Jimmy Skovgard
Jimmy Skovgard (Republican Party) is running for election to the U.S. Senate to represent Wyoming. He declared candidacy for the 2026 election.[source]
Skovgard completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Jimmy Skovgard was born in Spearfish, South Dakota. He served in the U.S. Army National Guard from 1986 to 2001. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Wyoming in 1989. His career experience includes working in digital marketing and as an enviornmental technician and operator of an oil field service business.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: United States Senate election in Wyoming, 2026
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
General election for U.S. Senate Wyoming
Incumbent Cynthia Lummis and Jimmy Skovgard are running in the general election for U.S. Senate Wyoming on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | Cynthia Lummis (R) | |
 | Jimmy Skovgard (R)  | |
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Endorsements
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Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Jimmy Skovgard completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Skovgard's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Candidate for U.S. Senate — Wyoming Values, Local Spirit, and a Voice for Us.
I’m Jimmy Skovgard — a fifth-generation Wyomingite, husband, father, veteran, and now, candidate for the U.S. Senate.
I grew up in the Big Horn Basin — grade school in Greybull, high school in Basin, and college at the University of Wyoming. My great-grandfather, Simon Skovgard, homesteaded near Basin in 1909. Like many of us, I was raised to work hard, speak the truth, and take responsibility for my actions.
I served 12 years in the Wyoming Army National Guard and was honorably discharged as a captain. I’ve worked in the private sector, run my own business, and spent my life grounded in Wyoming values.
But I never planned to run for office. Until Washington stopped listening.
No Political Experience — and That’s the Point I bring no strings, no debts, and no ties to the political machine.
I’m running with a clean slate — and a full heart — because I believe we can do better.
In Wyoming, when something’s broken, we don’t wait around.
We fix it. We build it. We stand up and lead.
This seat belongs to the people.
It’s time to bring it home.- Sponsor and Fight for Term Limits
Congress was never meant to be a career. When politicians stay in office for decades, they stop listening and start serving special interests.
Hard fact: Congress has a 15% approval rating, but over 90% of incumbents get re-elected. That’s not democracy working—it’s power protecting itself.
Americans overwhelmingly support term limits because we know fresh voices bring accountability, energy, and real change.
I will sponsor and fight for term limits in the House and Senate. It’s time to return government to the people. - Empowering Our Voices Harnessing secure, open-source tools to amplify Wyoming’s voice in Washington. We’re integrating secure, modern technology into our campaign—and building an enduring civic platform beyond it. Not a slogan. A commitment. A commitment that every Wyomingite can contribute to policy through a secure, open-source forum. That aggregates our voices, when we agree we will be heard. This is about you. Everyone. Why Civ-Tech Congress listens to the loudest. We’re leveling the playing field. Imagine a civic tool that is: Open-source for anyone to inspect and improve Accessible to students, veterans, and seniors Responsive to real-time feedback Trustworthy because every record is verifiable This is Us.
- Universal Health Care What if I told you that you are already paying for a first-class, universal healthcare system? You are. The problem is, you’re not getting it. Here in Wyoming, we’re paying top dollar for a broken, chaotic, and often cruel system, while watching our rural hospitals close and our neighbors go bankrupt. This isn’t about a future debate; it’s about the money leaving your pocket right now. Last year, the United States spent $14,570 per person on healthcare, 17.6% of our entire economy. And yet, millions remain uninsured and essential services in towns like Baggs, Kemmerer, and Riverton have disappeared. This is a failure of basic math. We’re paying Ferrari prices for a system that runs like a broken-down ranch truck.
An elected official must be honest, transparent, and accountable. Not just to the voters who offered support, but to all who call this country home. This is not about party or popularity. It is about trust. Without trust, the foundation of representative government begins to crack.
The role is not to rule. The duty is to listen, to serve, and to protect the legacy we pass to our children and grandchildren.
That legacy is more than land or law. It is trust restored. It is truth spoken. It is the will to do the hard work, to face the uphill battle without the comfort or control of the party system. Because to accept that system as it stands is to accept the influence of big money, and I will not.
This is a grassroots campaign. No shortcuts. No puppets. No strings. Support comes from the people or not at all.
I will ask the hard questions, admit wrongs, and never forget who sent me to Washington or why.
We do not need noise. We need steady hands. We need clear minds and strong hearts.
That is the measure. That is the vow.
Too often, the federal government overreaches into issues that are better handled at the state or local level. That includes:
Elections: When Washington tries to dictate how states run their elections, it threatens the right of local communities to safeguard their own process.
Public Land: When unelected agencies push land deals or leasing policies without local input, Wyoming families and ranchers pay the price.
Education: Mandates tied to funding have weakened local school boards and replaced community priorities with federal agendas.
The Senate must be a firewall against this kind of overreach. That means standing firm, even when it’s unpopular. It means doing the hard work without the backing of the party system. Because to accept that system is to accept the influence of big money, and we are not for sale.
This seat belongs to the people. And we intend to keep it that way.
I also remember the attacks of September 11, 2001. The unity we felt in those first days was powerful, but much of the response that followed led to federal overreach that still affects us today. The USA PATRIOT Act expanded surveillance and allowed bulk collection of personal data. The Authorization for Use of Military Force opened the door to two decades of war with little congressional oversight. The Department of Homeland Security and secret watch lists created systems of control with limited transparency. These programs were meant to protect us, but many have been misused or extended far beyond their original purpose. They remain in place and continue to shape how government treats its citizens.
The closest we come to reading is listening to stories. Storytelling is part of our human fabric. It is how we learn, how we remember, and how we share meaning across generations. That is why we must tread carefully with the stories we consume online. Just as history can be rewritten to serve a purpose, stories and movies can be crafted to manipulate as much as to inspire.
There is a line from To Kill a Mockingbird that stays with me: “You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view… until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” This lesson of empathy is timeless. It asks us to step outside ourselves and see the world through another person’s eyes.
That idea echoes the Golden Rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” and the instruction of the Good Samaritan story, where Jesus told the lawyer to “go forth and do likewise.” Those teachings are rooted in the same moral soil. They call us not just to empathy, but to action.
Atticus lived that message. He listened before judging, stood up for the downtrodden, and modeled what it means to be a citizen with courage. That is the example I want to follow, not because fiction demands it, but because reality needs it.
Letting go of resentment has been part of that lesson. Holding on to anger can feel like strength, but it becomes a trap. We are programmed first to survive and then to help one another, not to harm one another. Yet today we are being manipulated with fear and false narratives that tell us we are under attack, it’s the age old story of us vs them. We are encouraged and told that it is acceptable to scapegoat and blame others for the situations we face.
Too many of us have been told to sit down, tune out, and trust the system. But that system no longer works for the people. We are living through a slow collapse of civic responsibility, and we are being distracted from it at every turn.
The greatest challenge we face over the next decade is not a foreign enemy. It is the erosion of self-government from the inside. Big money is writing the rules. Political insiders are dividing us into camps. We are being conditioned to fight each other instead of fixing the problem. We are being manipulated.
We are at risk of handing over the keys to our democracy because it feels too hard to reclaim them.
The policies coming out of Washington are not grounded in reality. They are not built for working families, small towns, or future generations. They are written to serve donors, not citizens. The national debt, the sale of public lands, the manipulation of rural economies, and the growing distrust in elections, these are not accidents. These are consequences of a system that has forgotten who it serves.
The solution is not fear. It is participation. Show up. Speak out. Reclaim your voice.
This is still our country. And we still have time.
Too many in Washington have turned public service into a career path instead of a duty. That was never the intent. The longer someone stays in power, the more likely they are to serve the system rather than the people who sent them there.
Here is the reality:
Chuck Grassley of Iowa has served in the U.S. Senate since 1981.
Mitch McConnell of Kentucky has held his seat since 1985.
Patty Murray of Washington has been in office since 1993.
That is over 30+ and 40+ years each. Thank you for your service, but there comes a point when holding on becomes holding others back. A healthy republic depends on renewal. New energy. Fresh ideas. Local voices.
Wyoming does not need a career politician. We need a citizen leader, someone grounded in real life, who remembers what it feels like to earn a paycheck, raise a family, and walk among neighbors without a motorcade.
Term limits restore accountability. They stop power from becoming permanent. They ensure that leadership remains a duty, not a privilege.
This campaign is not about the past. It is about the future we owe our children and grandchildren.
The seat belongs to the people. Not the party. Not the donor class.
It is the one place in government designed to slow things down, ask hard questions, and think long-term. While the House responds quickly to the will of the people, the Senate was meant to respond carefully to the needs of the nation across generations.
Each Senator represents an entire state, not just a district. That means every voice, rural or urban, carries weight. In Wyoming, that matters. It ensures our voice is equal to California’s, not drowned out by population centers.
The Senate confirms judges, oversees foreign policy, and holds the power to check both the executive and judicial branches. It must rise above party fights and remember the job: defend the Constitution, protect the balance of power, and preserve our shared legacy.
The Senate works best when it listens first and acts with courage. That’s rare today, but it’s what the people deserve.
We do not need more performers. We need public servants.
Too often, “experience” means rubber-stamping along party lines, bowing to big money, and putting self before state. It means learning how to survive the system instead of serving the people. That’s not leadership. That’s surrender.
A senator represents everyone in the state, not just a party or a base. This is not an us versus them issue. We are all Americans. We are all Wyomingites. We rise or fall together, and it’s time our senators acted like it.
What we need is character: the courage to tell the truth, the will to do the hard work, and the discipline to serve without selling out. Wyoming deserves leaders who remember where they came from and who they work for.
We benefit more from real-world experience—raising a family, running a business, serving in uniform—than from knowing how to climb a political ladder.
This campaign is powered by people, not parties. The Senate works best when it listens, leads with integrity, and belongs to all of us.
Without the filibuster, every Senate majority would rewrite the rules and ram through their agenda unchecked. That’s not stability. That’s chaos. The filibuster is one of the few remaining tools that encourages compromise, dialogue, and patience, things Washington desperately lacks.
Now, has it been abused? Absolutely. But the answer to dysfunction is not to throw away the last guardrails. The answer is to elect people who will use the tools of government the way they were intended, with restraint, with character, and with the future in mind.
I do not support removing the filibuster. I support restoring the Senate to what it was meant to be: a place of serious thought, real debate, and long-term vision. That takes discipline. It takes humility. And it takes people willing to work for all of us, not just the party in power.
While Abraham Lincoln was never a U.S. Senator, his voice still shapes how I see this moment. His desire for unity, his belief in the better angels of our nature, and his refusal to give up on the idea of a government of, by, and for the people, that spirit guides me. He faced a nation coming apart and still spoke with humility, principle, and purpose.
I also hold great respect for Senator Alan Simpson of Wyoming. He served with integrity, humor, and grit. He did not follow the party line blindly. He told the truth, even when it was unpopular. He stood for Wyoming, not for political points.
If I can bring even a portion of that courage, honesty, and focus to the Senate, then I will have honored the trust of the people who sent me there.
This is not about being like someone else. It is about becoming someone worth following.
A judicial nominee must demonstrate a clear understanding of the Constitution, respect for the separation of powers, and a consistent record of applying the law as written. Not bending it. Not rewriting it. Not playing to one side or the other.
I am not looking for someone who shares my politics. I am looking for someone who understands their role and stays within it. The job of a judge is to interpret the law, not to legislate from the bench. We have lawmakers for that. We do not need more activists in robes.
I will also look closely at a nominee’s character. Are they honest? Are they steady? Do they have a history of fairness, discipline, and respect for the people whose lives will be affected by their decisions?
And finally, I will ask this: Will this person defend the rights of every American, not just the powerful? Will this person hold up under pressure, without folding to politics or headlines?
That is the kind of judge this country needs. That is the kind I will vote to confirm.
The people of Wyoming are not sending me to Washington to make friends. They are sending me to serve. That means working with anyone who is serious about solving problems and representing the people, not the party, not the donors, not the political machines.
I will build relationships based on respect, honesty, and shared responsibility. I do not care what letter is next to someone’s name. What matters is whether they are willing to listen, stand for something, and work toward long-term solutions that benefit our communities.
But let me be clear. I am not joining a club. I will not play along to get along. When the deal hurts Wyoming or serves big money over working families, I will call it out and vote no.
We can cooperate without compromising who we are. That is the kind of senator I plan to be.
That said, not all compromise is good. Giving in to corruption, selling out the Constitution, or trading principle for convenience is not compromise. That is surrender, and I will not take part in it.
But in a country this big, this diverse, and this free, we cannot govern by force or by party line alone. We have to face the hard questions together and find solutions that move us forward without leaving anyone behind.
Often the best answers come from the people themselves. I plan to use technology to make that possible. To open doors, gather ideas, and bring those solutions with me to Congress. Not just expert opinions or lobbyist talking points, but real input from working people, small towns, rural communities, and forgotten voices.
We do not need to agree on everything. We just need to agree that the future is worth building together.
When used with discipline and focus, it can expose corruption, prevent waste, and ensure that government is working for the people, not for itself. But when it becomes a tool for political theater or personal attacks, it loses its value and weakens trust in the entire process.
The Senate should use its investigative authority to ask hard questions where the answers matter. That includes government contracts, foreign influence, abuse of power, and the role of money in policy decisions. It includes protecting whistleblowers, reviewing federal overreach, and shining light on the decisions that shape everyday life for working families.
Investigations must be public when possible, fair in process, and free from partisan games. We do not need more headlines. We need truth. We need action.
The people have a right to know what their government is doing, how decisions are being made, and who is benefiting.
Transparency is not optional. It is the first step toward trust.
I have not sought endorsements from national organizations or party insiders. I am building support directly with the people of Wyoming, neighbor to neighbor, county by county. My endorsement comes from the families, ranchers, veterans, and workers who want integrity and accountability restored to the Senate.
When I formed my campaign page, the very first message I received was simple:
"Have you talked with JD?"
Me: "JD?"
"JD Vance. All support goes through him."
That is exactly the problem.
I am not here to play the approval game. I am not here to seek permission. I am not here to ask anyone in Washington for a green light.
Cabinet appointees should be judged on their ability to serve all Americans, rural and urban, red and blue, powerful and voiceless. I will support presidential appointees who are good for Wyoming, good for working families, good for the future of this country. Not just for the party in charge.
Here is my test:
Do they understand the Constitution?
Do they respect the role of Congress and the separation of powers?
Are they qualified by experience, grounded in reality, and accountable to the people, not to special interests?
Do they listen? Do they serve? Will they stand up for all Americans, not just the ones who voted for the president?
If the answer is yes, I will support them.
If the answer is no, I will not.
That is the job. That is the oath.
Today she is the full-time caregiver for her husband, struggling to find support through Wyoming’s Medicaid system after expansion failed. Her story is one of resilience through tragedy, but also a reminder of how government decisions, or the lack of them, can shape real lives for decades.
Our creativity, our convictions, and our hard work prove that conviction and grit can still move the needle. We built tools that let everyday people speak up, ask hard questions, and share their stories without waiting for permission from party leaders or major media.
Now This Is Us is growing into Grassroots Rising, a new chapter in this journey together. It is about moving beyond talk and into collective action. It is about lifting our voices and taking responsibility for the future we share.
The call to action is simple: join us. Add your story. Lend your energy. Help build the kind of movement that remembers who holds the power, the people.
And what is that damage? It is the erosion of trust in what is real. One of the clearest examples is the rise of deepfakes, which are videos or audio clips that use AI to convincingly mimic real people saying or doing things they never actually said or did. These tools can be used to spread lies, fake evidence, or stir division, especially in elections or moments of crisis.
Once truth becomes flexible, democracy is at risk.
That is why real conversations matter more than ever. Not arguments on screens, not anonymous threads, and not a reaction to some manipulated headline. Go to the coffee shop and talk. Go to the pub and talk. Meet your neighbor at the fence and talk. Face to face. Voice to voice. That is how we build trust again. That is how we sort truth from fiction.
At the same time, we cannot ignore the good that AI can do. It can improve healthcare, streamline government, support teachers, boost small businesses, and reduce waste. It can help farmers, improve transportation, and deliver services to rural areas that have been left behind.
The role of government is not to control AI, but to set clear guardrails. That means protecting privacy, preventing abuse, holding companies accountable, and investing in innovation that serves the public good.
As a senator, I will use technology to listen better, gather ideas directly from the people of Wyoming, and bring those voices into the rooms where decisions are made.
AI is powerful. But it is still a tool. We The People must retain our agency, free from manipulation.
I also support legislation that protects the right and responsibility of the states to conduct free and fair elections without federal overreach. Elections should reflect the will of the people at the local level, not the pressure of political parties or centralized mandates. The Constitution gives that authority to the states, and I will stand firm in defending it.
At the same time, I believe in the power of sunlight. I would support legislation that encourages public meetings, community forums, and open town halls tied to election preparation and administration. The more the people are involved, the stronger the process becomes.
Our elections are the foundation of our republic. They must be secure, transparent, and worthy of public confidence. That means protecting both the process and the people behind it.
Trust is not automatic. It must be earned. And once lost, it must be rebuilt person by person, county by county, vote by vote.
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Campaign finance summary
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See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 27, 2025
