Wyoming voters delivered a significant setback to the state’s far-right Freedom Caucus in Tuesday’s Republican primaries, rejecting many of the group’s candidates and signaling a shift toward more mainstream conservatism ahead of the November general election.

The Freedom Caucus had aimed for a sweeping victory to control key state offices, including the governor’s mansion, secretary of state, and schools superintendent, as well as expand its influence in the State Senate and House of Representatives. Instead, Republican voters favored candidates with more moderate credentials, handing defeat to a number of ultraconservative contenders.

In the governor’s race to succeed outgoing Governor Mark Gordon, State Senator Eric Barlow, a rancher and experienced legislator, emerged as the frontrunner. Barlow decisively outpaced Megan Degenfelder, the current schools superintendent who held the endorsement of former President Donald Trump, and Brent Bien, a retired Marine colonel who had backing from the Wyoming Republican Party. Barlow’s victory followed two primary rounds and capped a campaign where he sought to move the state’s politics toward pragmatism, focusing on issues such as energy, rural health care, and water resources. In a notable moment during the race, Barlow symbolically scooped up “yak dung” from his mailbox in response to the negative campaign mailers flooding voters.

The legislative races further underlined the backlash against the Freedom Caucus. At least a dozen caucus incumbents, including three of its four House leaders, were defeated, costing the group its majority in the House and thwarting its bid to take control of the State Senate. Among the losses was Chip Neiman, the House speaker and a caucus leader, who unsuccessfully sought a Senate seat.

The Freedom Caucus had wielded control in the State House in 2024, using its influence to pass measures such as an expanded voucher program for private school tuition and a ban on abortion pills, though the latter was overturned by the Wyoming Supreme Court. However, without a majority in the Senate, the caucus was unable to advance further priorities, including significant cuts to the University of Wyoming, restructuring the judiciary, or reducing the state’s economic development office.

Several prominent contests featured Freedom Caucus members running against more traditional Republicans. State Representative Rachel Williams, the caucus chairwoman who had controversially urged former Governor Gordon to oppose certifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 election victory, was defeated in the secretary of state race by Robert Short, who has expressed support for election officials. State Representative John Bear, also formerly aligned with the caucus, lost his Senate bid to Doug Moore, a political newcomer and coal industry executive backed by Americans for Prosperity, a conservative advocacy group that also opposed many Freedom Caucus candidates despite spending less than pro-caucus groups like Make Liberty Win.

While the far-right faced setbacks at the state government level, the influence of hardline candidates persisted in federal contests. Harriet Hageman, who unseated Liz Cheney in 2022 for Wyoming’s sole U.S. House seat, easily won the Republican primary to fill the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by Cynthia Lummis. Chuck Gray, the current secretary of state, won the crowded and expensive primary to replace Hageman in the House.

With most winners advancing in a state where Republicans hold a strong advantage—Wyoming gave former President Trump his largest margin in 2024—the primary results suggest a preference among voters for a more restrained conservative approach, rejecting the confrontational style and agenda championed by the Freedom Caucus. State Representative Landon Brown, a Republican vocal in his criticism of the caucus, summed up the mood by declaring that voters demanded “TRUE governance, not child’s play.”