Independent candidate outraises leading Democrat in governor race

Sean Dolan | 03/27/2026

In less than two months, an independent candidate for governor has outraised the leading Democrat, who has been in the game for over two years.

John Stegner, a former Idaho Supreme Court justice, is running against Republican Gov. Brad Little in November as an independent. He declared a campaign treasurer on Jan. 29 and has since raised $80,820.

Democrat Terri Pickens, a private practice attorney, declared a campaign treasurer in December 2023 and has reported $77,752 in contributions. She will face three other Democrats in the May primary.

The makeup of their donations and contributors are quite different.

John Stegner (Photo courtesy of Stegner for Idaho)

Stegner’s $80,820 comes from 46 donations, at an average contribution of $1,757. A good chunk of that money — 42% — comes from out-of-state. Here’s the breakdown by state:

$47,070 from Idaho
$20,250 from Washington State
$6,000 from California
$5,000 from Washington D.C.
$2,500 from New York

Stegner’s donors include Tom Arkoosh, a Democrat who ran for Idaho attorney general in 2022, and John Carlson, who previously worked for the Idaho attorney general’s office.

Pickens’s donor list is significantly longer, the contributions smaller and more likely to come from Idaho.

The Democrat has reported 841 separate donations, at an average of $92. Of her campaign’s $77,752 in donations, 96% comes from Idaho. Here’s the breakdown by state, just including the top five:

$74,414 from Idaho
$2,500 from Utah
$250 from California
$200 from Tennessee
$100 from Washington State

Her donors include Rep. Chris Mathias, D-Boise, former Boise School District trustee AJ Balukoff and California resident Leslie Nielsen.

Terri Pickens (Photo courtesy Terri Pickens for Governor)

Neither Stegner nor Pickens come close to matching Little’s warchest.

The governor’s campaign has reported $1.54 million in contributions, including 224 who maxed the $5,000 donation.

Little will run against seven other Republicans in May, of which only two have reported contributions. Mark Fitzpatrick, owner of the Old State Saloon in Eagle, has raised $39,599 and Kimberly resident Justin Plante has raised $2,195.

Sean Dolan

Sean previously reported on local government for three newspapers in the Mountain West, including the Twin Falls Times-News. He graduated from James Madison University in Virginia. Contact him at sean@idahoednews.org