Ann Lucas is running for House District 43 and wants to change how Wyoming over taxes and spends. Lucas also wants to provide Wyoming solutions to the ideological issues dividing our communities.

What have you learned from campaigning and talking to the people of Wyoming?

People I am talking to are very concerned about inflation and escalating property taxes. Since property taxes and homeowners’ insurance follow the same path, homeowners are feeling a double hit in higher property taxes and insurance. A couple of folks told me they are one increase away from having to get a second job.

People are also worried about schools and education. Both the condition of specific older schools, and test scores. Parents are noticing that their children are not progressing in the core curriculum we’ve had traditionally and are concerned they will not be prepared to go on to college or trade schools after high school.

I’ve learned that while people are at varying levels of political engagement, we all pretty much want the same things–safe neighborhoods, top quality education, reasonable taxes, and to know what’s going on in our local government.

I’ve learned that running for office takes a lot of time. I am always busy!

What has been the best and worst thing about campaigning?

The best is talking to the folks who live in my House District! It’s been a lot of fun and very interesting to talk to them. I feel like I am gaining a good understanding of what folks think about our government and what they want me to do.

The worst is fundraising. It’s sadly a real component of running for public office. It’s hard to ask people for money. I am very grateful to the friends and neighbors who have donated to my campaign so far.

What, When, and Where do you have any events planned?

I have an ice cream social this Thursday and Friday, July 18 at Sun Valley Park, July 19th at Saddle Ridge Park. I will be at the Patriot Rally on July 27 right after the Parade. That will be at the Office. July 20th I am having a Big Team Ann Walk, for folks to help me door knock and spread the word about my campaign. August 14th I will be speaking at Politics in the Park. Hopefully my opponent will attend that too.

Why have you decided to run in this election?

I am concerned about the blatant tax and spend culture our Legislature has adopted. We must be far more transparent in reporting to our citizens and more frugal with our citizens’ money.

As a grandparent, I am very concerned about the overreach of local and federal government into our families and children’s well-being.

I am unhappy with the enormous level of education spending with very little to show for it. Children in Wyoming largely do not read at grade level and must take remedial classes upon entering college, yet we spend more per child than most states do.

I am very concerned and unhappy about the progressive ideology that has infiltrated our schools. Our current Legislature will not stand up to the Federal Government to protect our families and ensure that the education our children receive ensures the highest academic performance possible. If we’re going to spend more than everyone else, our students should be receiving world-class education. Teachers are not permitted to teach basics and instead are forced to spend precious class time on Social Emotional Learning and sexual ideology, according to teachers I’ve talked to.

I support protecting our children from unconstitutional federal executive orders, such as Biden’s recent rewrite of Title IX, which requires that girls be forced to use bathrooms and showers with boys and even men.

Have you held a political office before, or have you run before?

I have always been engaged politically. I’ve been very active in Laramie County politics for almost ten years. And I have attended just about every Laramie County Republican Party meeting for the past four years. I am a Central Committee member, elected in 2022. That’s the extent of my political office holdings so far. I’ve attended meetings and conventions in Laramie County and elsewhere across the state for the past four years and am pretty well-known among state party leaders.

What is your background and what qualifies you to be elected to office?

I was a credit union and bank executive for over 40 years. I am adept at all facets of personal finance, business finance, auditing, budgeting, and tax accounting. I coached hundreds of individuals and families to improve their personal financial conditions. I taught financial literacy at all school levels, from grammar school to college level to students and teachers. I also conducted seminars for the public for a number of years.

I have a Bachelor’s Degree in Business Management with an emphasis on accounting and auditing. I was an internal auditor and a certified regulatory compliance manager in credit unions.

I did taxes as a sideline for many years.

Plus, I am adept at reading government publications and have been a regulatory compliance officer and a tax professional. I favor simplicity in language and would like to see our legislature craft laws that are easy to read and understandable to the average citizen.

I grew up in Chicago, like Wyoming, a uni-party place. I am used to dealing with politicians who are vastly different in ideology but are members of the same political party.

I meet the age and residency requirements and am a registered voter. I have a college degree, although that’s not required.

What will be your number one priority if elected to office?

Transparency. I favor a high level of accountability for all tax spending. We don’t audit enough. We don’t ask enough questions. We have too many trust fund accounts that are not accountable for spending. We don’t require that legislators’ votes are recorded. I’ve sat in the Gallery a lot and have seen many voice votes. It’s impossible for citizens to determine how their representative’s vote.

Taxation. We must reduce government spending. Few legislators will even discuss this. Our citizens are fed up and many are hurting financially. It’s very hard to decide if you can afford your child’s school clothes while watching our Legislature approve building unnecessary mega-schools when smaller schools would better serve the students of Wyoming.

Do you believe that there are issues in current state politics? What will you do to address these issues? If you don’t believe there are issues, how do you plan to keep the status quo?

I think that we have serious ideological issues that have divided our communities. The encroachment of liberal social ideals that are in place to set people against each other, that attack families and religious precepts, has torn our communities apart. The woke teachers’ unions and government have set educational programs and curriculum in our public schools that has exposed our children to adult-level sexual content and behaviors as well as left-wing extremist dogma that is requiring that girls and boys be encouraged to question their own sanity and physiology. Schools hide this from parents and have even been sued for this in Wyoming. I am against federal government involvement in our schools in any way and will work to decrease their power and influence. We need Wyoming solutions for Wyoming issues, not California and Washington DC interference.

We have a culture of rampant tax and spend in Wyoming. There is little transparency and almost no accountability in how our citizens’ tax dollars are spent. Many state agencies have banked unused tax dollars and brag that they have saved us money while asking for even more the following year. We MUST reduce government spending. Legislators don’t want to discuss this. I do.

As a Republican candidate, would you be willing to sign a pledge to follow the State GOP platform by at least 80%? If not, why?

Yes, I would. I am a Republican, running on the Republican Party platform, as are all the other Republicans seeking office or holding office. It is disingenuous to run on a Party platform and later call those precepts irrelevant or, as one house rep said, “misguided dogma.”

Who do you get inspiration from? Are there any leaders or politicians, past or present, that you admire?

I admire Ron Paul for his honest and steadfast devotion to the US Constitution. Thomas Sowell is a brilliant economist who has been bluntly honest in how things really work, from economics to history, to social issues. I admire Donald Trump’s bravery in uncovering the leftist agenda and for his willingness to tell the American people what is really happening. The insiders will never forgive him for it. He is risking his fortune and his freedom for our country. Justice Clarence Thomas has been clear and concise in his decisions and willingness to explain his decisions. Both he and Thomas Sowell are self-made men who have proven that in the United States of America, anyone can succeed if they are willing to put in the work.