POWELL (WNE) — Coming off a dominant victory in last month’s primary election, state Rep. Rachel Rodriguez-Williams, R-Cody, has been tabbed as the next leader of the Wyoming Freedom Caucus.

The caucus, which has sought to move the Wyoming Legislature further to the right, announced Monday that Rodriguez-Williams had been unanimously chosen as its chairman for the next two years.

She takes over from Rep. John Bear, R-Gillette.

“Our members will continue to work hard to restore hope for Wyoming in the People’s House and be strong voices for the issues that are most important to the people of Wyoming,” Rodriguez-Williams said.

She  is moving into the chairman’s seat just as the caucus is poised to take on a much bigger role in the state House of Representatives.

In the past couple of legislative sessions, the Freedom Caucus and its allies generally lacked the votes to override more moderate Republicans and Democrats.

But in last month’s Republican primary, 32 of the 46 legislative candidates endorsed by the group won their races, and most, like Rodriguez-Williams, have no opponent for the general election. What the caucus called an “overwhelming electoral success” could clear the way for the group to control the House during the 68th Legislature.

In an interview immediately after the election, Rodriguez-Williams said Wyomingites will see a more conservative body.

“And I think that the people of Wyoming have spoken very loudly that that’s what they want,” she said. “They don’t want to be pushed around by the federal government. They don’t want special interest groups being a larger voice or a louder voice than themselves. And they want results.”