David Hill

As he’s tracked the recent sessions of the Wyoming Legislature, David Hill has been frustrated by the infighting and the lack of action.

“Last year, Park County residents paid higher property taxes than ever; abortions are still occurring in the state and in record number; and Wyoming is the top state for suicide deaths,” Hill said. “I think that there’s been some efforts by the current Legislature, but nothing meaningful has changed.”

That’s a big reason why the Cody attorney says he’s throwing his hat into the ring as a candidate to represent House District 50. 

“I just feel that there’s gridlock in Cheyenne, and it’s starting to look like the gridlock in Washington,” Hill said in a Wednesday interview. “So I think we need effective, conservative problem solvers. And I want to have an emphasis on ‘effective.’”

He noted that the state’s recent attempts to ban abortions have yet to take effect, as they’ve been put on hold by a judge in Teton County. In the meantime, the number of abortions performed in the state has increased.

“I want to protect life,” he said, but he said that means passing laws that will survive constitutional scrutiny; he suggested his legal background could help.

Hill will face off with incumbent Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams (R-Cody) in August’s primary election, along with any other Republican contenders.

Rodriguez-Williams is a leading anti-abortion voice in the Legislature and a founding member of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus, a more conservative group of lawmakers that has clashed with more moderate Republicans within the “Wyoming Caucus.”

For his part, Hill called the division unfortunate, arguing Republicans should put aside their differences to come up with conservative solutions to problems.

“I really think my campaign is the type of campaign that people from either camp can really rally around,” he said.

Hill grew up in a few different places, but the 34-year-old has spent his professional life in Wyoming, living in the state for roughly a decade. He obtained both an MBA and his law degree at the University of Wyoming, with intern work assisting state and federal prosecutors. He later assisted Judge Jennifer Elrod of the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and clerked for Judge Bobbi Overfield in Worland before joining Burg Simpson in Cody in 2021.

His campaign website, hill4wyo.com, lays out stances on a slew of issues, including mental health.

"With Wyoming’s alarming suicide rates and mental health challenges, exacerbated by the COVID hysteria, it's clear that our battle to protect life extends far beyond birth,” he said in a statement. “As a pro-life advocate, I’m committed to policies that cherish and safeguard life at all stages.”

Hill’s positions include expanding mental health care facilities, supporting parental rights, limiting minors’ access to social media, preserving agricultural land, sending support to the southern border in the face of “unchecked illegal immigration” and opposing red flag laws and vaccine mandates.

He also says the Legislature needs to deliver “real solutions” to skyrocketing property taxes, such as a constitutional amendment that would allow lower rates for residential properties.

House District 50 — which includes the eastern portion of the City of Cody, Clark, Ralston, Heart Mountain and Sunlight/Crandall — has been represented by Rodriguez-Williams since 2021. This will be the first time she’s faced an opponent in the Republican primary.

The candidate filing period officially opens May 16.