Democrats pick their fighter for uphill bid to flip deep-red Senate seat

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Sen Lummis warns Democrats must pass CLARITY Act to keep crypto in US

Wyoming Sen.Cynthia Lummis joins Maria Bartiromo to discuss the ongoing negotiations surrounding the landmark CLARITY Act crypto legislation.Lummis warns that without a clear regulatory framework, the cryptocurrency industry will leave the United States for foreign markets.She emphasizes that the bill represents a pro-law enforcement approach and challenges Democrats to put it to a vote before the August recess.

Former state representative James Byrd advanced Tuesday against former golf club greenskeeper Billy Benavidez in Wyoming’sDemocratic primary racefor the newly opened Senate seat.

Incumbent Republican Sen.Cynthia Lummis announced in December that she would not seek re-election, saying she did not have the energy for another six-year term and creating an open Senate seat in deep-red Wyoming.

Byrd was an exploration geophysicist in the energy industry then later became an IT project manager and software consultant.

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Sen. Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., walking in the Senate subway.

Sen.Cynthia Lummis, R-Wyo., plans to introduce legislation that would add stricter English requirements for commercial truck drivers, and reinforces a rule that if driver’s don’t meet those standards, they are put “out-of-service.” Jan.27, 2025, in Washington, D.C.(Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)

He served in the Wyoming House of Representatives for a decade, beginning in 2009, and has touted his bipartisan approach to lawmaking in a majority Republican legislature.

The Senate seat has been held by Republicans since 1962.Joseph O’Mahoney was the last Democrat elected to the seat, winning in 1954, while Democrat John J.Hickey was appointed to the seat in 1961 and served until November 1962.

The moderate Democratic candidate ran a Wyoming-first campaign running on protecting public lands, supporting energy jobs and lowering rural healthcare costs.

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An image of about 20 cattle grazing in a field in Wyoming

Cattle are seen in Wyoming on Nov.11, 2021.(Salwan Georges/The Washington Post via Getty Images)

His opponent, Benavidez, ran as a more libertarian-leaning Democrat,campaigningon individual liberty, opposition to government surveillance, free-market policies, congressional term limits, and reducing the power of the federal government.

Byrd has criticized PresidentDonald Trumpover tariffs, arguing they have hurt Wyoming beef and agricultural products by reducing access to foreign markets.

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Wyoming natural gas plant, which can power AI

A natural gas plant flares in Wyoming.(Marli Miller/Getty Images)

On immigration, Byrd has taken a more moderate stance than many Democrats, supporting strongerborder securityand enforcement while opposing family separation and backing broader immigration reform and expanded legal pathways for workers.

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Byrd has also backedexpanding data centers in Wyoming, arguing they could diversify the state’s economy, create jobs and take advantage of Wyoming’s abundant energy resources.

Ashley J.