Gas station attendant Dale Roper is a political junkie and part-time speechwriter for a man he hates: dumb-as-a-post Wyoming state senator Wilt Sturgeon ('Like the fish!' say all his campaign signs). When incumbent Congressman T.J. Carvey unexpectedly withdraws his bid for re-election, Sturgeon becomes the Republican candidate for Wyoming's only Congressional seat and Dale winds up working both for and against Sturgeon in an attempt to save the nation from Wilt the Fish's influence and deliver the election to Mark Hoffman, the charismatic Democratic candidate. As the election draws near and Dale is faced with cynicism and corruption on both campaigns, he is forced to decide which side he's on--with potentially dire consequences.