WEDNESDAY, August 19, 2026|
Photo – I Voted sticker – Bigfoot99 file photo
The results of yesterday’s primary elections are in.
The Carbon County Clerk’s Office posted the 2026 primary election results late last night. In the Senate race, Harriet Hageman received over 1,850 votes, more than three times as many as the runner up Sam Mead, who had 585.
Carbon County voters chose Chuck Gray over Steve Friess, Kevin Christensen, and Reid Rasner to serve as Wyoming’s sole Congressman.
And Eric Barlow received the most votes from Carbon County residents for Wyoming governor, beating out Megan Degenfelder and Brent Bien.
Locally, the primary elections results indicate that former District 47 representative Bob Davis will represent Carbon County in the Wyoming Senate, with Baggs rancher Eamon O’Toole set to take Davis’s vacant seat. Pam Thayer will likely return to the Wyoming Legislature as the District 11 representative.
Two seats on the Board of Carbon County Commissioners are up for election this year. Incumbents Travis Moore and John Johnson were running unopposed and received 1,946 and 1,656 votes respectively.
In the county coroner’s race, Deputy Coroner Shayna Casada received more votes than current County Coroner Brittany Nyman. Both candidates will run against one another in November’s general election.
Sarah Chavez Harkins, who was running unopposed, is expected to serve another term as the county attorney. Sheriff Alex Bakken is on track to continue leading the Carbon County Sheriff’s Office. He received more votes than his opponent, Deputy Ted Kranenberg, by a margin of 2,216 to 327.
Lisa Smith is likely to continue serving as county clerk. Lindsey West is expected to remain county treasurer. Renee Snider will likely stay on as county assessor, and Mara Sanger will continue as clerk of district court. All ran unopposed, but each race drew more than three write‑in ballots, meaning every candidate may face opposition in November.
In Baggs, Scott Allison and Matthew Lee Howell will run for the mayor’s seat in November. Three town council seats were also up for election, but no one filed to run. However, 39 write‑in votes were cast.
Next door in Dixon, Matt Feldmann will serve as mayor. He ran unopposed and no write-in votes were cast. Raymond Hauger, who also ran unopposed, will likely join Feldmann on the Dixon Town Council.
Morgan Irene is likely to serve another term as the mayor of Elk Mountain, having received 57 votes. Although 13 write‑in ballots were submitted. Write‑in candidates need only three votes to qualify for the November ballot. Three people were competing for the two open Town Council seats, so all three candidates, Linda Crane, Brett Larson and sitting councilman Craig Mustard, will advance to the general election. However, with 11 write‑in votes, a fourth candidate may join the race.
Jim McKinney, who was running unopposed, received 131 votes for mayor of Encampment. Twenty-one write-in votes were cast in the same race. Two Town Council seats are also on the ballot this year. Since four candidates will advance to the general election, Gary Stull, Wyatt Craig, John Farr, and current councilman Steve Reichert are all in contention for the two Encampment Town Council seats. However, if all 40 write-in votes are for the same candidate, Farr will be bumped off the ballot, as he received 32 votes.
It appears that Mayor Charlie George will serve another term in Hanna. Eighteen write-in votes were cast, so he may face a competitor in November. With two open Town Council seats, sitting councilman David Felix, Marcia Beals, and Timothy Born will face off in November. However, 59 write‑in votes were cast, meaning a fourth candidate is likely to be on the ballot.
Unsurprisingly, Medicine Bow Mayor Justin George received the most votes as he ran unopposed. Eight write-in votes were cast, so if a candidate received three votes, they will run against Mayor George in November. Current council members Trevor Strauch and Crystal Mayfield will remain on the Medicine Bow Town Council as only two write-in votes were cast in that race.
In Rawlins, Megan Cragun and sitting councilmember Bruce Seilaff will face off in November’s election to represent Ward One on the City Council. Both candidates received more primary votes than former mayor DeBari Martinez. Cristy Magagna, who ran unopposed, will represent Ward Two in the general election, although 19 write‑in votes mean she may have a challenger. Current councilman Steve Sanger and Cody Bluth will run against one another to be the city’s Ward Three representative, and Christine Cruz‑Ford and Eddie Archuleta will run for the council’s at‑large seat.
No one ran for mayor of Riverside, although 20 write-in votes were cast. If at least two people receive three votes, they will advance to the November election. Lisa Lorenz and Billie Helwick are the only candidates to fill the two open town council seats, but eight write-in votes were cast.
Saratoga Mayor Chuck Davis may have a competitor in November, as 19 write-in votes were cast. Councilmen Jerry Fluty and Bub Barkhurst will face Tiffany Moore in the general election.
And in Sinclair, current mayor Cullen Meeks will run against challenger Eugene Goetz in November. Nancy Sanders will likely keep her place on the Sinclair Town Council, with Stephanie Haldorson filling the remaining open seat. With four open candidate spots, and eight write-in votes, they may have competition in November.
Given that most races were uncontested, the majority of candidates are expected to advance to their respective offices in November. However, write‑in ballots may introduce unexpected opposition in the general election.
