CHEYENNE, Wyo. – June 19, 2026 – The Smithsonian’s Museum on Main Street, in cooperation with the Wyoming State Museum, presents “Voices and Votes: Democracy in America.” The exhibition examines the nearly 250-year-old American experiment of a government “of, by and for the people,” and how each generation since continues to strive to form “a more perfect union.” Opening at the museum on June 19, “Voices and Votes” will be on view through Aug. 8, 2026.
The State Museum will host “Voices and Votes” as part of the Museum on Main Street program, a national/state/local partnership to bring exhibitions and programs to rural cultural organizations. The exhibition will tour six communities in Wyoming through 2026 and the beginning of 2027.
“Voices and Votes” explores the action, reaction, vision and revision that democracy demands as Americans continue to question how to shape the country. From the revolution and suffrage, to civil rights and casting ballots, everyone in every community is part of this ever-evolving story—the story of democracy in America. Exhibition sections explore the origins of American democracy, the struggles to obtain and keep the vote, the machinery of democracy, the right to petition and protest beyond the ballot and the rights and responsibilities of citizens. “Voices and Votes” features historical and contemporary photos; educational and archival video; engaging multimedia interactives with short games; and historical objects like campaign souvenirs, voter memorabilia, and protest material.
“‘Voice and Votes’ allows us to reflect on Wyoming’s history and explore what it means to be an active participant in the governance of not only the country but also the state and the community,” said Kevin Ramler, director of the Wyoming State Museum. “We want to inspire conversations and have developed local exhibitions and public programs to complement the Smithsonian exhibition.” The State Museum is supplementing the Smithsonian exhibit with a display of the Wyoming statehood flag presented to Governor F.E. Warren by Esther Hobart Morris in 1890, a trophy given to Governor Nellie Tayloe Ross to recognize Wyoming having the greatest increase in voter participation in the 1924 presidential election, and collections of campaign memorabilia once displayed in the storied Hitching Post Inn. Complementary programming includes a suite of Civic Season events at the museum and the Laramie County Library, as well as the Capitol City Celebration on July 4.
“Voices and Votes” is based on an exhibition currently on display at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History called American Democracy: A Great Leap of Faith. The exhibition is part of Museum on Main Street, a unique collaboration between the Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition Service (SITES), state cultural organizations across the nation, and local host institutions. To learn more about “Voices” and other Museum on Main Street exhibitions, visit museumonmainstreet.org.
Support for Museum on Main Street (MoMS) has been provided by the U.S. Congress. The Wyoming Voices and Votes tour is supported by a grant from the Wyoming Semiquincentennial Planning Task Force.
SITES has been sharing the wealth of Smithsonian collections and research programs with millions of people outside Washington, D.C., for more than 65 years. SITES connects Americans to their shared cultural heritage through a wide range of exhibitions about art, science, and history, which are shown wherever people live, work, and play. For exhibition description and tour schedules, visit sites.si.edu.
Figure 1: Wyoming Statehood Flag. Figure 2: “Remember the 4th” holiday banner, 1860s, courtesy of National Museum of American History. Figure 3: “A Woman Living Here Has Registered to
Vote,” window sign for a home, 1919, courtesy of National Museum of American History.
Contact: Kevin Ramler, (307) 286-5952, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.