2010 Wyoming elections

2010 Wyoming elections

A general election was held in the U.S. state of Wyoming on Tuesday, November 2, 2010. All of the state's executive officers—the Governor, Secretary of State, Auditor, Treasurer, and Superintendent of Public Instruction—were up for election.

Gubernatorial election

Main article: 2010 Wyoming gubernatorial election

Incumbent Governor Dave Freudenthal, a Democrat, was ostensibly unable to run for re-election due to term limits. Despite the questionable legality of the state's term limits, Freudenthal did not challenge his inability to seek re-election and declined to seek a third term. Former U.S. Attorney Matt Mead narrowly won the Republican nomination while former Teton County Commissioner Leslie Petersen won the Democratic primary. In the general election, Mead defeated Petersen in a landslide.

Wyoming gubernatorial election, 2010^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Matt Mead	123,780	65.68%	+35.67%
	Democratic	Leslie Petersen	43,240	22.94%	−47.05%
	Independent	Taylor Haynes	13,796	7.32%
	Libertarian	Mike Wheeler	5,362	2.85%
	Write-in		2,285	1.21%
Majority			80,540	42.74%	+2.75%
Turnout			190,822
	Republican gain from Democratic		Swing

Secretary of State

Incumbent Secretary of State Max Maxfield, a Republican, ran for re-election to a second term.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Andrew Simons, political activist^[2]

Results

Democratic Party primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Andrew Simons	19,880	99.41
	Democratic	Write-ins	117	0.59
Total votes			19,997	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Max Maxfield, incumbent Secretary of State

Results

Republican Primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Max Maxfield (inc.)	91,484	99.57
	Republican	Write-ins	399	0.43
Total votes			91,883	100.00

General election

Results

2010 Wyoming Secretary of State election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Max Maxfield (inc.)	140,087	76.07%	−5.92%
	Democratic	Andrew Simons	35,873	19.48%	+19.48%
	Libertarian	Candice De Laat	8,045	4.37%	−13.64%
	Write-in		151	0.08%	+0.08%
Majority			104,214	56.59%	−7.39%
Turnout			184,156
	Republican hold		Swing

Results of the 2010 Wyoming Secretary Of State election by county

Maxfield

  40–50%

  60–70%

  70–80%

  80–90%

Auditor

Incumbent Republican Auditor Rita Meyer opted to run for Governor rather than seek re-election to a second term. In the Republican primary, two accountants—Jim Brown, the former vice-chairman of the Republican Party of Wyoming, who unsuccessfully ran against Meyer in 2006, and Cynthia Cloud—ran to succeed her.^[4] During the campaign, Brown attracted widespread support from the Republican establishment and outraised Cloud, but she narrowly defeated him in the primary, which the Casper Star-Tribune called "the biggest upset of the election."^[5]

No Democrat filed for the race, but former State Senator and then-Casper City Councilman Keith Goodenough won 31 write-in votes, despite not being a candidate. Under Wyoming law, Goodenough could have accepted the nomination, but ultimately declined to do so, opting to run for re-election to the Casper City Council instead.^[6]

Democratic primary

Candidates

No Democratic candidates filed.

Results

Democratic Party primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Write-ins	839	100.00
Total votes			839	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Cynthia Cloud, accountant
• Bruce Brown, accountant, former vice-chairman of the Republican Party of Wyoming, 2006 candidate for State Auditor

Results

Republican Primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Cynthia Cloud	47,427	50.76
	Republican	Bruce Brown	45,861	49.08
Total votes			93,439	100.00

General election

Results

2010 Wyoming Auditor election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Cynthia Cloud	157,848	99.00%	+30.93%
	Write-in		1,598	1.00%
Majority			156,250	98.00%	+61.86%
Turnout			159,446
	Republican hold		Swing

Treasurer

Incumbent Republican Treasurer Joe Meyer, first elected in 2006, opted to run for re-election. He was unopposed in the Republican primary, and no Democratic candidates filed to run in the primary. Worth Christie, an insurance agent in Casper, despite not being a candidate, received 30 write-in votes in the Democratic primary. However, Christie ultimately declined to accept the nomination, instead opting to run for the Casper College Board of Trustees.^[7] With no candidates filed to run against him, Meyer was re-elected unopposed. However, just two years into his term, Meyer would die in office and was replaced by Mark Gordon.

Democratic primary

Candidates

No candidates filed.

Results

Democratic Party primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Write-ins	727	100.00
Total votes			727	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Joe Meyer, incumbent Treasurer

Results

Republican Primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Joe Meyer (inc.)	90,528	99.66
	Republican	Write-ins	313	0.34
Total votes			90,841	100.00

General election

Results

2010 Wyoming Treasurer election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Joe Meyer (inc.)	159,436	99.20%	+26.48%
	Write-in		1,282	0.80%
Majority			158,154	98.40%	+52.96%
Turnout			160,718
	Republican hold		Swing

Superintendent of Public Instruction

Incumbent Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction Jim McBride ran for re-election to a second term. However, owing to the controversy surrounding the state's standardized testing system,^[8] he faced strong competition in the Republican primary from Cindy Hill, a high school assistant principal; Trent Blankenship, the former Superintendent of Public Instruction; and Ted Adams, the Laramie County School District 1 Superintendent.^[9] Hill established herself as the leading candidate against McBride, with polling showing her with a double-digit lead on the incumbent^[10] while Blankenship was forced to defend his 2005 decision to abruptly resign from office.^[11] Ultimately, Hill won the primary by a wide margin, winning 49% of the vote to McBridge's 25%, Blankenship's 15%, and Adams's 11%.

Meanwhile, State Senator Mike Massie, long considered a candidate for statewide office,^[12] won the Democratic primary unopposed and emerged as the party's strongest candidate in the statewide races. He campaigned on ditching the state's beleaguered standardized testing regime^[13] and attacked Hill for releasing her education plan only weeks before the election.^[14] Popular Democratic Governor Dave Freudenthal endorsed Massie as the general election started, and criticized the state's Republican leadership for its inaction in fixing education problems.^[15] He also won the endorsement of the Casper Star-Tribune, which praised his "clear handle on what needs to happen at the Department of Education" and argued that he was "the right person at the right time for this very demanding job." The Star-Tribune criticized Hill for the delay in releasing her platform, which it called "more of a philosophical statement than a blueprint to improve education."^[16] The Jackson Hole News and Guide also endorsed Massie, praising him as "well-versed in the education issues Wyoming faces" and as a policymaker who "listens and offers pragmatic solutions to the problems facing Wyoming educators today."^[17] As the campaign closed out, Massie's fundraising remained strong, allowing him to stay competitive with Hill.^[18]

Despite Massie's strength as a candidate, however, he was unable to overcome the state's significant Republican lean, and lost to Hill in a landslide, winning only 39% of the vote to her 61%. However, in so doing, he received the most votes of any statewide Democratic candidate, significantly outpacing Leslie Petersen, the party's gubernatorial nominee.

Democratic primary

Candidates

• Mike Massie, State Senator

Results

Democratic Party primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Democratic	Mike Massie	20,478	99.20
	Democratic	Write-ins	165	0.80
Total votes			20,643	100.00

Republican primary

Candidates

• Cindy Hill, assistant high school principal
• Jim McBride, incumbent Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Trent Blankenship, former Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Ted Adams, Laramie County School District 1 Superintendent

Results

Republican Party primary results^[3]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Cindy Hill	47,165	49.20
	Republican	Jim McBride (inc.)	24,284	25.33
	Republican	Trent Blankenship	13,988	14.59
	Republican	Ted Adams	10,227	10.67
	Republican	Write-ins	209	0.22
Total votes			95,873	100.00

General election

Results

2010 Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction election^[1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Republican	Cindy Hill	113,026	61.08%	+2.54%
	Democratic	Mike Massie	71,772	38.79%	−2.67%
	Write-in		250	0.14%
Turnout			185,048
	Republican hold		Swing

References

1. "Statewide Candidates Official Summary, Wyoming General Election - November 2, 2010" (PDF). Wyoming Secretary of State. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
2. Gruver, Mead (October 31, 2010). "Underdog takes on Maxfield for No. 2 job". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. 3.
3. "Statewide Candidates Official Summary, Wyoming Primary Election - August 17, 2010" (PDF). Wyoming Secretary of State. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
4. Joyce, Matt (August 15, 2010). "Two battle for GOP nod for state auditor". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. E3.
5. "Hard work begins for winners of primaries". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. August 19, 2010. p. A7.
6. Wolfson, Joshua (September 1, 2010). "Goodenough won't seek auditor spot". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. B1.
7. "Worth Christie won't run for treasurer". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. August 31, 2010. p. A3.
8. Borchardt, Jackie (April 23, 2010). "McBride defends PAWS testing". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1.
9. Pelzer, Jeremy (February 23, 2010). "State superintendent race heats up". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A3.
10. Borchardt, Jackie (August 2, 2010). "Poll: Hill leading GOP pack". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1, A8.
11. Pelzer, Jeremy (June 20, 2010). "Blankenship seeks second chance". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1.
12. Pelzer, Jeremy (March 5, 2010). "Democrats mull gubernatorial runs". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1.
13. Neary, Ben (June 20, 2010). "Massie promises to get rid of PAWS". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A3.
14. Pelzer, Jeremy (October 13, 2010). "Schools race heats up". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1.
15. Borchardt, Jackie (September 22, 2010). "Gov backs Massie for schools post". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. B1, B2.
16. "Massie has best plan to improve Wyo schools". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. October 24, 2010. p. A6.
17. "A guide to state races". Jackson Hole News & Guide. Jackson Hole, Wyo. October 20, 2010. p. 4A.
18. Borchardt, Jackie (October 28, 2010). "$50K separates superintendent candidates". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyo. p. A1.