Bob Nicholas

Last updated

Robert A. "Bob" Nicholas
Member of the Wyoming House of Representatives
Assumed office
January 3, 2011
Personal details
Born (1957-10-14) October 14, 1957 (age 67)
Lander, Wyoming, U.S.
Political party Republican
SpouseWidower
Children3
Alma mater University of Wyoming
University of Wyoming College of Law
OccupationLawyer; Businessman
Website State Legislature Page

Robert A. Nicholas (born October 14, 1957) is an American Republican politician. He is currently a member of the Wyoming House of Representatives from the 7th district. A lawyer by profession, Nicholas was first elected from the 8th district in November 2010, taking office early the next year.

Contents

Early life and career

Born in Lander, Wyoming, [1] Nicholas graduated from the University of Wyoming with a bachelor's degree in political science in 1982, followed three years later with a degree from the University of Wyoming College of Law. [2]

Political career

Nicholas first ran for the 8th district in 2008 and lost to the incumbent Lori Millin, 2,438 votes to 2,271, but he succeeded two years later. [3] He was unopposed in the 2010 primary and beat Democrat Ken McCauley 1,950 votes to 1,635. [4] He is a member of the House Judiciary Committee. [5] During his campaign, he emphasized economic growth, smaller government and environmental protections as his priorities, and he also wanted to push for a pilot charter school in Laramie County.[ citation needed ]

On November 23, 2011, Nicholas was arrested in Boca Grande, Florida on the felony charge that he had assaulted his 19-year-old, mentally disabled son outside a restaurant. [6] The charges were subsequently dropped upon review by the Florida State Attorney's office because of "insufficient evidence". [6]

Nicholas considers himself a fiscal conservative who supports cuts in the state bureaucracy and increases in the rainy day fund to an amount equal to two years of current state spending. "There is no government agency that will not spend all that you give it, and it's hard as a legislator, if you see a pot of money there, not to spend it. So I'm a strong advocate of saving any monies that we possibly can," Nicholas told the Wyoming Tribune Eagle . Nevertheless, he indicated that he could support a small increase in the gasoline tax to fund highway projects. [7]

In 2012, Nicholas worked on a juvenile justice bill that would increase the confidentiality for young persons charged in criminal cases. He was reported as supporting changes in the educational system with less reliance on standardized testing: "We just have to do more than test-based criteria. It has to be more comprehensive than that." [7]

Nicholas was opposed in the August 2012 Republican primary by Keith Eldred and Margaret Wall. In the general election Nicholas faced Kathleen Peterson. [7]

Personal life

A widower, Nicholas has three children. [1] He is a Catholic and lives in Cheyenne. [1] State senator Phil Nicholas is his brother. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eli Bebout</span> American politician

Eli Daniel Bebout is an American athlete and politician who served in the Wyoming House of Representatives from a multi-member district in Fremont County and the 55th district from 1987 to 2001, and later served in the Wyoming Senate from the 26th district 2007 to 2021, as a member of the Democratic and Republican parties. He was the first person to serve as both Speaker of the Wyoming House of Representatives and President of the Wyoming Senate

Dan Zwonitzer is a Republican Party member of the Wyoming House of Representatives from District 43, which comprises south-central Laramie County and includes southeastern portion of the capital city of Cheyenne, Wyoming.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Matt Mead</span> American politician (born 1962)

Matthew Hansen Mead is a Wyoming attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 32nd governor of Wyoming from 2011 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he previously was the United States Attorney for the District of Wyoming from 2001 to 2007.

Lori Ann Millin is an American politician who served in the Wyoming House of Representatives from 2007 to 2011, representing the 8th legislative district of Wyoming as a Democrat. She served as Minority Caucus Chairman of the Wyoming House of Representatives from 2009 to 2010.

Virgil Peck Jr. is state legislator in Kansas. A Republican, he served in the Kansas House of Representatives from 2005 to 2016, representing the 11th (2005–2013) and 12th district (2013–2017). He currently represents Kansas State Senate district 15. He is the former chairman of the Kansas House Transportation and Public Safety Budget Committees, and the former Republican Majority Caucus Chairman.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leon Lillie</span> American politician

Leon Michael Lillie is an American politician serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2005. A member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL), Lillie represents District 44B in the Twin Cities metropolitan area, which includes the cities of Oakdale, North St. Paul, and Maplewood and parts of Ramsey and Washington Counties.

Garry C. Piiparinen is an American politician and former Wyoming state legislator. A member of the Republican Party, Piiparinen represented the 49th district in the Wyoming House of Representatives from 2013 to 2021.

Lynn Hutchings is an American politician and member of the Wyoming State Senate representing Cheyenne. She previously represented District 42 in the Wyoming House of Representatives from January 2013 until January 2015.

Carl "Bunky" R. Loucks is an American politician and former Wyoming state legislator. A member of the Republican Party, Loucks represented the 59th district in the Wyoming House of Representatives from January 11, 2011, to July 6, 2020.

Samuel "Sam" P. Krone is an American politician and a former Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives. He represented District 24 from January 11, 2011, through January 10, 2017.

John L. Freeman is an American politician and former Wyoming state legislator. A member of the Democratic Party, Freeman represented the 60th district in the Wyoming House of Representatives from 2011 to 2021.

David Lee Zwonitzer is an American politician and a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives representing District 9 from 2007 until 2017, and District 8 since 2023. His son Dan is also a member of the Wyoming House.

Sue Ellen Wallis was an American politician. She was a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives who represented District 52 from January 2007 until her death in January 2014.

Steve Harshman is an American politician and a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives representing District 37 since January 14, 2003. Harshman served as the Speaker of the Wyoming House from January 2017 to January 2021.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2018 Wyoming gubernatorial election</span>

The 2018 Wyoming gubernatorial election took place on November 6, 2018, to elect the governor of Wyoming. Incumbent Republican governor Matt Mead was term-limited and could not seek a third consecutive term. Republican nominee Mark Gordon defeated Democratic nominee Mary Throne by nearly 40 percentage points.

Jared Olsen is an American politician and a Republican member of the Wyoming House of Representatives representing District 11 since January 10, 2017.

Chuck Gray is an American politician and the secretary of state of Wyoming, having won the 2022 election unopposed. Gray was previously a member of the Wyoming House of Representatives representing the 57th District.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anne Neu Brindley</span> American politician

Anne E. Neu Brindley is an American politician serving in the Minnesota House of Representatives since 2017. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, Neu Brindley represents District 28B in east-central Minnesota, including the cities of Wyoming, Chisago, and North Branch, and parts of Chisago County.

Michael Yin is an American politician, software engineer, and businessman. A Democrat, he has represented District 16 of the Wyoming House of Representatives since 2018. Yin is Wyoming's first Chinese-American legislator.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshall Burt</span> Wyoming state representative

Marshall A. Burt is an American politician who served in the Wyoming House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party, Burt previously was a Libertarian while he represented the 39th district from 2021 to 2023. Burt was the first third-party candidate elected to the Wyoming Legislature in over 100 years.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Biography: Biography Biography Representative Bob Nicholas". Project Vote Smart. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  2. "Legislator Information: Representative Bob Nicholas". Wyoming State Legislature. Archived from the original on February 19, 2011. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  3. Van Cassell, Michael. "Millin keeps seat, vows to work on smoking ban". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Archived from the original on February 10, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  4. "Statewide House Candidates Summary" (PDF). Secretary of State of Wyoming. Retrieved December 11, 2011.
  5. "Legislator Information: Committees". Wyoming State Legislature. Retrieved December 11, 2011.[ dead link ]
  6. 1 2 Brown, Trevor (December 15, 2011). "Charges dropped against Nicholas". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Retrieved December 18, 2011.
  7. 1 2 3 "Aerin Curtis, "Nicholas running for reelection in House District 8"". Wyoming Tribune Eagle, June 11, 2012. Retrieved June 12, 2012.
  8. "Editorial: Millin willing to provide leadership for House 8". Wyoming Tribune Eagle. Archived from the original on February 10, 2013. Retrieved December 11, 2011.