerning direction that people running for office say they will only talk to this group, this certain sect of the community because they agree with me,” she said. “The Democratic principles of open discussion are the cornerstone of the political realm. To see that rebuffed is shocking quite frankly.” 

Penn explained to Cowboy State Daily that her group’s choice to not participate in the forum in no way signifies she’s not available to the people. She mentioned how she attended an initial “meet the candidates” event put on by the Fremont County Republican Party and was scheduled to attend another Republican forum on Wednesday night. 

“I have participated in numerous, consistent, and well-attended town hall meetings over the past two years with my fellow conservative colleagues,” she said. “I have always been available to my constituents and a declination to participate with a partisan lobby is no indication of anything to the contrary.”

The difference, those objecting to the absences say, is that candidates can dodge tough questions by avoiding debates. The responses, which are posted online, are critical to informing voters, League officials said. 

Dee Buckstaff, vice president of the Wyoming chapter of League of Women Voters, is concerned that the trend of candidates not participating in debates and forums is “gaining more traction” around the state. 

“We’re very cognizant of the fact it’s important to educate voters on what you want to do in office,” she said.

Other Skips

Oakley said the group of conservative candidates also skipped a meet and greet on Tuesday night hosted by the Fremont County GOP and Fremont County Republican Women. Ottman, who said she actually might participate in the League forum, was the only one with an excused absence, Oakley said.

When Guggenmos was asked in an email shared with Cowboy State Daily that was sent by Fremont County GOP Chair Scott Harnsberger on why he wasn’t attending their events, Guggenmos responded that Salazar and Ottman routinely do “town halls to meet with the people, which is why they have so much support from the sovereign people.”

“We made plans to do our own Republican primary forum that was not put on by an organization that does not share the values in the Republican platform,” he wrote. 

Oakley said she finds this response telling and shows that Guggenmos is only going to listen to his constituents on the “far right.”

“It’s a basic tenet of democracy to talk to all the people you’re representing,” she said. “To say you refuse to talk to a portion of your constituents, that I don’t understand.”

On Wednesday, Oakley said she and the rest of the Fremont delegation plan to attend an event hosted by the local chapter of the Wyoming Republican Women Riding For the Brand. Although she considers this group similarly close-minded, Oakley said she still plans to attend to make a point.

Other Places Too

Penn pointed out that it isn’t just candidates politically aligned with the Freedom Caucus skipping out on debates and forums. 

In Natrona County, HD 35 candidate Christopher Dresang, who’s running against Freedom Caucus member Rep. Tony Locke, R-Casper, and House District 57 candidate Julie Jarvis, who’s running against conservative firebrand Rep. Jeanette Ward, R-Casper, skipped an event hosted by Liberty’s Place 4U (LP4U), a hardline conservative group. 

Dresang said he was directly inspired to make this choice because of the Fremont candidates who did likewise and because LP4U supports Freedom Caucus candidates and developer Kyle True in his push for a controversial gravel pit. The group is also very critical of the Natrona County GOP leadership, of which Dresang is a member, he said.

“For those three reasons, I don’t think they would be fair or impartial to me,” he said. “I felt like they needed me more than I needed them.”

Dresang said he plans to attend an upcoming Politics in the Park event hosted by the Natrona County Republican Women, so he doesn’t feel like he’s shortchanging the voters.

On the federal level, U.S. Sen. John Barrasso and Rep. Harriet Hageman also both said they would be skipping the Wyoming PBS debates this primary season, causing the station to have to cancel the event.

Penn said she’s also aware of “liberal Republicans in Laramie County” boycotting a Laramie County Right to Life event as well. 

Keren Meister-Emerich, vice president of the Cheyenne chapter of the League, said some of her local candidates have chosen not to participate in their debates because they said they can’t make it. Others, she said, like House District 9 candidate Exie Brown, simply haven’t responded to their invitation, which she finds “unprofessional.” 

Brown did not immediately respond to Cowboy State Daily about why he didn’t respond.

For Senate District 6, where there are six candidates, Meister-Emerich said only two participated in their forum.

Although some may claim they didn’t see the invite, Meister-Emerich said this excuse should still raise concern for voters as she “questions how responsive they would be to their constituency.” 

She is optimistic that some candidates are actually starting to notice that they get bad press when they don’t participate in forums and debates, as she has had some reach out to do video interviews after the fact.

In Campbell County, state senate candidate Phil Christopherson also skipped an event that was held at a local church.

“I don’t think it’s appropriate to hold political debates in churches,” he said. “I believe that’s a violation of the separation of church and state.”

Is The League Nonpartisan?

Penn said participating in the League of Women Voters forum would support the pretense that the group is nonpartisan.

“Conservatives want forums and debate because our message resonates with the people,” she said. “What we don’t want is to support the pretense that a sponsoring organization is non-partisan, when we know that it’s not.” 

Although it bills itself as nonpartisan, the national chapter of the League has taken stances on various issues that might raise some eyebrows among conservatives.

In early 2021, the group called for the removal of former President Donald Trump from office, and earlier this month blasted the decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to grant presidential immunity to Trump. 

Meister-Emerich said people should not conflate the national group with the Wyoming chapter.

“Some of the issues nationally we do not focus on locally because we don’t feel that they’re appropriate,” she said.

But the local group has also taken some notable stances as well, opposing Secretary of State Chuck Gray on various election issues, promoting a pro-choice position on abortion and supporting Medicaid expansion. 

Even if the group does have some biases, Oakley said she still doesn’t understand why this would prevent a candidate from participating in their forum and calling them out for it if they felt they were treated unfairly. Penn did not respond when asked this question.