Democrat Dark Money Network Behind Ousting of Wyoming Freedom Caucus Republicans
Source: Tomi Strock. "How Democrat Dark Money Infiltrated America's Reddest Red State." October 6, 2026. thefederalist.com
The Gist
The author argues that a network of Democratic donors and left-leaning organizations—ultimately traceable to George Soros and other wealthy funders—secretly orchestrated the defeat of conservative Republicans in Wyoming's 2026 primary election. She supports this by tracing money through several nonprofit groups, showing financial and personal connections between Democrat politicians and the organizations that funded the campaign against conservatives.
Conclusion
The 2026 ouster of conservative Freedom Caucus Republicans in the Wyoming House primary was not an organic local development but the result of a coordinated, well-funded left-wing dark money network—traceable to George Soros and national progressive donors—infiltrating Wyoming's Republican primary to install more liberal-friendly legislators.
Premises
- The Wyoming Donor Alliance (WDA) publicly announced in March its goal to 'break the Freedom Caucus' majority' and received funding from national groups including State Leadership Project ($100,000), Western Futures Fund ($75,000), and Sixteen Thirty Fund ($50,000).
- State Leadership Project funds a network of similarly-modeled state-level groups (Utah, Oklahoma, Iowa, etc.) and directly funded Alliance for a Better Utah, which closely resembles Better Wyoming in name and model, suggesting a coordinated template.
- Tides Foundation, which received roughly $20 million from George Soros' Open Society network (2016-2022), gave State Leadership Project over $1.1 million since 2020, linking Soros money to the Wyoming effort through an identifiable funding chain.
- Sixteen Thirty Fund, a direct WDA funder, received substantial money from the Berger Action Fund, associated with Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss, indicating the network extends to foreign-connected funding.
- WDA funneled $455,000 to 'PAC for a Better Wyoming' and $30,000 to Better Wyoming Action and Research, which actively targeted conservative legislators in the primary, while being run by Nate Martin, husband of a sitting Democrat state representative.
- Democrat Rep. Liz Storer serves as president/CEO of the George B. Storer Foundation, a major funder of Better Wyoming, and also sits on Better Wyoming's board, showing direct overlap between sitting Democrat legislators and the funding network.
- WDA's own strategy document identified a nearly 20-member coalition (abortion-rights groups, teachers' union, trial lawyers, etc.) coordinating under a unified strategy to flip the Wyoming House, while conservative-aligned PACs were transparent about their mission whereas the left-leaning groups used innocuous, western-sounding names.
Assumptions
- Financial contributions from national or international donors to state-level groups necessarily indicate illegitimate 'infiltration' rather than normal political organizing or free association.
- Tracing money through multiple intermediary organizations (Soros → Open Society → Tides → State Leadership Project → WDA) establishes direct control or coordination rather than mere indirect/distant financial association.
- The use of generic or 'western-sounding' names by left-leaning PACs is inherently deceptive, while similar naming conventions by conservative-aligned PACs are not scrutinized the same way.
- Voters who identify as Republican but support more moderate or left-leaning candidates in open primaries are illegitimately 'infiltrating' the party rather than legitimately participating in a lawful primary system.
- Family or professional connections between legislators and nonprofit organizations inherently indicate corruption or improper influence rather than normal civic engagement.
- The explicitly stated electoral goal of a political organization (defeating Freedom Caucus candidates) is evidence of an illegitimate scheme rather than ordinary, lawful political advocacy.