Son of former Wyoming governor challenges Rep. Ben Hornok for seat in House

May 10—CHEYENNE — An observed inability in the Wyoming Legislature for lawmakers to work out their differences and focus on the issue at hand is what motivated Rob Geringer, a Cheyenne business owner, to run for House District 42.

Geringer, son of former lawmaker and Wyoming Gov. Jim Geringer, said he's noticed "a lack of decorum and common courtesy" in the last few legislative sessions. With the advantage of a Republican-majority Legislature, Geringer said lawmakers need to move away from the "name calling" and focus on the problems at hand.

"I've watched over the years as certain political leaders have chosen to be obstructionist, rather than deal with the issues that we're facing in Wyoming," Geringer told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. "It's just that lack of decorum — they'd rather delay or prevent, rather than coming up with solutions to our challenges."

Geringer is challenging the incumbent, fellow Republican Ben Hornok, who is in his first term in the Legislature. They will square off in the Aug. 20 primary.

There has been a recent divide in the Wyoming Republican Party, with some lawmakers aligning themselves with the ultraconservative Freedom Caucus and more moderate Republicans falling in with the Wyoming Caucus. Geringer didn't say which group he found himself aligned with, adding it was time lawmakers got over their differences.

He told the WTE he'd rather work to find common ground on the issues at hand.

"Let's focus on that and not necessarily paint ourselves into a picture of Freedom Caucus versus Wyoming Caucus," Geringer said.

The key issues of his campaign, Geringer said, are to focus on protecting Wyoming's coal and oil industries, finding relief for residents in the midst of rising inflation rates and creating quality jobs in the private sector.

For him, this means developing a policy framework to tackle these issues by listening to constituents and other stakeholders and working with fellow legislators to create bills out of committees.

"I'm a leader who understands there's not just one way to look at a problem or issue," Geringer said.

Benefits of a citizen legislature

Geringer said his dad worked as both a farmer and a lawmaker, and this motivated him to contribute his own voice to the Legislature as a small business owner.

"The Legislature in Wyoming is fantastic in that respect, because it is just common people that are coming in to do the work that needs to be done," Geringer said. "Seeing that growing up, seeing that that was the way things were done in our country and continues to be done, that is definitely inspirational."

His previous political experience includes helping out with his dad's campaigns growing up and serving as a precinct committeeman for the Laramie County Republican Party. This experience, Geringer said, made the idea of running for a seat in the House "more approachable."

Protecting Wyomingites first

Geringer and his wife, who he met while studying at the University of Wyoming, left for Colorado to start their professional careers and get a taste of life outside of Wyoming. He said this made them both realize there are some "great values in Wyoming" that can't be found anywhere else, especially in a big Colorado city.

"You know so many more of your neighbors, and you have a pride of being that person from Wyoming," Geringer said.

He and his wife wanted to come back to the Cowboy State so they could raise their kids in an area with these kinds of values. Geringer said as a true conservative Wyomingite, it's important to him to advocate against the federal government to protect Wyoming's interests.

Some national issues, such as the border crisis, are appropriate for discussion in the Wyoming Legislature, he said. There are also "operational issues" that impact Wyoming, such as fighting against the federal government to protect the state's coal and oil industries.

"We do need to support the efforts of the governor in assisting other states that are directly protecting our borders because the federal government doesn't," Geringer said. "(Also), we have to protect our legacy industries like coal, oil and natural gas, while continuing to develop emerging energy sources like uranium."

The official filing period to run for city, county and statewide office starts May 16 and ends May 31.

Hannah Shields is the Wyoming Tribune Eagle's state government reporter. She can be reached at 307-633-3167 or hshields@wyomingnews.com. You can follow her on X @happyfeet004.