The Part They Don’t Put on Cable News
While the national channels stay locked on the same loop of scandals, lawsuits, and talking points, something quieter is happening right here in Albany County.
Yes. We’re tired of it too.Everybody is. The constant noise, the yard signs, the mailers, the arguments that never seem to end. Most of us would rather spend our time on the things that actually fill our days — work, family, bills, the ordinary business of living. Politics has a way of exhausting people long before it informs them.
But tomorrow is still Election Day.
And while the cameras keep pointing somewhere else, Albany County will decide who handles the decisions that reach our front doors: the roads we drive, the property taxes we pay, the sheriff’s office that responds when we call, the courts that process cases, the clerk’s office that keeps the records, and the commission that sets the local budget. None of it will lead the evening news. Most of it will never even get a mention.
That doesn’t make it small.
These choices land closer to home than almost anything you’ll see on a screen. They shape how this place runs for the next several years — whether we notice it every day or not.
Here are the candidates currently featured on the Albany County Republican Party’s candidate page. This is not every name that will appear on every ballot (your specific ballot depends on where you live), but it is a clear place to start:
Wyoming State Legislature
Karl Schuler (Write-In) — State Senate, District 9
Shane Swett — State House, District 13
Emily Study — State House, District 14
Ross Davenport — State House, District 45
Cam Wright — State House, District 46
Albany County Commission and Public Safety
Chris Cleven — County Commissioner (vote for 2)
Terri Jones — County Commissioner (vote for 2)
Joel H. Defebaugh — County Attorney
Daron L. Wyatt — County Sheriff
Ryan Hershey — County Coroner
R. Mark Armstrong — County Clerk
Albany County Financial and Court Offices
Merissa Martinez — County Treasurer
Chelsie Mathews — County Assessor
Dwain Streeter — Clerk of the District Court
You can find more details on the party’s candidates page.
There is also a statewide proposition concerning property taxes on primary residences. Official information is available through the Wyoming Secretary of State’s voter guide.
If you’ve never voted before, or if you’ve stayed away because the whole thing felt too loud or too distant, that is understandable.
Local elections are often the best place to begin precisely because the impact is near and the numbers are smaller. You do not need to become an expert. You only need to decide whether the people asking for these roles are the ones you want making decisions that touch this community.
Tomorrow is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.
Polls are open from 7:00 AM to 7:00 PM.
Albany County voters may cast a ballot at any designated county Vote Center.
Questions can be directed to the Albany County Elections Department at 307-721-2546.
By Wednesday the national cameras will already be looking for the next story.
The advertisements will quiet down.
The yard signs will start coming down.
But here in Albany County the responsibilities will just be beginning.
That part is not on cable news. It still belongs to the people who live here.
Whatever you choose to do with that information is yours.
— Albany County Republican Party
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