Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
Serving the Big Horn Basin for over 100 years
WORLAND — The new chair for the Washakie County Republican Party may be fairly new to Washakie County but he has a long history in the Republican party.
Peter Calderon was elected as chair during the county party’s meeting March 14. Other officers elected were vice chair and state committeewoman, Tami Young, state committeeman and reporter Tim Young; treasurer, Ernie Beckley; and secretary, Elizabeth Bates.
Calderon will serve two years in the position. He is a youth specialist at the Wyoming Boys School who moved here with his wife and two high-school aged sons in the summer of 2018. He served as a precinct committeeman last year.
He is originally from Nevada and moved to Wyoming in 2010, working in Laramie and serving with the Albany County Republican Party.
“Politics have been a part of my life for a long time. I witnessed some animated family discussions,” Calderon said. He added that his family — grandparents and mother — were forced to flee Cuba. His grandfather did not talk much about their time in Cuba, having been imprisoned for his beliefs. His grandmother would tell him about the military knocking on doors in the middle of the night, and indoctrinating citizens into Communism.
“I had a natural gravitation to being interested in politics,” Calderon said, adding that he was a political science major, with a minor in history.
“My passion is politics,” Calderon said, noting that his second cousin, Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) was a big influence on him growing up.
As the Washakie County Republican Party chair he said he wants to encourage more attendance at regular meetings. He said he wants to have discussions about the party having regular monthly meetings.
He said he would like to see Washakie County Republicans become aware of the issues the state is facing and remind them of the conservative values of the Republican party. “I’m concerned that the Republican platform is not being met,” he said.
“I support the party platform, liberty and the Second Amendment,” Calderon said, noting if Cuba had, had a Second Amendment they may have been able to prevent Fidel Castro from gaining power.
“I’m excited for my opportunity here. We love Wyoming and we have set up roots here,” he said.
Calderon is also busy helping organize the party’s Lincoln Day Dinner on April 6 with guest speaker Wyoming Secretary of State Ed Buchanan at the Green Hills Restaurant.