Wyoming Governor Signs Several Election Bills Into Law

WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Thursday, Feb. 23, Wyoming Gov. Mark Gordon (R) signed House Bill 279 into law, which adds identification requirements to request a mail-in ballot in person. Wyoming has offered no-excuse mail-in voting since 1991; H.B. 279 does not alter that policy, but requires voters to show identification when requesting a mail-in ballot in person. Voters do not have to show identification if they apply for a mail-in ballot “in writing, or by telephone.” The bill goes into effect on July 1, 2023.

Wyoming’s legislative session ends on March 3, so bills are moving quickly through the Republican trifecta. Last week, Gordon also enacted House Bill 79, which adds a concealed carry permit to the list of acceptable forms of identification to vote, and House Bill 5, which tweaks the information that is publicly available on the voter registration list.

The Wyoming Legislature has also sent the governor bills that would make it harder to change political party affiliation and add new guidelines for certification of electronic voting machines, the focus of right-wing misinformation. Today, the Wyoming House is scheduled to vote on a bill to prohibit anyone except county clerks or the secretary of state from sending a mail-in ballot request form to a voter.

Read H.B. 279 here.