Monday, DECEMBER 22, 2025 |
Photo – Cynthia Lummis – Courtesy Cynthia Lummis
United States Senator Cynthia Lummis announced Friday she will not seek reelection to the upper chamber next year, setting up an open seat primary in 2026.
The announcement came after the Senate adjourned for the holiday break, a move that will end her stay after a single term in office.
Lummis said in a statement that after an intense session, especially the past several weeks, she did not have it in her to serve out another six-year term.
Her fellow senator from Wyoming, John Barrasso released the following statement, referring to Lummis a “straight shooter and a trail blazer.”
“Cynthia Lummis is a perfect senator for Wyoming. From Miss Frontier Days to the Wyoming Legislature to the U.S. House of Representatives and the U.S. Senate – Cynthia has never stopped fighting for the people of Wyoming.”
State officials also weighed in on the Lummis legacy. State Superintendent of Public Instruction Megan Degenfelder said in a statement that she “looked up to her instantly” upon meeting her when she was a teenager in high school.
In the statement, the state school superintendent said, “Senator Lummis has been a committed public servant to this great state for over four decades. She was the youngest woman ever elected to the Wyoming Legislature, served as Wyoming’s State Treasurer for eight years, and proudly represented our state in the U.S. House of Representatives. She ultimately made history as the first woman ever elected to the United States Senate from Wyoming.”
Secretary of State Chuck Grey thanked Lummis for her service to the state, saying she “has done tremendous work for the Cowboy State.”
In her announcement on Friday, Senator Lummis said, “Deciding not to run for re-election does represent a change of heart for me, but in the difficult, exhausting session weeks this fall, I’ve come to accept that I do not have six more years in me. I am a devout legislator, but I feel like a sprinter in a marathon. The energy required doesn’t match up.”
In Washington, Lummis serves as the chair of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Digital Assets where she has been a leading voice for crypto currencies.
The move makes her the fifth Senate Republican to head for the exits next year, joining Senators Joni Ernst (Iowa), Mitch McConnel (Kentucky), Thom Tillis (North Carolina) and Tommy Tuberville (Alabama).
U.S. Representative Hariett Hageman is considered a top-tier option to run for the empty senate seat next year. The primary is set for mid-August.
