Cooper, Livingston face off for Senate District 20 seat

With Wyatt Agar choosing not to run for reelection, voters will be electing a new Senator for District 20, representing areas of Hot Springs, Big Horn, Fremont, Park and Washakie Counties.

Ed Cooper (R) was born in Thermopolis and now hails from Ten Sleep. He has lived a life of agriculture and spent 48 years in the oil and gas industry, including having his own businesses.

Cooper believes he brings his Wyoming roots to the campaign as well as values and experience.

A supporter of the second amendment, Cooper also believes in the right to life and is a voice for agriculture, our natural resources, and business opportunities.

When asked if he was looking at a sales tax increase to offset the budget deficit he replied, “A sales tax increase is definitely on the table. I will have to look at it really hard before voting. It’s a sales and use tax and there are pros and cons to it. Businesses create the revenue for us and taxes really impact our seniors. This is something tourism doesn’t pay the bulk of.”

Theresa Livingston (D) has lived in Worland for 27 years. She has experience as an Air Force medical lab tech, worked for the BLM for 15 years, has been a special education teacher and has lived in several other countries.

She feels Wyoming revenue, education and equality are high priorities for the state. Included in her platform is a single payer health care system along with clean air, clean water and access to public lands.

Her most important issue, however, is taking care of the people of Wyoming. She looks toward expanding outdoor recreation opportunities to bring more tourism dollars to the state along with a hard look at internet companies which could bring jobs to Wyoming.

When asked if she was looking at a sales tax increase to offset the budget deficit she replied, “One thing that bothers me is people who make less than $25,000 are hurt the most. We have really low taxes, but aren’t you proud enough of your state to give a little more?”