Episode Details

It's time to take a look at what's happening around Wyoming for Wednesday, December 24th. I'm Mac Watson.

–

U.S. Rep. Harriet Hageman on Tuesday announced her intention to run for the U.S. Senate. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that Rep. Hageman says her choice to run for one of the state's two U.S. Senate seats sprang from calculations about doing the most good for Wyoming.

"The scuttle butt surrounding her office from late January till now, was she viable for governor. We saw a poll to that end. We've heard speculation from that end. And so a lot of people were watching to see if she would do that, if she would take on the at home trail boss seat. And so it actually surprised a lot of people Tuesday morning when she was like, 'I'm running for the Senate.' But when I asked her about it, she said, 'Look, a lot of the bad that's plagued Wyoming over the last couple decades has come out of Washington, DC. So if I want to curb that bad, I gotta stay in Washington, DC.'"

In her media release, Hageman pointed to her two terms in the House, her service on the House Judiciary and Natural Resources committees, her prior career as an attorney and her experience with the Clean Air Act and Clean Water Act and putting Wyoming first.

Read the full story HERE.

–

Sticking with politics as we enter 2026 and the mid-term elections, Wyoming education chief Megan Degenfelder on Tuesday said she is "strongly considering" a run for governor while other political figures are thinking about higher office too. Cowboy State Daily's Clair McFarland reports that while Degenfelder hasn't committed, there are candidates who are campaigning to be the next governor of Wyoming.

"It could be a toe-in-the-water to see what kind of backing, what kind of support, what kind of constituent feedback you can get with a maneuver like that. But you know, often when we say someone says that it ends with a run of some kind. Senator Eric Barlow, who's also the former House Speaker, declared earlier this year and has been consistently campaigning and has raised a half million dollars. And then Brent Bien who's beloved in multiple corners of the state. Reid Raisner had set up a governor's finance account for that office, but has not declared a run for that office. And at this juncture, Secretary of State Chuck Gray, who's political in a lot of his public messaging, remains a mystery as to just which office he's seeking."

With five statewide elected seats up for election in 2026, as well as two Congressional seats with both incumbents departing, Wyoming is in for a shakeup this coming election season.

Read the full story HERE.

–

Two Cheyenne teens facing attempted first-degree murder charges in a failed plot discussed their plans in a profanity-laced audio recording, police say. Cowboy State Daily's Scott Schwebke reports that according to court documents, one suspect is recorded saying, "Imma kill him."

"Apparently, three people in a Subaru went to this house and two teens, two are 16-and-17-year olds. One was an 18-year old, which he's being charged as an adult. Anyway, the youngest of the suspects got out of the car, and one of them had, like a I'm not sure they had, they had some ar 47 type rifles, and I'm not sure if that's what they used to what they used to shoot, but one of them shot into a Kia that was parked. Shot that a couple times, and then they, they took off, and they returned a while later, and then they, they, two of them stormed the house, got inside the house, firstly around th