BALLOT BEAT

The first reports of independent expenditures for Idaho’s 2026 election cycle trickled into the state’s campaign finance portal last week — but the filings probably don’t tell the whole story of outside spending.

There are several complications in tracking spending from political action committees, particularly if they are registered out of state. Here’s what we know so far.

Two groups reported independent expenditures last week. The PAC For Public Lands last Monday reported $784 to support Sen. Jim Woodward, R-Sagle, and $1,708 to support Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon.

On Friday the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee reported $6,000 in independent expenditures to support 25 candidates for the Idaho Legislature, statewide offices and a few local races. Here are some of the candidates the committee supports:

• For governor: Mark Fitzpatrick
• Senate candidates: former Sen. Scott Herndon and incumbents Phil Hart, Doug Okuniewicz, Ben Toews, and Carl Bjerke
• House candidates: challenger Jane Sauter and incumbents Cornel Rasor, Heather Scott, Dale Hawkins, Vito Barbieri, Jordan Redman, Joe Alfieri, Elaine Price, Ron Mendive and Tony Wisniewski

Both of these in-state groups filed their reports the day after making the expenditures, but some groups wait until the last minute to file their reports.

Complications

A spokesman for the Idaho secretary of state’s office told EdNews there are complications in tracking PAC spending.

Some independent expenditures come from national PACs that are registered with the Federal Election Commission. Those groups do not have to file monthly reports in Idaho, but still have to report their independent expenditures as laid out in Idaho law (below).

For in-state PACs, some of their independent expenditures might appear in their monthly filings but not show up in “independent expenditure” searches in Idaho Sunshine.

The “final complication” is that some PACs record independent expenditures as regular expenditures, so they are “harder to spot,” according to the secretary of state’s office.

What does the law say?

Idaho statutes require anyone who makes an independent expenditure of more than $100 to file a statement with the secretary of state “not less than seven days prior” to the election and 30 days after the election.

If those independent expenditures are in an aggregate amount of $1,000 or more and made “after the 16th day before, but more than 48 hours before” an election, they must be reported within 48 hours of the time of the expenditure.

A case study

Looking through 2024 independent expenditure reports from Make Liberty Win, a Virginia-based national PAC associated with the libertarian Young Americans for Liberty, reveals that the group expertly filed their reports during the 2024 election cycle to get in right under the deadline.

Make Liberty Win in 2024 spent $705,000 in Idaho in 864 separate independent expenditures, according to Idaho Sunshine data. Republican leadership, including Speaker of the House Mike Moyle and Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, sat at the top of the group’s hit list.

Between March 29 and April 30, the group spent $400,604 in Idaho but did not report those independent expenditures until May 14, seven days before the election — just as the law requires.

And then in the period “after the 16th day before, but more than 48 hours before” the primary election — which in 2024 was between May 5 and 19 — the PAC filed its reports within two days of making expenditures. For example, the PAC on May 15 spent $62,695 and reported it two days later on May 17.

As Make Liberty Win is a national PAC, it has to report fundraising and expenses to the FEC. But the FEC reports don’t shed much light on which candidates the PAC supports in Idaho. All of its spending in Idaho passes through various companies in other states, such as CampaignHQ in Iowa, Propellant Media in Georgia or WAB Holdings LLC in Ohio.

If 2024 is any guide, Make Liberty Win could be making independent expenditures now, but we won’t know how much the out-of-state PAC is spending until a week before voters hit the ballot box.

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.

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.

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.

Slapping an “of Idaho” onto the end of a political action committee’s name doesn’t necessarily mean the money it spends comes from within the Gem State. 

The Citizens Alliance of Idaho PAC on Wednesday reported a $400,000 contribution from Citizens Alliance Political Action Committee Inc., a super PAC based in Fairfax, Va., just outside of Washington, D.C.

That’s on top of a $50,000 donation the super PAC made last month to the Idaho PAC, for a total of $450,000 this year.

The only other itemized contributions the Citizens Alliance of Idaho PAC has reported this year are $100 donations from Jilene Burger of Idaho Falls — a Republican running against Rep. Marco Erickson, R-Idaho Falls, in May — and Robert Shillingstad of Hayden.

According to the Citizens Alliance of Idaho PAC’s website, the group wants to bring honesty and integrity to state politics by getting legislators to sign “The Citizens Alliance of Idaho Pledge.”

Forty-two have signed on, including Republican Reps. Cornel Rasor, Heather Scott, Dale Hawkins, Vito Barbieri, Jordan Redman, Joe Alfieri, Elaine Price and Republican Sens. Phil Hart, Doug Okuniewicz, Ben Toews and Carl Bjerke.

According to the PAC’s website, legislators who sign the pledge agree to vote in support of:

• The right to self defense
• Individual medical freedom
• Election integrity
• Expanding education freedom
• The right to due process

The pledge was inspired by the Idaho State Constitution and the U.S. Constitution, the website states. A video on the site provides more information.

“Talk is cheap and so are political promises, hidden agendas and special interests,” a narrator says over a video clip of a cowboy wrangling livestock. “That’s why we created the Citizens Alliance of Idaho pledge, affirming the values Idahoans have been livin’ by for over a hundred years.”

Who’s funding the super PAC?

As the Citizens Alliance super PAC is a national committee, the Federal Election Commission provides data on its funding and spending.

For the two-year period of 2025 and 2026, the super PAC reported $1.79 million in donations.

Of that, $1.29 million came from one business, POM of Pennsylvania LLC, which is associated with Pace-O-Matic, Inc., a business that describes itself as the “nation’s leading developer of skills games.”

There is a debate over whether the “skill games” that Pace-O-Matic produces are gambling devices, according to a November story from the Pennsylvania Capital-Star, part of the nonprofit States Newsroom, which also owns the Idaho Capital Sun.

In the 2025-26 filing period, two Idaho residents contributed to the Citizens Alliance super PAC.

Eagle resident Dan McKnight contributed $2,500 and Camp Hill resident Lynn Bradescu donated $1,000. Bradescu is a conservative realtor who ran for Boise City Council last year, as BoiseDev reported. That $3,500 from Idaho residents accounts for 0.2% of the super PAC’s funding in 2025.

During the 2024 election cycle, the super PAC donated $435,000 to the Citizens Alliance of Idaho PAC. The Idaho PAC spent $67,107 on independent expenditures to support or oppose legislative candidates in 2024 and reported $446,961 in expenditures that year to Mobilize the Message LLC, based in Fort Walton Beach, Fla.

“If anything, the only special interests represented by the Pledge are the citizens of Idaho,” the Citizens Alliance of Idaho’s website states.

Ten candidates have withdrawn from legislative races as of Tuesday morning. EdNews will update this story as more candidates drop out.

Here’s the list of dropouts so far:

• Republican James Spencer, District 6 House Seat A
• Democrat Marissa Wilson, District 11 House Seat A
• Democrat Ariel Olvera, District 14 Senate
• Republican Matt Stallsmith, District 14 House Seat A
• Republican Rep. Codi Galloway, District 15 Senate
• Republican Gary Alfred Butts, District 15 Senate
• Republican Gina Johnson, District 21 House Seat A
• Democrat Brian Stroops, District 23 House Seat B
• Democrat Rosann Mathews, District 28 Senate
• Republican Jeff Thompson, District 33 House Seat B

The withdrawals mean five fewer primary elections in May. There will now be 45 Republican primaries and five Democratic primaries. These incumbents and challengers will no longer have a primary:

• Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, District 14 House Seat A
• Desi Burbank, Republican, District 15 Senate
• Rep. James Petzke, R-Meridian, District 21 House Seat A
• Joe Fuller, Democrat, District 23 House Seat B
• Mandy Peace, Democrat, District 28 Senate

UPDATED: 2:15 p.m. Friday, March 6, with a third withdrawal, Democrat Rosann Mathews

Updated: 3:15 p.m. Friday, March 6, with a fourth withdrawal, Republican James Spencer

The field of legislative candidates has narrowed from 272 at the end of last week to 266 on Friday afternoon.

Democrat Brian Stroops, who filed to run for District 23 House Seat B, withdrew his candidacy Thursday. His departure means Democrat Joe Fuller will not face a primary election and will run against incumbent Rep. Shawn Dygert, R-Melba, in November.

Former Republican Rep. Jeff Thompson also withdrew his candidacy on Thursday. The Idaho Falls resident filed to run on Feb. 27 in District 33 House Seat B.

The Idaho Statesman reported Friday that Thompson also filed to run as a representative in the Kentucky General Assembly.

Kentucky’s elections website shows Thompson declared on Jan. 7 but withdrew that filing Wednesday, one day before he ended his Idaho run.

His campaign email handle — “jeff4legislator” — is vague enough to be used in both states.

Voters in District 33B will still have a Republican primary. Republican Jilene Burger faces Rep. Marco Erickson, R-Idaho Falls, in May. The winner will run against Democrat Todd DeVries in November.

On Friday, another candidate dropped out. Democrat Rosann Mathews filed last week to run for Senate in District 28. Her withdrawal on Friday eliminates another Democratic primary. Democrat Mandy Peace will run in November against the winner of a two-way Republican primary pitting Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, against challenger David Worley.

Shortly after Mathews withdrew, Republican James Spencer exited his race. He was planning on running in District 6 House Seat A for Lewiston Republican Rep. Lori McCann’s seat. McCann is running for Senate, leaving her seat vacant. Republicans Colton Bennett and Cindy Agidius will run in the May primary, without Spencer.

Sen. Codi Galloway, R-Boise, and Republican Gary Alfred Butts, withdrew earlier this week, as we reported on Tuesday.

The six withdrawals this week narrowed the field and reduced the number of primaries in May. There will be five Democratic primaries and 48 Republican primaries.

More Democrats filed to run for office in Idaho last week than at any point in recent history.

One hundred Democrats out of 272 candidates filed for the Legislature and 10 out of 29 filed for statewide offices. Party leaders are touting their organizing and recruiting efforts, while also noting an increased interest in public office as the Republican supermajority in the Legislature votes on budget cuts.

“We pounded the pavement and talked to people,” Idaho Democratic Party Chair Lauren Necochea told EdNews on Monday. “Sometimes people have to be asked, and sometimes people raise their hand and say, ‘I want to run.'”

Ada County Democrats say they have a candidate running in every legislative race in the county for the “first time in modern history.”

“This is a direct response to the extremism coming out of the Statehouse,” Ada County Democrats Chairman Jared DeLoof stated in a Friday news release.

More than twice as many Democrats are running for the Legislature this year compared with four years ago — and there are more primaries for these candidates.

• 2026: 100 Democrats, seven contested primaries
• 2024: 87 Democrats, four contested primaries
• 2022: 46 Democrats, no contested primaries

“We’re just thrilled with the outpouring of interest in running at a critical moment in Idaho’s history,” Necochea said.

The state party stays neutral in primaries, she said, and voters will decide whose message resonates the most.

View the full list of candidates here.

There will be three Democratic primaries in District 6 and two in District 16:

District 6

• Senate
  • Richard Gayler vs. Robin Weldy
• House A
  • Trish Carter-Goodheart vs. Bryce Blankenship vs. Ryan Wayne Augusta
• House B
  • Kathy Dawes vs. Kenneth Williams

District 16

• Senate
  • Soñia Galaviz vs. Justin “Justice” Mitson
• House A
  • Megan Woller vs. Jeffrey Watkins

General Election

Necochea said she thinks Democrats can flip seats in District 15 and 29 this year.

In District 15, Sen. Codi Galloway, R-Boise, in 2024 beat incumbent Democrat Rick Just by a 3.6% margin. Galloway on Monday withdrew her re-election campaign. Democrat Nancy Gregory, a 24-year Boise school trustee, is running for the seat. She will face Republican Desi Burbank in November.

In District 29, Rep. Tanya Burgoyne, R-Pocatello, in 2024 beat incumbent Democrat Nate Roberts by a 5.2% margin. Roberts is running again this year, but first Burgoyne will face Republican Jennifer Miles in the primary.

“With people excited to run all across the state, we’re going to be narrowing the margins where Republicans have strongholds, and potentially flipping some seats and some surprising places,” Necochea said.

Republican Sen. Codi Galloway on Monday withdrew her 2026 election filing in District 15, according to information on VoteIdaho.gov.

She confirmed to EdNews on Tuesday that she has withdrawn.

“Serving in both the House and the Senate has been an honor,” Galloway wrote in an email. “I love Idaho and representing Idaho families. After six years of being involved in both the House and Senate, I’ve done some good and am ready to pass the baton on to the next public servant.”

Democrat Nancy Gregory, a 24-year Boise school trustee, is running for the seat.

District 15 is a swing district with one Democrat and two Republican incumbents.

Another Republican also dropped out of the race. Challenger Gary Alfred Butts filed on Wednesday but withdrew his candidacy on Friday, according to VoteIdaho.gov.

That leaves two candidates.

Gregory will face Republican Desi Burbank in November. There will be no contested primary elections for the Senate seat.

Burbank does not appear to have a campaign website or election history in Idaho.

In an October interview with EdNews, Gregory said west Boise voters are looking for a different voice.

“Public schools are working very hard to do a good job for their communities,” she said. “The Legislature seems to be more intent on making that more difficult than more reliable and steady and supported.”

Gov. Brad Little’s campaign on Thursday hired the co-campaign manager and senior advisor for Donald Trump’s 2024 presidential run.

Chris LaCivita will serve as senior advisor for Little’s re-election bid, according to a news release. A longtime political consultant from Virginia, LaCivita played a role in the 2004 “swift boat” campaign to discredit Democratic presidential nominee John Kerry.

LaCivita will be a “huge asset” to the campaign, Little stated in the news release.

“His insight and ability to deliver winning messages and tactics are unparalleled,” Little stated. “I am glad to have him on the team.”

The announcement comes two days after Little filed to run for a third term, making it clear where he will spend some of his $1.43 million in contributions.

According to news reports, LaCivita ran a 2020 super PAC to support Trump’s second presidential run before officially joining Trump’s 2024 campaign.

Twenty years before that, LaCivita helped orchestrate an attack campaign that Kerry never recovered from. Swift Boat Veterans for Truth in 2004 released a political ad featuring Vietnam veterans who claimed Kerry lied about his military service. The term “swiftboating” is now a part of the political lexicon to describe dishonest political attacks.

As of Thursday morning, six Republican challengers, two Democrats and two Libertarians have filed to run for governor against Little. View the full list here. The filing window closes at 5 p.m. Friday.

None of the challengers come close to competing with Little’s massive fundraising advantage. Democrat Terri Pickens has raised $68,251 and Republican Mark Fitzpatrick has raised $27,136.

The primary election is May 19.

Gov. Brad Little on Tuesday announced he is running for a third term.

His announcement has been anticipated for months, as his campaign has raised $1.43 million for the 2026 election cycle.

“We delivered historic tax relief and made record investments in schools, public safety, and infrastructure to protect our exceptional quality of life. And we’re not slowing down — Idaho will continue leading the nation in cutting red tape and expanding freedom,” Little stated in a news release.

He will appear on the ballot for the May 19 primary along with at least three other Republicans: Mark Fitzpatrick, Justin Plante and Sean Calvert Crystal.

Candidates must file before 5 p.m. Friday. Click here to view our full list of candidates, with daily updates this week.

Little will formally kick off his campaign at the end of the legislative session.

Rep. Jack Nelsen, R-Jerome, announced he will not seek re-election.

Nelsen is a House Education Committee member, former teacher and former board member for the College of Southern Idaho.

“Education is what makes America,” Nelsen told EdNews on Friday afternoon.

He previously served 20 years as a planning and zoning commissioner in Jerome County, was chair of the Jerome County Republicans and president of the Jerome Rotary Club. A conference room is named after him at the Jerome County Courthouse. He was elected to the Idaho Legislature in 2022 and won re-election in 2024. He represents District 26 House Seat B for Jerome, Lincoln and Blaine counties.

Nelsen has faced criticism from his own party. He voted against House Bill 93 last year, which created the $50 million Parental Choice Tax Credit. He supports the separation of church and state and opposes sending tax dollars to private schools, he said Friday.

For that vote and several others, the far-right Magic Valley Liberty Alliance named Nelsen the 2025 “RINO of the Year,” meaning Republican In Name Only. Republican central committees in Lincoln and Blaine counties censured Nelsen last year for voting against the Republican party platform.

He said Friday that he ran for the Legislature to represent his constituents, not to follow the party platform or seek high ratings from political groups.

“I take issue with the Republican platform that says no job training after high school,” he said. “I think for our state’s economy and individually — for each of our citizens — job training is one of the most important things.”

Nelsen, 70, said he won’t seek re-election for personal reasons.

“It’s possible if I ran again, I might have to hire a marriage counselor,” Nelsen said. “I have a severe fishing habit, and I’ve got some grandkids in Kansas. So it’s not political at all. It’s absolutely a personal decision.”

Nelsen made the announcement days before the filing period opens for the 2026 election cycle. Candidates can file to run next week, Feb. 23-27.

He thanked his family and constituents for supporting him over the years.

“I’d like to thank my family and my lovely wife for supporting me,” Nelsen said. “When you make a decision to get into politics, it’s something that your family has to be part of too.”

District 26 is a swing district. Four individuals have named campaign treasurers for the seat:

• Republican Lyle Johnstone
• Republican Jeffrey Emerick
• Democrat Kevin Marsh
• Democrat Anita Janis