2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming
← 2014 November 3, 2020 2026 →
 
Nominee Cynthia Lummis Merav Ben-David
Party Republican Democratic
Popular vote 198,100 72,766
Percentage 72.85% 26.76%
Lummis:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%      80–90%      >90%
Ben-David:      50–60%      60–70%      70–80%
     No data
U.S. senator before election

Mike Enzi
Republican

Elected U.S. Senator

Cynthia Lummis
Republican

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The 2020 United States Senate election in Wyoming was held on November 3, 2020, to elect a member of the United States Senate to represent the State of Wyoming, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States Senate in other states and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Cynthia Lummis defeated Democrat Merav Ben-David by more than 46 percentage points, becoming the first female U.S. Senator from Wyoming[1] and succeeding fellow Republican Mike Enzi, who did not run for reelection. This was the first open Senate seat since 1996 where Enzi was first elected.[2] The Democratic and Republican party primary elections were held on August 18, 2020.[3] This was the first time since 1996 that Democrats won any county for this seat. Enzi died aged 77 on July 26, 2021 from injuries in a bicycle accident less than seven months after his retirement from the Senate.[4][5]

Cynthia Lummis won the election with 72.85% of the popular vote winning 2.91% more than President Donald Trump had won in the concurrent presidential election in the state.

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Withdrawn

Declined

Endorsements

Cynthia Lummis
U.S. senators
U. S. Representatives
Organizations
Individuals

Polling

Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Mark
Armstrong 		Jillian
Ballow 		Liz
Cheney 		Foster
Friess 		Cynthia
Lummis 		Undecided
January 16, 2020 Cheney announces she will not run
The Tarrance Group (R)[1][A] June 22–24, 2019 502 (LV) ± 4.5% – – 56% – 34% –

Results

Results by county:
  Lummis
  •   60–70%
  •   70–80%
  •   80–90%
  Short
  •   50–60%
Republican primary results[29]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Cynthia Lummis 63,511 59.67%
Republican Robert Short 13,473 12.66%
Republican Bryan Miller 10,946 10.28%
Republican Donna Rice 5,881 5.53%
Republican R. Mark Armstrong 3,904 3.67%
Republican Joshua Wheeler 3,763 3.53%
Republican John Holtz 1,820 1.71%
Republican Devon Cade 1,027 0.96%
Republican Michael Kemler 985 0.93%
Republican Star Roselli 627 0.59%
Republican Write-ins 501 0.47%
Total votes 106,438 100.00%

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

Withdrawn

Endorsements

Merav Ben-David
Local officials
Individuals
Organizations
  • Retake the Senate 2020[34]
  • We the People[34]
  • Women to Win[34]
Nathan Wendt
U.S. senators
U.S. Ambassadors
Local officials
Yana Ludwig
Organizations

Results

Results by county:
  Ben-David
  •   30–40%
  •   40–50%
  •   50–60%
Democratic primary results[29]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Merav Ben-David 9,584 40.28%
Democratic Yana Ludwig 4,931 20.73%
Democratic Nathan Wendt 4,212 17.70%
Democratic Kenneth Casner 2,139 8.99%
Democratic Rex Wilde 1,888 7.93%
Democratic James DeBrine 865 3.64%
Democratic Write-ins 173 0.73%
Total votes 23,792 100.00%
By county
Merav
Ben-David 		Yana
Ludwig 		Nathan
Wendt 		Kenneth
Casner 		Rex
Wilde 		James
DeBrine 		Total
County[38] Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes % Votes
Albany 1,867 56.07% 809 24.29% 314 9.43% 187 5.62% 84 2.52% 69 2.07% 3,330
Big Horn 84 38.71% 49 22.58% 42 19.35% 18 8.29% 17 7.83% 7 3.23% 217
Campbell 144 31.51% 114 24.95% 105 22.98% 37 8.10% 35 7.66% 22 4.81% 457
Carbon 199 32.36% 110 17.89% 86 13.98% 138 22.44% 43 6.99% 39 6.34% 615
Converse 78 32.37% 53 21.99% 38 15.77% 36 14.94% 19 7.88% 17 7.05% 241
Crook 43 39.45% 22 20.18% 19 17.43% 11 10.09% 7 6.42% 7 6.42% 109
Fremont 831 42.81% 424 21.84% 296 15.25% 155 7.99% 145 7.47% 90 4.64% 1,941
Goshen 148 36.63% 109 26.98% 66 16.34% 37 9.16% 27 6.68% 17 4.21% 404
Hot Springs 81 52.26% 27 17.42% 13 8.39% 11 7.10% 17 10.97% 6 3.87% 155
Johnson 99 51.03% 32 16.49% 36 18.56% 15 7.73% 7 3.61% 5 2.58% 194
Laramie 1,808 36.02% 942 18.76% 800 15.94% 712 14.18% 556 11.08% 202 4.02% 5,020
Lincoln 146 37.73% 75 19.38% 83 21.45% 27 6.98% 47 12.14% 9 2.33% 387
Natrona 933 38.68% 527 21.85% 436 18.08% 278 11.53% 142 5.89% 96 3.98% 2,412
Niobrara 19 48.72% 9 23.08% 4 10.26% 2 5.13% 4 10.26% 1 2.56% 39
Park 313 43.53% 158 21.97% 117 16.27% 47 6.54% 61 8.48% 23 3.20% 719
Platte 142 36.79% 54 13.99% 72 18.65% 43 11.14% 41 10.62% 34 8.81% 386
Sheridan 545 45.45% 244 20.35% 213 17.76% 84 7.01% 66 5.50% 47 3.92% 1,199
Sublette 104 59.09% 25 14.20% 27 15.34% 8 4.55% 11 6.25% 1 0.57% 176
Sweetwater 638 30.40% 392 18.68% 439 20.91% 162 7.72% 371 17.68% 97 4.62% 2,099
Teton 1,063 39.52% 557 20.71% 889 33.05% 67 2.49% 79 2.94% 35 1.30% 2,690
Uinta 198 37.57% 129 24.48% 71 13.47% 39 7.40% 69 13.09% 21 3.98% 527
Washakie 65 33.68% 42 21.76% 36 18.65% 19 9.84% 20 10.36% 11 5.70% 193
Weston 37 35.92% 25 24.27% 11 10.68% 7 6.80% 14 13.59% 9 8.74% 103
Total 9,585 40.59% 4,928 20.87% 4,213 17.84% 2,140 9.06% 1,882 7.97% 865 3.66% 23,613

General election

Predictions

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[39] Safe R October 29, 2020
Inside Elections[40] Safe R October 28, 2020
Sabato's Crystal Ball[41] Safe R November 2, 2020
Daily Kos[42] Safe R October 30, 2020
Politico[43] Safe R November 2, 2020
RCP[44] Safe R October 23, 2020
DDHQ[45] Safe R November 3, 2020
538[46] Safe R November 2, 2020
Economist[47] Safe R November 2, 2020

Endorsements

Cynthia Lummis (R)
U.S. Presidents
U.S. Senators
U.S. Representatives
Organizations
Individuals
Merav Ben-David (D)
U.S. vice presidents
U.S. senators
  • Ed Markey, U.S. senator from Massachusetts (2013-present), Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts's 5th congressional district (2013), Massachusetts's 7th congressional district (1976-2013)[52]
  • Elizabeth Warren, U.S. senator from Massachusetts (2013-present)[52]
Local officials
Organizations
Individuals

Polling

Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Cynthia
Lummis (R) 		Merav
Ben-David (D) 		Undecided
University of Wyoming October 8–28, 2020 614 (LV) ± 4% 56% 26% –

Results

Lummis outperformed fellow Republican Donald Trump in the concurrent presidential election by 2.9%, or 4,541 votes. She also won Albany County by 1%, or 182 raw votes, while Trump lost it by 2.7%, or 513 votes. She performed significantly better in the Democratic stronghold of Teton County, receiving 37.3% of the total vote, compared to Trump's 29.6%.

United States Senate election in Wyoming, 2020[58]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Republican Cynthia Lummis 198,100 72.85% +0.66%
Democratic Merav Ben-David 72,766 26.76% +9.31%
Write-in 1,071 0.39% +0.11%
Total votes 271,937 100.0%
Republican hold
By county
County Cynthia Lummis
Republican 		Merav Ben-David
Democratic 		Write-in Margin Total votes
# % # % # % # %
Albany 9,220 50.30 9,038 49.31 70 0.38 182 0.99 18,328
Big Horn 4,887 86.42 756 13.37 12 0.21 4,131 73.05 5,655
Campbell 16,960 89.19 1,938 10.19 117 0.62 15,022 79.00 19,015
Carbon 5,091 77.70 1,441 21.99 20 0.31 3,650 55.71 6,552
Converse 5,715 84.01 1,028 15.11 60 0.88 4,687 68.90 6,803
Crook 3,653 90.35 372 9.20 18 0.45 3,281 81.15 4,043
Fremont 12,314 69.43 5,385 30.36 36 0.20 6,929 39.07 17,735
Goshen 4,910 79.93 1,206 19.63 27 0.44 3,704 60.30 6,143
Hot Springs 2,001 79.03 527 20.81 4 0.16 1,474 58.22 2,532
Johnson 3,921 81.15 905 18.73 6 0.12 3,016 62.42 4,832
Laramie 29,357 65.64 15,153 33.88 212 0.47 14,204 31.76 44,722
Lincoln 8,846 85.63 1,460 14.13 24 0.23 7,386 71.50 10,330
Natrona 25,061 72.75 9,210 26.74 178 0.52 15,851 46.01 34,449
Niobrara 1,133 87.69 156 12.07 3 0.23 977 75.62 1,292
Park 13,189 80.54 3,117 19.03 70 0.43 10,072 61.51 16,376
Platte 3,962 81.36 898 18.44 10 0.20 3,064 62.92 4,870
Sheridan 12,287 76.17 3,778 23.42 67 0.41 8,509 52.75 16,132
Sublette 4,004 82.52 835 17.21 13 0.27 3,169 65.31 4,852
Sweetwater 12,351 75.89 3,877 23.82 46 0.28 8,474 52.07 16,274
Teton 5,370 37.20 9,030 62.56 34 0.23 -3,660 -25.36 14,434
Uinta 7,550 82.32 1,597 17.41 25 0.27 5,953 64.90 9,172
Washakie 3,277 83.00 659 16.69 12 0.30 2,618 66.31 3,948
Weston 3,041 88.20 400 11.60 7 0.20 2,641 76.60 3,448
Totals 198,100 72.85 72,766 26.76 1,071 0.39 125,334 46.09 271,937
Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

Notes

Partisan clients
  1. ^ Poll sponsored by "a group of Republican activists and donors"[28]
Voter samples and additional candidates
  1. ^ a b Key:
    A – all adults
    RV – registered voters
    LV – likely voters
    V – unclear

References

  1. ^ "List of United States Senators from Wyoming". Ballotpedia.
  2. ^ "Enzi announces plan to retire at the end of his term - News Releases - U.S. Senator Mike Enzi". Archived from the original on November 24, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.
  3. ^ "Wyoming 2020 Election Calendar". Wyoming Secretary of State. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  4. ^ "Former senator Mike Enzi dies after being injured in bike accident". The Washington Post. July 27, 2021. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved July 27, 2021.
  5. ^ "Ex-US Sen. Mike Enzi of Wyoming dies after bicycle accident". Associated Press. July 27, 2021. Archived from the original on July 27, 2021. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
  6. ^ Cepeda, Dan (July 11, 2019). "Former Congresswoman Cynthia Lummis announces run for Enzi's seat". Oil City News. Retrieved July 11, 2019.
  7. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m "Wyoming 2020 Senate Candidate List" (PDF). Wyoming Secretary of State. May 29, 2020. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  8. ^ Hughes, Morgan (February 17, 2020). "Converse County commissioner, businessman Robert Short announces run for US Senate". Casper Star Tribune. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  9. ^ "Geologist to seek Wyoming US Senate seat". Times Union. August 23, 2019. Retrieved August 23, 2019.
  10. ^ "Devon Cade, Republican". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. July 23, 2020. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  11. ^ Funk, Joel (June 7, 2020). "Laramie Republican seeks U.S. Senate seat; Democrats adjust campaigns, policies amid pandemic". Laramie Boomerang. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  12. ^ Hirst, Greg (August 10, 2020). "CASPER'S DONNA RICE RUNNING TO BRING MORE STATESMAN-SHIP, FEWER SPECIAL INTERESTS TO U.S. SENATE". Oil City News. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  13. ^ Reynolds, Nick (July 22, 2020). "Wyoming Republican US Senate candidates debate for first time". Casper Star Tribune. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  14. ^ LaChance, Brendan (October 17, 2019). "CASPER VETERAN WANTS TO SERVE WYOMING IN THE U.S. SENATE". Oil City News. Retrieved August 15, 2020.
  15. ^ "Wyoming Senate Race 2020". Open Secrets. Retrieved May 15, 2020.
  16. ^ "WYOMING". Politics1. Retrieved May 17, 2020.
  17. ^ "Rolland Holthus". Ballotpedia. Retrieved May 30, 2020.
  18. ^ "Rep. Liz Cheney says she won't seek open Senate seat, will seek reelection in House". Washington Post. Retrieved January 16, 2020.
  19. ^ nick.reynolds@trib.com, Nick Reynolds 307-266-0634. "After 22 years in office, Sen. Mike Enzi says he will retire in 2020". Casper Star-Tribune Online. Retrieved May 4, 2019.((cite web)): CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  20. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y "Endorsements". Lummis for US Senate 2020.
  21. ^ Reynolds, Nick (March 2, 2020). "Foster Friess says he will not run for Enzi's U.S. Senate seat". Casper Star-Tribune.
  22. ^ Reynolds, Nick (June 28, 2019). "Former White House aide exploring bid for Enzi's seat". Casper Star-Tribune. Retrieved May 4, 2019.
  23. ^ Gruver, Mead (December 19, 2019). "Ex Wyoming governor says no to Senate run, Cheney is a maybe". Star Tribune. Retrieved December 20, 2019.
  24. ^ "Ivanka's political future comes into sharper focus". Politico. January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 16, 2021.
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  26. ^ a b Everett, Burgess; Zanona, Melanie (September 22, 2019). "Bad blood: Rand Paul moves to thwart a Liz Cheney Senate run". Politico. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  27. ^ a b "Cynthia Lummis (WY-SEN)". Club for Growth. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
  28. ^ Lake, Eli (June 30, 2019). "Republican Hawks Need Liz Cheney in the Senate". Bloomberg. Retrieved July 1, 2019.
  29. ^ a b "Statewide Candidates Official Summary Wyoming Primary Electionmary.xlsx" (PDF). Wyoming Secretary of State. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  30. ^ Exchange, Tom Coulter Wyoming Tribune Eagle Via Wyoming News (January 20, 2020). "UW professor announces run as Democrat for U.S. Senate seat". Laramie Boomerang. Retrieved January 20, 2020.
  31. ^ a b TOI Staff; Agencies (August 19, 2020). "Israel-born ecology professor wins Wyoming Democratic Senate primary". The Times of Israel. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  32. ^ Reynolds, Nick (June 12, 2019). "Laramie Democrat becomes first candidate to announce run to succeed Sen. Mike Enzi". Casper Star-Tribune. Retrieved June 13, 2019.
  33. ^ Reynolds, Nick (September 4, 2019). "Wyo Dems resolve to not support out-of-state candidates in in-state elections". Casper Star Tribune. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  34. ^ a b c d e f g h "Merav Ben-David for U.S. Senate". www.bendavid2020.com. Retrieved August 21, 2020.
  35. ^ a b "Endorsements | Nathan Wendt for Wyoming Senate Race | United States". Wendt for Wyoming.
  36. ^ "Muldoon, Newcomb endorse Teton County's Democratic U.S. Senate candidate". Jackson Hole News & Guide. June 4, 2020. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  37. ^ a b "Endorsements". Yana Ludwig for U.S. Senate. Archived from the original on April 6, 2020. Retrieved April 6, 2020.
  38. ^ "Statewide Candidates Unofficial Summary" (PDF). sos.wyo.gov. Retrieved August 22, 2020.
  39. ^ "2020 Senate Race Ratings for October 29, 2020". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  40. ^ "2020 Senate Ratings". Senate Ratings. The Rothenberg Political Report. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  41. ^ "2020 Senate race ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved March 12, 2021.
  42. ^ "2020 Senate Race Ratings". Daily Kos Elections. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  43. ^ "2020 Election Forecast". Politico. November 19, 2019.
  44. ^ "Battle for the Senate 2020". RCP. October 23, 2020.
  45. ^ "2020 Senate Elections Model". Decision Desk HQ. September 2, 2020. Retrieved September 2, 2020.
  46. ^ Silver, Nate (September 18, 2020). "Forecasting the race for the Senate". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved September 18, 2020.
  47. ^ "Forecasting the US elections". The Economist. November 2, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2021.
  48. ^ "President Trump endorses Cynthia Lummis for US Senate". AP News. August 14, 2020. Retrieved September 16, 2020.
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  50. ^ "NRA-PVF - Grades - Wyoming". nrapvf.org. NRA-PVF. Archived from the original on November 3, 2020.((cite web)): CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  51. ^ "Historic lineup, stark contrasts: Wyo's congressional races". October 28, 2020.
  52. ^ a b "Ben-David picks up endorsements from green groups, national politicians". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. October 16, 2020.
  53. ^ "Israel-born ecology professor wins Wyoming Democratic Senate primary". www.timesofisrael.com.
  54. ^ "2020 Endorsements".
  55. ^ "Candidate Endorsements • Friends of the Earth Action". Friends of the Earth Action. August 25, 2017.
  56. ^ "Sierra Club #ClimateVoter Guide: Endorsements". Sierra Club.
  57. ^ "Wyoming Democratic Party". m.facebook.com.
  58. ^ "Statewide Candidates Official Summary Wyoming General Election - November 3, 2020" (PDF). Wyoming Secretary of State. Retrieved November 11, 2020.

External links

Official campaign websites
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