If someone told me four years ago that Gov. Mark Gordon would have the best job security in Wyoming, I’d have called them crazy.

The governor’s popularity, always a bit suspect after he won the Republican primary in 2018 with only one-third of the total vote, had taken a nosedive by January 2021. At a COVID-19 protest organized by state lawmakers in his own party, Gordon was jeered by several hundred protesters in front of the Capitol.

Then-Rep. Scott Clem, R-Gillette, blasted Gordon for ordering a mask mandate, closing certain businesses and limiting the number of people at outdoor events.

“We are here because we love our freedom and because the man in this building is a tyrant,” said Clem, who some at the rally touted as a possible challenger to Gordon.

Sen. Anthony Bouchard, R-Cheyenne, called Gordon “a criminal” for not authorizing alternative drugs to combat the deadly virus – an act that’s beyond the governor’s authority. One protester held a “Knucklehead Gordon” sign, a reference to the governor’s description of those who refused to abide by the state’s health orders.

Party officials did not deem Gordon, the former state treasurer, a “true conservative.” Much more to their liking were fellow gubernatorial candidates Foster Friess and Harriet Hageman, who combined won 47% of the vote, but finished second and third, respectively.

Shortly into his term, a global pandemic threw the state, and world, into disorder. Gordon’s COVID response was tepid at best, as he waited for months to finally issue a mask order. But some residents were so outraged they started a petition to remove him from office.

Gordon’s three GOP opponents this year are far to his right politically, but none has even a glimmer of hope to win. It’s safe to say no Republican leaders encouraged Rex Rammell, Brent Bien or James Scott Quick to enter the race.

Only Rammell and Bien attended a recent Worland debate. Quick had a work conflict, and Gordon’s spokesman said his boss had a previous commitment.

Onstage, Bien and Rammell battled to prove they should be the conservatives’ choice, but did little to set themselves apart. Both are anti-abortion and said they want to see exceptions repealed for rape and incest, or if the mother’s life is endangered.

Quick, in a Facebook podcast, expressed the same opinion. Debating Friess and Hageman four years ago, Gordon supported banning abortion, but approved of the existing exceptions.

Both Bien and Rammell want stricter voter ID laws, school choice and more pregnancy resource centers. They oppose vaccine mandates, Medicaid expansion, stricter regulations for buying firearms and want the federal government to stop meddling in Wyoming.

All of Gordon’s opponents are against “crossover” voting, which would keep registered voters from changing party affiliation to vote in another party’s primary. Gordon, much to his chagrin, is well acquainted with the issue.

Even before Gordon was inaugurated in 2019, Sen. Bo Biteman, R-Ranchester, filed a bill backed by Republicans to ban party registration changes after May 1. GOP officials blamed Democrats who registered as Republicans for electing the moderate Gordon, since Friess and Hageman split the conservative vote.

Not enough Democrats changed parties to make a difference in the governor’s primary, but Republican leaders still contend it’s what put Gordon in office. I guess it’s easier for party insiders to ignore the arithmetic than to accept that the electorate didn’t agree with their choice of candidate.

Biteman and others have sponsored crossover voting bans in each of the past four sessions since Gordon was elected. None have gone to the governor to sign, though Trump backed the most recent effort.

What surprises me is after all the anger the state GOP showed over Gordon’s first victory, it didn’t successfully recruit a “real” conservative to take him on.

Republicans have apparently made peace with Gordon and effectively rubber-stamped his nomination. The bitter feelings some felt over Gordon’s COVID restrictions seem to have eased. Maybe the GOP’s officers decided they had enough on their plate getting rid of Cheney to please Trump.

Bien has hitched his star to Hageman’s high-profile congressional run. His yard signs and fliers can be found next to hers everywhere you look. We don’t usually think of the gubernatorial contest as a “down-ballot” race, but these are anything but usual times in Wyoming politics. Bien’s strategy may well win him votes from folks simply voting what they think of as the “team Hageman” line.

The trio was asked at a Casper forum if any would drop out of the race to let the strongest candidate take on the governor one-on-one. Bien and Rammell said they would, but Quick vowed he’s in it to win it, so they’ll all fight until the bitter end.

About the sharpest critique I’ve heard from Gordon’s opponents is Rammell calling him a “wolf in sheep’s clothing.” That’s a far cry from protesters shouting that he’s a traitor, or Clem saying someone should call the office of South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem, a vehement anti-masker, to see if she could “give one of her testicles to our governor.”

Gov. Gordon, count your blessings.

The Drake’s Take is a weekly column by veteran Wyoming journalist Kerry Drake, and produced by WyoFile.com, a nonprofit news organization focused on Wyoming people, places and policy.

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