Gary Trauner, a Democrat from Wilson, pledged to run a clean campaign and work harder than he did in 2006 when he runs for Wyoming's lone U.S. House seat again in 2008, he said during a news conference at a home in Casper on Monday.

After his narrow loss to seven-term incumbent Republican U.S. Rep. Barbara Cubin in November, Trauner spent more time with his family, started a new business and coached his children, he said at a news conference.

He thought about running again and talked with his family and friends, he said.

But the defining moment in his decision occurred a week or two ago after President Bush vetoed the bill to expand the State Children's Health Insurance Program, and a man in a grocery store called a newspaper article about it to Trauner's attention, he said.

"He looked at me and said, 'You know what, Gary, I'm a Republican, but don't we deserve better in Wyoming?'" Trauner said. "As I walked around the store for the rest of the morning, or at least for doing my shopping, I thought to myself, 'You know, I need to run again.'"

Running again

The reasons he ran in 2006 haven't changed, he said.

More than half the voters casting ballots in Wyoming voted for someone else besides the seven-term incumbent, he said.

In 2006, Trauner lost to Cubin by 1,012 votes out of 193,369 cast in the tightest U.S. House race in 36 years. Another 7,465 voters cast their ballots for Libertarian Thomas Rankin.

Referring to his hosts Monday, Gary and Sue Berchenbriter, Trauner said they illustrate the kind of families that work hard, play fair, and want leaders who represent them in energy issues, small business, the environment, and fiscally responsible and smaller government.

"So I'm here today to formally announce my candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives, because a better Wyoming starts right here in the homes of Wyomingites like Gary and Sue Berchenbriter," Trauner said.

"I trust the people of Wyoming, and I trust that they will demand a campaign about the issues and vote for the candidate that will best represent this state and its values."

Gary Berchenbriter said later Trauner asked him to use his house to launch the campaign. "He's a good, hard-working candidate."

While the 2008 election is 13 months away, Trauner wanted to make his announcement as soon as possible after his decision to run, he said.

Trauner knocked on 15,000 doors in 2006, and he plans to work harder this time around, he said.

However, Wyoming GOP Chairman Fred Parady said Trauner has been running since he lost last year.

The Democrat announced his candidacy much earlier than Wyoming candidates usually announce, perhaps to raise money from liberal out-of-state sources or to mitigate some of the criticism he encountered after appearing at the left-wing DailyKos blogger convention in August, Parady said.

The Republican primary, he said, probably will attract half a dozen candidates.

"We look forward to a fair and spirited campaign," Parady said. "The candidate that emerges from the Republican primary will provide a strong conservative contrast to Mr. Trauner's and the Democratic Party's left-leaning philosophies."

Dismissing concerns

Trauner dismissed concerns that while he might be able to defeat Cubin, he couldn't beat another Republican.

"All I can do is control is what I can control," Trauner said. "And that is all I want to do is give people a clear choice."

On Monday, Cubin's office said in a prepared statement she "will make an official announcement on her future plans at the appropriate time." She told The Associated Press last week she intended to run again.

In June, state Rep. Colin Simpson, R-Cody, said told Washington, D.C.-based The Hill he plans to run against her in the Republican primary next year. Cheyenne motivational speaker Swede Nelson and Casper businessman Kenn Gilchrist also have announced they will run against her in the primary.

In financing a campaign, Trauner said he didn't have the exact figures on how much he's raised so far. Today is the Federal Elections Commission's deadline for filing funding statements for the third quarter.

While Trauner again leveled criticism at Cubin's record of missing nearly half of the House's votes this year, he empathized her family's difficulties, including her husband's immune disorder.

"There's nothing in the world that's more important to me than my family," he said. "So I wish Mrs. Cubin and her husband the best; she's got to do what's right for her and her family, and the voters in Wyoming will decide the rest of it."

Trauner isn't worried about the return of the attacks that he doesn't understand Wyoming because he wasn't born here, he said.

He moved to Wyoming 18 years ago, has run businesses here and raised his children here, he said.

This criticism stems from shallow thinking when someone doesn't have anything substantial to say, Trauner said.

"I feel like I'm as Wyoming as anyone," he said.

Trauner also pledged to run a clean campaign and not resort to the kind of attack ads from the Republican National Committee, which spent nearly $250,000 the weekend before the Nov. 7 election, he said.

While he won't go negative, Trauner said, politicians should be held accountable for their actions and lack of action.

Recalling a conversation he had on election night, he said: "I've got kids. I don't want them to think I'm willing do anything to win. If that's what I have to do to win, then I don't want to win."

Reach Tom Morton at (307) 266-0592, or at Tom.Morton@casperstartribune.net.