Phil Nicholas
Phil Nicholas (b. March 16, 1955) is a former Republican member of the Wyoming State Senate, representing District 10 from 2005 to 2017. Nicholas served as Senate president from 2015 to 2017. From 2013 to 2015, Nicholas served as majority floor leader. He served as the vice president of the Senate from 2011 to 2013 session.[1] Nicholas served as the President of the Senate from 2015 to 2016.[2]
Nicholas did not seek re-election to the Wyoming State Senate in 2016.
Nicholas served in the Wyoming House of Representatives, representing District 14 from 1997 to 2004.
Biography
Nicholas earned his B.S. in Microbiology from Oregon State University in 1976. He went on to receive his J.D. from the University of Wyoming in 1979.
Nicholas worked as the Wyoming Assistant Attorney General from 1980 to 1982. Nicholas worked for Corthell and King from 1982 to 1992. He has worked as an attorney for Anthony, Nicholas, Goodreich and Tankerman Law Offices since 1992.[3]
Committee assignments
2015 legislative session
At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Nicholas served on the following committees:
| Wyoming committee assignments, 2015 |
|---|
| • Joint Rules and Procedure, Chair |
| • Rules and Procedure, Chair |
2013-2014
In the 2013-2014 legislative session, Nicholas served on the following committees:
| Wyoming committee assignments, 2013 |
|---|
| • Rules and Procedure |
| • Joint Rules and Procedure |
2011-2012
In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Nicholas served on these committees:
| Wyoming committee assignments, 2011 |
|---|
| • Appropriations, Chair |
| • Joint Appropriations, Chair |
| • Rules and Procedure |
| • Joint Rules and Procedure |
2009-2010
In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Nicholas served on these committees:
| Wyoming committee assignments, 2009 |
|---|
| • Appropriations |
Sponsored legislation
The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.
Elections
2016
- See also: Wyoming State Senate elections, 2016
Elections for the Wyoming State Senate took place in 2016. The primary election took place on August 16, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was May 27, 2016. Incumbent Phil Nicholas (R) did not seek re-election.
Glenn Moniz defeated Narina Nunez in the Wyoming State Senate District 10 general election.[4]
| Wyoming State Senate, District 10 General Election, 2016 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Republican |  Glenn Moniz |
57.36% | 5,133 | |
| Democratic | Narina Nunez | 42.64% | 3,815 | |
| Total Votes | 8,948 | |||
| Source: Wyoming Secretary of State | ||||
Narina Nunez ran unopposed in the Wyoming State Senate District 10 Democratic primary.[5][6]
| Wyoming State Senate, District 10 Democratic Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Democratic | Narina Nunez (unopposed) | |
Glenn Moniz ran unopposed in the Wyoming State Senate District 10 Republican primary.[5][6]
| Wyoming State Senate, District 10 Republican Primary, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | |
| Republican | Glenn Moniz (unopposed) | |
2012
- See also: Wyoming State Senate elections, 2012
Nicholas won re-election in the 2012 election for Wyoming State Senate, District 10. Nicholas defeated Anne Alexander in the August 21st primary election and was unopposed in the general election on November 6, 2012.[7]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Phil Nicholas Incumbent |
90.7% | 6,058 | |
| Write-Ins | Various | 9.3% | 618 | |
| Total Votes | 6,676 | |||
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
|---|---|---|
|
Phil Nicholas Incumbent |
57% | 1,027 |
| Anne Alexander | 43% | 774 |
| Total Votes | 1,801 | |
2008
On November 4, 2008, Phil Nicholas won re-election to the Wyoming State Senate, District 10.[8]
| Wyoming State Senate, District 10 (2008) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Votes | |||
| Phil Nicholas (R)
|
5,024 | |||
| Neil Harrison (D) | 3,524 | |||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Scorecards
A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.
Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.
Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of Wyoming scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
2017
In 2017, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from January 10 through March 3.
- Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
- Legislators are scored by the Wyoming Liberty Index on "whether they support or inhibit liberty."
2016
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2016, click [show]. |
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In 2016, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from February 8 through March 4.
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2015
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2015, click [show]. |
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In 2015, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from January 13 to March 12.
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2014
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2014, click [show]. |
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In 2014, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from February 10 through March 7.
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2013
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2013, click [show]. |
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In 2013, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from January 8 to February 27.
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2012
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2012, click [show]. |
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In 2012, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from February 13 through March 9.
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2011
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2011, click [show]. |
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In 2011, the Wyoming State Legislature was in session from January 11 through March 3.
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Wyoming Liberty Index
The Wyoming Liberty Index, a study created in 2003, issues a Scorecard that rates all final bills in the Wyoming State Legislature on whether the bills supported or hindered liberty. Legislators are also given a "liberty score" based on their voting patterns. The Wyoming Liberty Index 2012 report was issued on the 61st Legislature during the 2012 budget session. Scores range from the highest score (100%) to the lowest (0%). A higher score indicates a higher level of "aye" votes on bills considered pro-liberty and "nay" votes on what the organization considers anti-liberty bills.[9] Nicholas received a score of 45% in the 2012 scorecard, ranking 11th out of 31 members of the Wyoming State Senate. Although there are 30 members of the Senate, a 31st "hypothetical legislator" voting nay on every bill was also included.
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Phil and his wife, Karen, have four children: Joe, Nate, Lella, and John.[10]
Noteworthy events
Budget allocation to law client
Wyoming Superintendent of Public Instruction Cindy Hill, who is being investigated for misuse of federal dollars, accused Nicholas of earmarking funds for a client from his law firm. The charter school Snowy Range Academy, which was a client of Nicholas' law firm, secured a $4 million appropriation in the state budget after Nicholas pushed for it while he was the co-chairman of the Joint Appropriations Committee, according to Hill. Nicholas said that no conflict of interest existed, and that Hill, with whom he has clashed in the past, was simply trying to "rally her base" ahead of more scrutiny of her own record.[11][12]
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "Phil + Nicholas + Wyoming + Senate"
- All stories may not be relevant to this legislator due to the nature of the search engine.
See also
- Wyoming State Legislature
- Wyoming State Senate
- Wyoming State Senate Committees
- Wyoming state legislative districts
External links
- Profile from Open States
- Legislative profile from Project Vote Smart
- Biography from Project Vote Smart
- Phil Nicholas' Wikipedia entry
- 2012 Race Profile from WyoFile
- Candidate and 2012 Race Profile from Casper Star-Tribune
- Campaign Contributions: 2012, 2010, 2008, 2006, 2004, 2002, 2000, 1998, 1996
Footnotes
- ↑ Cowboy State Free Press, "Legislative leadership and committee assignments set," November 15, 2010
- ↑ Sate of Wyoming Legislature, "Legislative Leadership," accessed January 22, 2015
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "2016 Official General Election Results," accessed November 29, 2016
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Wyoming Secretary of State, "2016 Primary Election Candidate Roster," accessed May 31, 2016
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Wyoming Secretary of State, "2016 Offiial Primary Election Results," accessed September 12, 2016
- ↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "2012 Candidate List," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Wyoming Secretary of State, "2008 Official State Senate Election Results," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Wyoming Liberty Index, "2012 Wyoming Liberty Index," accessed April 30, 2014
- ↑ Project Vote Smart, "Biography," accessed June 10, 2014
- ↑ Casper Star Tribune, "Hill accuses Wyo state senator of $4 million conflict of interest," July 22, 2013
- ↑ Casper Star Tribune, "Wyoming schools chief Cindy Hill gets a court date, investigations panel," July 19, 2013
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by ' |
Wyoming Senate District 10 2005–2017 |
Succeeded by Glenn Moniz (R) |
 |
State of Wyoming Cheyenne (capital) |
|---|---|
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