Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Wyoming

Ballot access for major and minor party candidates

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Note: This article is not intended to serve as an exhaustive guide to running for public office. Individuals should contact their state election agencies for further information.

In order to get on the ballot in Wyoming, a candidate for state or federal office must meet a variety of state-specific filing requirements and deadlines. These regulations, known as ballot access laws, determine whether a candidate or party will appear on an election ballot. These laws are set at the state level. A candidate must prepare to meet ballot access requirements well in advance of primaries, caucuses, and the general election.

There are three basic methods by which an individual may become a candidate for office in a state.

An individual can seek the nomination of a state-recognized political party.
An individual can run as an independent. Independent candidates often must petition in order to have their names printed on the general election ballot.
An individual can run as a write-in candidate.

This article outlines the steps that prospective candidates for state-level and congressional office must take in order to run for office in Wyoming. For information about filing requirements for presidential candidates, see "Ballot access requirements for presidential candidates in Wyoming." Information about filing requirements for local-level offices is not available in this article (contact state election agencies for information about local candidate filing processes).

See state election laws

Year-specific filing information[edit]

2022[edit]

U.S. House[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Wyoming in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Wyoming, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2022
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming	U.S. House	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	$750.00	5/27/2022	Source
Wyoming	U.S. House	Unaffiliated	2% of all votes cast for U.S. Representative in the last election	$750.00	8/29/2022	Source

Governor[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for gubernatorial candidates in Wyoming in the 2022 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Wyoming, click here.

Filing requirements for gubernatorial candidates, 2022
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming	Governor	Ballot-qualified party	N/A	$300.00	5/27/2022	Source
Wyoming	Governor	Unaffiliated	5,418	$300.00	8/29/2022	Source

For filing information from previous years, click "[Show more]" below.

2020[edit]

U.S. Senate[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Wyoming in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Wyoming, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2020
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Signature formula	Filing fee	Filing fee formula	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming	U.S. Senate	Major party	N/A	N/A	$200.00	Fixed number	5/29/2020	Source
Wyoming	U.S. Senate	Unaffiliated	4,025	2% of all votes cast for U.S. Representative in the last election	$200.00	Fixed number	8/25/2020	Source

U.S. House[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. House candidates in Wyoming in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Wyoming, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. House candidates, 2020
State	Office	Party	Signatures required	Signature formula	Filing fee	Filing fee formula	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming	At-large District	Major party	0	N/A	$200.00	Fixed number	5/29/2020	Source
Wyoming	At-large District	Unaffiliated	4,025	2% of all votes cast for U.S. Representative in the last election	$200.00	Fixed number	8/25/2020	Source

State House[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for Wyoming House of Representatives candidates in the 2020 election cycle.

Filing requirements for state legislative candidates, 2020
Chamber name	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming House of Representatives	Qualified party	N/A	$25.00	5/29/2020	Source
Wyoming House of Representatives	Unaffiliated	2% of all votes cast for the office in the last general election	$25.00	8/25/2020	Source

State Senate[edit]

The table below details filing requirements for Wyoming State Senate candidates in the 2020 election cycle.

Filing requirements for state legislative candidates, 2020
Chamber name	Party	Signatures required	Filing fee	Filing deadline	Source
Wyoming State Senate	Qualified party	N/A	$25.00	5/29/2020	Source
Wyoming State Senate	Unaffiliated	2% of all votes cast for the office in the last general election	$25.00	8/25/2020	Source

2018[edit]

See also: State and federal candidate filing deadlines for 2018 and Wyoming elections, 2018

See below for 2018 candidate filing deadlines.

2016[edit]

See also: Wyoming elections, 2016

The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Wyoming in 2016.

Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016
Deadline	Event type	Event description
May 27, 2016	Ballot access	Partisan candidate filing deadline
June 1, 2016	Ballot access	Filing deadline for new political parties
August 8, 2016	Ballot access	Filing deadline for judicial candidates
August 9, 2016	Campaign finance	Pre-primary report due
August 15, 2016	Ballot access	Filing deadline for minor and provisional party candidates
August 16, 2016	Election date	Primary election
August 26, 2016	Campaign finance	Primary report due
August 29, 2016	Ballot access	Independent candidate filing deadline
November 1, 2016	Campaign finance	Pre-general report due
November 8, 2016	Election date	General election
November 18, 2016	Campaign finance	General report due
Sources: Wyoming Secretary of State, "2016 Key Election Dates," accessed June 14, 2015 Wyoming Secretary of State, "Wyoming's Campaign Finance Information System," accessed June 14, 2015

2015[edit]

To view historical information for 2015, click [show] to expand the section.

See also: Wyoming elections, 2015

There were no regularly scheduled state executive, state legislative, or congressional elections in Wyoming in 2015.

2014[edit]

To view historical information for 2014, click [show] to expand the section.

See also: Wyoming elections, 2014

Wyoming held a primary election on August 19, 2014, and a general election on November 4, 2014. Voters elected candidates to serve in the following state and federal offices:

Governor of Wyoming
Wyoming Secretary of State
Wyoming Treasurer
Wyoming Auditor
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction
1 seat in the United States House of Representatives
1 seat in the United States Senate
60 seats in the Wyoming House of Representatives
15 seats in the Wyoming State Senate

The 2014 filing deadline for all partisan candidates, including those participating in the state primary and seeking a party's nomination by convention, was May 30, 2014.^[1] The filing deadline for independent candidates was August 25, 2014.^[1] The deadline to qualify as a political party in time for the 2014 general election was June 2, 2014.^[1] Write-in candidates had to submit an application to have their write-in votes counted by November 6, 2014.^[1]

Legend: Ballot access Campaign finance Election date

Dates and requirements for candidates in 2014
Deadline	Event type	Event description
May 30, 2014	Ballot access	Filing deadline for all partisan candidates participating in the primary or seeking nomination by convention
June 2, 2014	Ballot access	Deadline to file for the creation of a new provisional political party
August 12, 2014	Campaign finance	Pre-primary report due**
August 19, 2014	Election date	Primary Date
August 25, 2014	Ballot access	Filing deadline for independent candidates participating in the general election
August 29, 2014	Campaign finance	Primary report due**
October 28, 2014	Campaign finance	Pre-general report due**
November 4, 2014	Election date	General election
November 6, 2014	Ballot access	Deadline for write-in candidates to file application to have write-in votes counted for the candidate
November 14, 2014	Campaign finance	General report due**
For more information, see "Campaign finance" below.

Process to become a candidate[edit]

See statutes: Title 22-5 of the Wyoming Election Code

Major party candidates[edit]

Application for nomination form, 2013

A candidate seeking the nomination of a major party for state or federal office must be registered with the party whose nomination he or she seeks. The candidate must submit an application for nomination form to the Wyoming Secretary of State. If running for state legislative office, the candidate must be a resident of the district in which he or she seeks election for at least 12 months preceding the election. If running for governor, the candidate must be a resident of the state for at least five years prior to the election. If running for another statewide office, the candidate must be a registered elector in the state.^[2]^[3]^[4]

The application must be accompanied by a filing fee. No application will be considered valid without a filing fee. The candidate must file the application and filing fee no later than 81 days before the primary election.^[5]

Filing fees by office
Office	Filing fee
Governor United States Senator Secretary of state State auditor State treasurer	$200
Wyoming House of Representatives Wyoming State Senate	$25

Minor and provisional party candidates[edit]

A candidate seeking the nomination of a minor or provisional party is nominated by party convention. To be certified as the nominee of a minor or provisional party at a party's state convention, the candidate must submit an application for nomination to the Wyoming Secretary of State, along with the required filing fee (the filing fees are the same as those required of major party candidates). The candidate must file the requisite paperwork no later than 81 days prior the primary election.^[6]

Independent candidates[edit]

An independent candidate for partisan office must be nominated by filing a signed petition. The petition must be approved by the Wyoming Secretary of State prior to circulation. The petition must be accompanied by the same fee required of party candidates. Petitions must be filed with the Wyoming Secretary of State no later than 70 days before a general election.^[7]^[8]^[9]

For a statewide office, the petition must be signed by registered electors, which are defined as residents of the state eligible to vote for the petitioner, numbering at least 2 percent of the total number of votes cast for United States Representative in the last general election for the entire state.^[10]

For a state legislative office, the petition must be signed by registered electors equaling at least 2 percent of the total number of votes cast for the office in that particular district in the last general election.^[10]

Write-in candidates[edit]

Each person who requests to have all votes cast for him or her as a write-in candidate counted must file an application for candidacy together with the appropriate filing fee with Wyoming Secretary of State no later than two days after the election in which the person desires to have the write-in votes counted.^[11]

Petition requirements[edit]

See also: Methods for signing candidate nominating petitions

In some cases, candidates may need to obtain signatures via the petition process to gain access to the ballot. This section outlines the laws and regulations pertaining to petitions and circulators in Wyoming.

Format requirements[edit]

Petition for independent candidates[edit]

Independent candidates for office will complete and submit a petition containing the required signatures for the office being sought. The petition must include a declaration including the language below:

“

PETITION FOR NOMINATION (INDEPENDENT CANDIDATES)

I, ...., swear or affirm that I was born on ...., ....(year), that I have been a resident of the State of Wyoming since ...., and that I am a registered voter of Election District No. ...., in Precinct No. ...., County of ...., residing at ...., (if for the office of state senator or representative, commissioner or other district office) in Senate (House) (Commissioner or other) District ...., State of Wyoming, and having obtained the number of signatures required by law for nomination by petition, I hereby request that my name be printed on the official ballot at the next general election as an independent candidate for the office of .... and declare that if nominated and elected, I will qualify for the office.

Dated the .... day of ...., ....(year).

....................... (Signature)

............... (Residence Address)

The eligible, registered electors supporting my nomination, and numbering not less than the number required, are as follows:

(Signature) (Printed Name) (Residence) (Date)

1._____________________________________________

2._____________________________________________.^[12]^[13]

”

Petitions containing signatures must also be verified by circulators in the following format:

“

VERIFICATION BY CIRCULATORS

I, ...., do hereby certify that I am a circulator of this petition, and I solely and personally circulated this petition, that all the signatures appearing herein were made in my presence from .... (month) .... (day), ....(year) through .... (month) .... (day), ....(year), and to the best of my knowledge and belief such signatures are those of the persons whose names they purport to be.

............... (Signature)

........(Residence Address)^[12]^[13]

”

Circulation requirements[edit]

Petitions for a particular election may only be circulated during the calendar year in which the election is to be held.^[14] A petition circulator must also complete a declaration stating that he or she personally circulated a petition, that all signatures appearing on the petition were made in his or her presence, and that to the best of his or her knowledge, the signatures are the names they purport to be.^[15]

Election-related agencies[edit]

See also: State election agencies

Wyoming Secretary of State

Elections Division

State Capitol Building

200 West 24th Street

Cheyenne, Wyoming 82002-0020

Phone: 307-777-7186

Fax: 307-777-7640

Email: elections@state.wy.us

Website: http://soswy.state.wy.us/Elections/Elections.aspx

Term limits[edit]

State executives[edit]

See also: State executives with term limits and States with gubernatorial term limits

The state executive term limits in Wyoming are as follows:

The governor is eligible to serve for eight out of 16 years.
The comptroller is limited to a total of two terms.
The treasurer is limited to a total of two terms.

State legislators[edit]

See also: State legislatures with term limits

There are no term limits placed on Wyoming state legislators.

Congressional partisanship[edit]

See also: List of United States Representatives from Wyoming and List of United States Senators from Wyoming

Below is the current partisan breakdown of the congressional delegation from Wyoming.

Congressional Partisan Breakdown from Wyoming
Party	U.S. Senate	U.S. House	Total
Democratic	0	0	0
Republican	2	1	3
Independent	0	0	0
Vacancies	0	0	0
Total	2	1	3

State legislative partisanship[edit]

Below is the current partisan breakdown of the state legislature of Wyoming.

Wyoming State Senate[edit]

Party		As of October 2022
	Democratic Party	2
	Republican Party	28
	Other	0
	Vacancies	0
Total		30

Wyoming House of Representatives[edit]

Party		As of October 2022
	Democratic Party	7
	Republican Party	51
	Independent	1
	Libertarian Party	1
	Vacancies	0
Total		60

Recent news[edit]

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Wyoming ballot access. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Wyoming - Google News

External links[edit]

Official state and federal links[edit]

Other information[edit]

Ballot Access News – News updates and analysis of ballot access issues
ThirdPartyPolitics.us – Blog about American third party and independent politics
National Voter Outreach – Political consulting firm that specializes in organizing petition signature drives

Footnotes[edit]

↑ ^1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Wyoming Secretary of State, "2014 Key Election Dates," accessed November 7, 2013
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-204," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-102(a)," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "Federal and State Offices," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-209," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-304," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-306," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-307," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ ^10.0 ^10.1 Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-304," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-501," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ ^12.0 ^12.1 Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ ^13.0 ^13.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-305," accessed March 26, 2014
↑ Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014

[wycalendar-1] 1.0 ^1.1 ^1.2 ^1.3 Wyoming Secretary of State, "2014 Key Election Dates," accessed November 7, 2013

[2] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-204," accessed March 26, 2014

[3] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-102(a)," accessed March 26, 2014

[wyapplication-4] Wyoming Secretary of State, "Federal and State Offices," accessed March 26, 2014

[5] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-209," accessed March 26, 2014

[6] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-304," accessed March 26, 2014

[7] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014

[8] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-306," accessed March 26, 2014

[9] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-307," accessed March 26, 2014

[wysignatures-10] 10.0 ^10.1 Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-304," accessed March 26, 2014

[11] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-501," accessed March 26, 2014

[independent_petition-12] 12.0 ^12.1 Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014

[quotedisclaimer-13] 13.0 ^13.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

[14] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-305," accessed March 26, 2014

[15] Wyoming Election Code, "Title 22-5-301," accessed March 26, 2014

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Ballot access requirements for political candidates in Wyoming

Contents

Year-specific filing information[edit]

2022[edit]

U.S. House[edit]

Governor[edit]

2020[edit]

U.S. Senate[edit]

U.S. House[edit]

State House[edit]

State Senate[edit]

2018[edit]

2016[edit]

2015[edit]

2014[edit]

Process to become a candidate[edit]

Major party candidates[edit]

Minor and provisional party candidates[edit]

Independent candidates[edit]

Write-in candidates[edit]

Petition requirements[edit]

Format requirements[edit]

Petition for independent candidates[edit]

Circulation requirements[edit]

Election-related agencies[edit]

Term limits[edit]

State executives[edit]

State legislators[edit]

Congressional partisanship[edit]

State legislative partisanship[edit]

Wyoming State Senate[edit]

Wyoming House of Representatives[edit]

Recent news[edit]

See also[edit]

External links[edit]

Official state and federal links[edit]

Other information[edit]

Footnotes[edit]