US House candidate leaves Republican Primary in an attempt to gain the Constitution Party’s nomination – Casper Star-Tribune Online

Marissa Selvig, a candidate for Wyomings U.S. House seat in 2022, announced Monday that she will be campaigning as a member of the Constitution Party and leaving the Republican Primary.

But because theres no Constitution Party primary, no one can officially be a Constitution Party candidate until the group nominates a candidate in April after a vetting process.

Selvig said she has been in contact with members of the Constitution Party and she is not aware of any other candidates vying for the partys nomination.

After spending many months as a Republican candidate, Selvig said shes leaving the primary because the other candidates and many inside the party ...endorse big money, negative politics, finger-pointing and talking behind closed doors about who they really support.

Rep. Liz Cheney and former President Donald Trumps bad blood has made this race the weightiest House race in Wyomings recent history. Their opposition toward each other was spurred by Cheneys vote to impeach Trump following the Jan. 6 insurrection on the U.S. Capitol. Cheney was one of only 10 House Republicans to vote to impeach Trump, as well as the highest-ranking Republican to do so.

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Cheneys decision to impeach Trump and her continued criticism of the former president has brought on a number of outspoken critics in the federal and state Republican party. She ultimately was forced out of her leadership role in the House and has been formally unrecognized as a Republican by the Wyoming GOP.

What is going on in America is more important than just getting Liz [Cheney] out, Selvig told the Star-Tribune on Tuesday.

The notion that Selvig puts forward of principle superseding party affiliation or specific people is something that Cheney has relied on as a major campaign platform as well. Ever since she has started getting pushback for voting to impeach Donald Trump and putting some of the onus of the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol on him, she has relied on the idea that principles are more important than sticking with members of your own political party.

This race has become about Cheney, particularly unseating her. Trump endorsed Harriet Hageman, a former gubernatorial candidate and lawyer from Fort Laramie who splits her time between D.C. and Cheyenne. Trump also continues to put out statements espousing Cheney and the viability of her candidacy.

There are other indicators, outside of Trump, that this Wyoming House race is unprecedented in many regards.

Hageman launched a page of her campaign site intended to invite super PAC money to aid her candidacy. This has never happened before in the state, according to experts.

The Constitution Party used to be considered a major party and therefore was able to hold a primary. The party has since lost that status because of poor voter turnout for their candidates.

The Constitution Party of Wyoming was organized in 2010. Taylor Haynes ran for governor of Wyoming as a write-in candidate for the Constitution Party, as the group did not have ballot access yet. Haynes finished third with 7.3% of the vote.

In 2012 and 2014, Constitution Party candidate Daniel Clyde Cummings campaigned for Wyomings House seat and received 2.05% and 4.1% respectively. That 4.1% was less than the Libertarian, Democratic and Republican candidates.

The party fielded eight candidates for local, state and congressional offices in 2014, according to Ballotpedia. Wyoming Secretary of State candidate Jennifer Young received 12.1% of the vote, which allowed the party to gain recognition as a major political party in the state for the 2016 election cycle because they broke the 10% threshold needed to gain that status.

In 2020, Jeff Haggit achieved 2.9% of the vote as a Constitution Party candidate.

I think its time we start voting on our preferred candidates and not just the lesser of two evils. I intend to prevail, Selvig said. Im going to continue campaigning as hard as possible.

The standing theory is that the more Republican candidates join the field, the easier it will be for Cheney to win, because candidates do not need a majority, only a plurality. With Selvig out of the primary, Hagemans chances should be better in theory.

Wyomings Republican primaries with many candidates have a history of handing the victory to one candidate, while the rest of the field splits the vote, getting only small portions of the electorate.

Trump acknowledged this trend in a statement from earlier this year.

Remember though, in the end we just want ONE CANDIDATE running against Cheney, Trump said in his statement. Ill be meeting with some of her opponents in Bedminster next week and will be making my decision on who to endorse in the next few months. JUST ONE CANDIDATE.

This is not the first time Trump has referenced the issues that come along with a wide campaign field.

[Cheney] is so low that her only chance would be if vast numbers of people run against her which, hopefully, wont happen, he said back in early May.

At a forum in the early summer, all of the candidates who attended other than Marissa Selvig and state Sen. Anthony Bouchard, R-Cheyenne said that they would throw their support behind the leading candidate come May 1, 2022. In a state that voted 70% for Trump in the 2020 general election, the leading candidate and Trumps choice could be synonymous.

Since Hageman was endorsed, three candidates have dropped out. First, Cheyenne businessman Darin Smith and Bryan Miller, chairman of the Sheridan County Republican Party, announced they were ending their campaigns. A few days later, Rep. Chuck Gray, R-Casper, said he would be suspending his campaign. Bouchard remains in the race.

Selvig has so far raised roughly $7,000 and has about $3,000 in the bank as of the last day of September. Out of the candidates still in the race who have raised money, Selvig is at the bottom of the pack.

There is another quarterly fundraising deadline coming up at the end of this month which will provide a better picture of how the newly shaken up candidate field stands.

The beginning of the quarter went well, the last part of the quarter was a little slow, Selvig said.

Despite the historical lack of success Constitution Party candidates have had in the past, Selvig remains sturdy

Im really looking forward to the next step in this process and fighting for the people of Wyoming.

Follow state politics reporter Victoria Eavis on Twitter @Victoria_Eavis

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US House candidate leaves Republican Primary in an attempt to gain the Constitution Party's nomination - Casper Star-Tribune Online