Idaho House of Representatives elections, 2016

Idaho 2016 elections

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2016 Idaho
House Elections

Primary| May 17, 2016
General| November 8, 2016
2016 Election Results

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2016 Elections

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All 70 seats in the Idaho House of Representatives were up for election in 2016. Republicans gained three seats in the November 2016 general election.

HIGHLIGHTS

* Republicans fielded unopposed candidates in 24 districts, while Democrats had four unchallenged candidates.

* Democrats hoped to make gains in the 42 districts that had general election competition between two major party candidates; only seven seats were competitive or mildly competitive in 2014.[1]

* Republicans held a state government trifecta heading into the election.

## Contents

* 1 Introductions
* 1.1 Majority control
* 2 Retired incumbents
* 3 2016 election competitiveness
* 4 List of candidates
* 5 General election
* 6 Primary election
* 6.1 Races we watched
* 6.1.1 Primary contests
* 6.2 Margins of victory
* 6.3 Important dates and deadlines
* 6.4 Competitiveness
* 6.4.1 Candidates unopposed by a major party
* 6.4.2 Primary challenges
* 6.4.3 Retired incumbents
* 6.4.4 Results from 2014
* 6.4.5 Historical context
* 6.5 Campaign contributions
* 6.5.1 State comparison
* 6.6 Qualifications
* 6.7 See also
* 6.8 External links
* 6.9 Footnotes

## Introductions[edit]

Elections for the Idaho House of Representatives were held in 2016. The primary election took place on May 17, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was March 11, 2016.

### Majority control[edit]

See also: Partisan composition of state houses

Heading into the election, the Republican Party held the majority in the Idaho House of Representatives:

Idaho House of Representatives

Party  |  As of November 7, 2016  |  After November 8, 2016
|  Democratic Party |  14  |  11
|  Republican Party |  56 |  59
Total |  70 |  70

## Retired incumbents[edit]

Seven incumbent representatives did not run for re-election in 2016. Those incumbents were:

Name  |  Party  |  Current Office

|
|

Dan Rudolph |  Democratic | House District 6A
Gayle Batt |  Republican | House District 11A
Reed DeMordaunt |  Republican | House District 14B
Donna Pence |  Democratic | House District 26B
Ken Andrus |  Republican | House District 28A
Mark Nye |  Democratic | House District 29A
Linden B. Bateman |  Republican | House District 33B

## 2016 election competitiveness[edit]

Idaho sees a dip in electoral competitiveness.

Ballotpedia conducts a yearly study of electoral competitiveness in state legislative elections. Details on how well Idaho performed in the study are provided in the image below. Click here for the full 2016 Competitiveness Analysis »

* In the Idaho State Senate, there were 7 Democratic incumbents and 28 Republican incumbents. No incumbents faced primary challengers in the Democratic Party. Five primary challenges took place in the Republican primary.

* In the House, there were 14 Democratic incumbents and 56 Republican incumbents. One state representative faced primary opposition in the Democratic Party. There were 25 primary challenges that took place in the Republican primary.

* Overall, 18.6 percent of Democratic incumbents and 21.4 percent of GOP incumbents faced primary opposition in all of the state legislatures with elections in 2016.

* The cumulative figure for how many state legislative candidates faced no major party opposition in November in these states was 41.8 percent. This compares to 32.7 percent in 2010, 38.3 percent in 2012, and 43.0 percent in 2014.

* More details on electoral competitiveness in Idaho can be found below.

## List of candidates[edit]

# General election[edit]

2016 Idaho House candidates

District |  Democrat |  Republican | Other
1A  |  Kate McAlister: 8,630  |  Heather Scott: 14,406 (I) a |
1B  |  Stephen Howlett: 7,088  |  Sage Dixon: 15,485 (I) a |
2A  |  Kathy Kahn: 6,581  |  Vito Barbieri: 17,115 (I) a |
2B  |  Richard Kohles: 5,724  |  Eric Redman: 17,735 (I) a |
3A  |  No candidate |  Ron Mendive: 17,019 (I) a |
3B  |  No candidate |  Don Cheatham: 16,891 (I) a |
4A  |  Patrick P. Mitchell: 6,447  |  Luke Malek: 14,229 (I) a |
4B  |  Tom Hearn: 7,650  |  Paul Amador: 13,202 a |
5A  |  Paulette E. Jordan: 11,179 (I) a |  Carl Berglund: 10,889  |
5B  |  Laurene Sorensen: 8,589  |  Caroline Nilsson Troy: 11,121 (I) a |  Kenneth B. De Vries: 2,507 (Ind.)
6A  |  Bob Blakey: 8,144  |  Thyra Stevenson: 10,600 a |
6B  |  John Rusche: 7,933 (I) |  Mike Kingsley: 11,063 a |
7A  |  Jessica Chilcott: 5,633  |  Priscilla Giddings: 13,647 a |
7B  |  No candidate |  Paul Shepherd: 16,336 (I) a |
8A  |  Jocelyn Plass: 5,864  |  Terry F. Gestrin: 16,745 (I) a |
8B  |  No candidate |  Dorothy Moon: 18,344 a |  Ammon Emanuel Prolife: 2,666 (Constitution)
9A  |  Rejeana A. Goolsby: 3,402  |  Ryan Kerby: 14,634 (I) a |
9B  |  Allen Schmid: 4,872  |  Judy Boyle: 13,339 (I) a |
10A |  Jeremy Lopett: 4,640  |  Brandon Hixon: 9,400 (I) a |
10B  |  Warren T. Stevens: 4,572  |  Greg Chaney: 9,461 (I) a |
11A  |  Edward Savala: 3,802  |  Scott Syme: 15,561 a |
11B  |  Rita Burns: 3,555  |  Christy Perry: 13,896 (I) a |  John Charles Smith: 1,656 (L)
12A  |  Maria Gonzalez Mabbutt: 5,042  |  Robert Anderst: 10,972 (I) a |
12B  |  Shana Tremaine: 4,628  |  Rick Youngblood: 11,355 (I) a |
13A  |  No candidate |  Brent Crane: 14,945 (I) a |
13B  |  No candidate |  Gary Collins: 14,890 (I) a |
14A  |  Jane M. Rohling: 7,744  |  Mike Moyle: 19,107 (I) a |
14B  |  Glida Bothwell: 7,364  |  Gayann DeMordaunt: 19,098 a |
15A  |  Steve Berch: 9,370  |  Lynn Luker: 9,663 (I) a |
15B  |  Jake Ellis: 8,194  |  Patrick McDonald: 10,506 (I) a |
16A  |  John McCrostie: 10,599 (I) a |  Joel Robinson: 9,089  |
16B  |  Hy Kloc: 14,138 (I) a |  No candidate |
17A  |  John L. Gannon: 10,521 (I) a |  Kreed Ray Kleinkopf: 6,149  |
17B  |  Susan Chew: 10,615 (I) a |  Tabby Jolley: 6,353  |
18A  |  Ilana Rubel: 16,196 (I) a |  No candidate |
18B  |  Phylis King: 16,191 (I) a |  No candidate |
19A  |  Mathew Erpelding: 16,546 (I) a |  Mark Patten: 7,520  |
19B  |  Melissa Wintrow: 16,220 (I) a |  Jane McClaran: 7,883  |
20A  |  No candidate |  Joe Palmer: 14,447 (I) a |  Daniel S. Weston: 3,875 (Constitution)
20B  |  No candidate |  James Holtzclaw: 16,105 (I) a |
21A  |  Robert Winder: 7,586  |  Steven Harris: 14,391 (I) a |
21B  |  Cindy Thorngren: 7,531  |  Tom Dayley: 14,454 (I) a |
22A  |  No candidate |  John Vander Woude: 13,493 (I) a |
22B  |  No candidate |  Jason Monks: 13,260 (I) a |
23A  |  Mary Ann Richards: 3,360  |  Christy Zito: 10,867 a |
23B  |  No candidate |  Megan C. Blanksma: 10,810 a |  Bill Chisholm: 2,335 (Ind.)
Christopher Jenkins: 889 (L)
24A  |  Dale Varney: 4,443  |  Lance Clow: 12,035 (I) a |
24B  |  Catherine Talkington: 6,422  |  Stephen Hartgen: 10,161 (I) a |
25A  |  No candidate |  Maxine Bell: 14,839 (I) a |
25B  |  No candidate |  Clark Kauffman: 14,713 (I) a |
26A  |  Kathleen J. Eder: 8,958  |  Steve Miller: 9,222 (I) a |
26B  |  Sally Toone: 9,808 a |  Alex Sutter: 8,317  |
27A  |  No candidate |  Scott Bedke: 13,181 (I) a |
27B  |  No candidate |  Fred Wood: 13,060 (I) a |
28A  |  Steve Landon: 6,741  |  Randy Armstrong: 12,499 a |
28B  |  Louis Archuleta: 6,356  |  Kelley Packer: 12,920 (I) a |
29A  |  David H. Maguire: 7,884  |  Dustin W. Manwaring: 8,609 a |
29B  |  Elaine Smith: 13,425 (I) a |  No candidate |
30A  |  Matt P. Dance: 4,561  |  Jeff Thompson: 15,295 (I) a |
30B  |  No candidate |  Wendy Horman: 16,957 (I) a |
31A  |  No candidate |  Neil Anderson: 14,183 (I) a |
31B  |  No candidate |  Julie Van Orden: 14,427 (I) a |
32A  |  No candidate |  Marc Gibbs: 17,682 (I) a |
32B  |  No candidate |  Thomas Loertscher: 17,513 (I) a |
33A  |  Jim De Angelis: 5,463  |  Janet Trujillo: 10,510 (I) a |
33B  |  George P. Morrison: 5,332  |  Bryan N. Zollinger: 10,466 a |
34A  |  No candidate |  Ronald M. Nate: 16,803 (I) a |
34B  |  No candidate |  Dell Raybould: 16,953 (I) a |
35A  |  No candidate |  Van Burtenshaw: 16,566 (I) a |
35B  |  No candidate |  Karey Hanks: 16,163 a |
|  |  |
Notes:

* An (I) denotes an incumbent.
* Candidate lists can change frequently throughout an election season. Ballotpedia staff update this list monthly. To suggest changes, click here to email our State Legislature Project.

# Primary election[edit]

## Races we watched[edit]

Ballotpedia identified nine notable Idaho state primary races in 2016, six of which were state House contests.

Click here to read more about Ballotpedia's coverage of notable Idaho races »

### Primary contests[edit]

State House District 8B (R)

A Republican incumbent faced a more conservative challenger.
☐ Merrill Beyeler (Inc.)  ☑ Dorothy Moon

State House District 11A (R)

Five Republicans competed for the open seat left by the Republican incumbent.
☐ Myron Amsden ☐ Marty Galvin ☐ Tammy Nichols ☐ Mike Pullin ☑ Scott Syme

State House District 24B (R)

A Republican incumbent faced a conservative challenger.
☑ Stephen Hartgen (Inc.) ☐ Mary C. Bello

State House District 25A (R)

A Republican incumbent faced a conservative challenger.
☑ Maxine Bell (Inc.) ☐ Reggy A. Sternes

State House District 34A (R)

A Republican incumbent faced a more moderate challenger.
☑ Ronald M. Nate (Inc.) ☐ Doug Ricks

State House District 35B (R)

A Republican incumbent faced a rematch against a conservative challenger.
☐ Paul Romrell (Inc.) ☑ Karey Hanks
2016 Idaho House primary candidates

District |  Democrat |  Republican | Other
1A | Kate McAlister a | Heather Scott (I) a |
1B | Bob Vickaryous a | Sage Dixon (I) a |
2A | Kathy Kahn a | Vito Barbieri: 3,250 (I) a
Fritz Wiedenhoff: 1,539 |
2B | Cooper Coyle: 191
Richard Kohles: 417 a | Alan Littlejohn: 1,691
Eric Redman: 2,890 (I) a |
3A | No candidate | Ron Mendive (I) a |
3B | No candidate | Don Cheatham: 1,865 (I) a
Peter Riggs: 1,801 |
4A | Patrick P. Mitchell: 675 a
Turns To The East: 178 | Arthur B. Macomber: 1,614
Luke Malek: 2,263 (I) a |
4B | Tom Hearn a | Paul Amador: 2,020 a
Kathleen Sims: 1,893 (I) |
5A | Paulette E. Jordan (I) a | Bill Goesling: 1,346
Carl Berglund: 1,541 a |
5B | Laurene Sorensen a | Caroline Nilsson Troy (I) a | Kenneth B. De Vries a (Independent)
6A | Bob Blakey a | Thyra Stevenson a |
6B | John Rusche (I) a | Mike Kingsley a |
7A | Jessica Chilcott a | Priscilla Giddings: 2,828 a
Shannon McMillan: 1,798 (I) |
7B | No candidate | Paul Shepherd: 3,251 (I) a
Kris L. Steneck: 1,193 |
8A | Jocelyn Plass a | Terry F. Gestrin (I) a |
8B | No candidate | Merrill Beyeler: 3,051 (I)
Dorothy Moon: 4,318 a | Ammon Emanuel Prolife a (Constitution)
9A | Rejeana A. Goolsby a | Ryan Kerby: 3,676 (I) a
Jake Stephens: 1,980 |
9B | R. T. Loyd a | Judy Boyle: 3,443 (I) a
Michael Dolton: 2,347 |
10A | Jeremy Lopett a | Brandon Hixon (I) a |
10B | Warren T. Stevens a | Greg Chaney (I) a |
11A | Edward Savala a | Myron Amsden: 184
Marty Galvin: 497
Tammy Nichols: 1,437
Mike Pullin: 185
Scott Syme: 2,056 a |
11B | Rita Burns a | Christy Perry: 3,375 (I) a
Kathryn Ralstin: 916 | John Charles Smith a (Libertarian)
12A | Maria Gonzalez Mabbutt a | Robert Anderst (I) a |
12B | Shana Tremaine a | Rick Youngblood (I) a |
13A | No candidate | Brent Crane (I) a |
13B | No candidate | Gary Collins: 1,695 (I) a
Alan C. Jones: 697 |
14A | Jane M. Rohling a | Michael Greenway: 972
Mike Moyle: 3,106 (I) a |
14B | Glida Bothwell a | Gayann DeMordaunt: 2,825 a
Douglas R. Jones: 1,212 |
15A | Steve Berch a | Lynn Luker (I) a |
15B | Jake Ellis a | Rod W. Beck: 1,029
Patrick McDonald: 1,418 (I) a |
16A | John McCrostie: 1,449 (I) a
Jeff Stephenson: 282 | Joel Robinson a |
16B | Hy Kloc (I) a | No candidate |
17A | John L. Gannon (I) a | Kreed Ray Kleinkopf a |
17B | Susan Chew (I) a | Tabby Jolley a |
18A | Ilana Rubel (I) a | No candidate |
18B | Phylis King (I) a | No candidate |
19A | Mathew Erpelding (I) a | Mark Patten a |
19B | Melissa Wintrow (I) a | Jane McClaran a |
20A | No candidate | Joe Palmer (I) a | Daniel S. Weston a (Constitution)
20B | No candidate | James Holtzclaw (I) a |
21A | Robert Winder a | Steven Harris (I) a |
21B | Cindy Thorngren a | Tom Dayley (I) a |
22A | No candidate | John Vander Woude (I) a |
22B | No candidate | Jason Monks (I) a |
23A | Mary Ann Richards a | Richard Wills: 2,086 (I)
Christy Zito: 2,560 a |
23B | No candidate | Megan C. Blanksma: 3,387 a
Justin M. Freeman: 329
Pete Nielsen: 1,052 (I) | Christopher Jenkins a (Libertarian)
Bill Chisholm a (Independent)
24A | Dale Varney a | Lance Clow (I) a |
24B | Catherine Talkington a | Mary C. Bello: 1,462
Stephen Hartgen: 2,103 (I) a |
25A | No candidate | Maxine Bell: 3,267 (I) a
Reggy A. Sternes: 1,493 |
25B | No candidate | Clark Kauffman (I) a |
26A | Kathleen J. Eder a | Steve Miller (I) a |
26B | Sally Toone a | Alex Sutter a |
27A | No candidate | Scott Bedke (I) a |
27B | No candidate | Fred Wood (I) a |
28A | Steve Landon a | Randy Armstrong: 2,007 a
Kay Jenkins: 731
Tari L. Jensen: 757
Lance Kolbet: 637 |
28B | No candidate | Kelley Packer: 2,543 (I) a
Jason West: 1,935 |
29A | David H. Maguire a | Dustin W. Manwaring a |
29B | Elaine Smith (I) a | No candidate |
30A | Matt P. Dance a | Jeff Thompson (I) a |
30B | No candidate | Wendy Horman: 2,502 (I) a
Randy Neal: 1,169 |
31A | No candidate | Neil Anderson: 1,855 (I) a
David L. Esplin: 898 |
31B | No candidate | Julie Van Orden (I) a |
32A | No candidate | Marc Gibbs (I) a |
32B | No candidate | Thomas Loertscher (I) a |
33A | Jim De Angelis a | Janet Trujillo (I) a |
33B | George P. Morrison a | David Smith: 1,202
Bryan N. Zollinger: 1,542 a |
34A | No candidate | Ronald M. Nate: 2,632 (I) a
Doug Ricks: 2,465 |
34B | No candidate | Chick Heileson: 1,662
Dell Raybould: 3,301 (I) a |
35A | No candidate | Van Burtenshaw: 4,601 (I) a
Daniel Davis: 2,039 |
35B | No candidate | Karey Hanks: 3,535 a
Paul Romrell: 3,288 (I) |
|  |  |
Notes:

* An (I) denotes an incumbent.
* Candidate lists can change frequently throughout an election season. Ballotpedia staff update this list monthly. To suggest changes, click here to email our State Legislature Project.

## Margins of victory[edit]

The average margin of victory for contested races in the Idaho House of Representatives in 2016 was higher than the national average. Out of 70 races in the Idaho House of Representatives in 2016, 45 were contested, meaning at least two candidates competed for that seat in the general election. The average margin of victory across these races was 34 percent. Across contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016, the average margin of victory was 29.01 percent.[2]

Republican candidates in the Idaho House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Democratic candidates in 2016. Republicans won 59 races. In the 38 races where a winning Republican faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 36.6 percent. Democrats won 11 races in 2016. In the seven races where a winning Democrat faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 20.1 percent.

Democratic candidates and Republican candidates each won three races with margins of victory that were less than 10 percentage points. Six of the 45 contested races in 2016—13.3 percent—saw margins of victory that were 10 percent or less. Four races saw margins of victory that were 5 percent or less. Both parties won three races with margins of victory of 10 percent or less.

Idaho House of Representatives: 2016 Margins of Victory Less than 10 Percent

District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory
District 5A | D | 1.3 percent
District 15A | R | 1.5 percent
District 16A | D | 7.7 percent
District 26A | R | 1.5 percent
District 26B | D | 8.2 percent
District 29A | R | 4.4 percent
The average margin of victory for incumbents in the Idaho House of Representatives who ran for re-election and won in 2016 was higher than the national average. 56 incumbents who ran for re-election in 2016 won. The average margin of victory for the 32 winning Idaho House of Representatives incumbents who faced a challenger in 2016 was 33.3 percent. The average margin of victory for all winning incumbents in contested single-winner state legislative elections in 2016 was 31.8 percent.

Republican incumbents in the Idaho House of Representatives saw larger margins of victory than Democratic incumbents. 46 Republican incumbents won re-election. In the 26 races where a winning Republican incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 35.8 percent. 10 Democratic incumbents won re-election. In the six races where a winning Democratic incumbent faced a challenger, the average margin of victory was 22.1 percent.

Idaho House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory Analysis

Party | Elections won | Average margin of victory[3] | Races with incumbent victories | Average margin of victory for incumbents[3] | Unopposed incumbents | Unopposed races | Percent unopposed
Democratic | 11 | 20.1 percent | 10 | 22.1 percent | 4 | 4 | 36.4 percent
Republican | 59 | 36.6 percent | 46 | 35.8 percent | 20 | 21 | 35.6 percent
Total | 70 | 34.0 percent | 56 | 33.3 percent | 24 | 25 | 35.7 percent

Click [show] on the tables below to see the margin of victory in Idaho House of Representatives districts in 2016.

Idaho House of Representatives: 2016 Margin of Victory by District

District | Winning Party | Margin of Victory
District 1A | R | 25.1 percent
District 1B | R | 37.2 percent
District 2A | R | 44.5 percent
District 2B | R | 51.2 percent
District 3A | R | Unopposed
District 3B | R | Unopposed
District 4A | R | 37.6 percent
District 4B | R | 26.6 percent
District 5A | D | 1.3 percent
District 5B | R | 11.4 percent
District 6A | R | 13.1 percent
District 6B | R | 16.5 percent
District 7A | R | 41.6 percent
District 7B | R | Unopposed
District 8A | R | 48.1 percent
District 8B | R | 74.6 percent
District 9A | R | 62.3 percent
District 9B | R | 46.5 percent
District 10A | R | 33.9 percent
District 10B | R | 34.8 percent
District 11A | R | 60.7 percent
District 11B | R | 54.1 percent
District 12A | R | 37.0 percent
District 12B | R | 42.1 percent
District 13A | R | Unopposed
District 13B | R | Unopposed
District 14A | R | 42.3 percent
District 14B | R | 44.3 percent
District 15A | R | 1.5 percent
District 15B | R | 12.4 percent
District 16A | D | 7.7 percent
District 16B | D | Unopposed
District 17A | D | 26.2 percent
District 17B | D | 25.1 percent
District 18A | D | Unopposed
District 18B | D | Unopposed
District 19A | D | 37.5 percent
District 19B | D | 34.6 percent
District 20A | R | 57.7 percent
District 20B | R | Unopposed
District 21A | R | 31.0 percent
District 21B | R | 31.5 percent
District 22A | R | Unopposed
District 22B | R | Unopposed
District 23A | R | 52.8 percent
District 23B | R | 60.4 percent
District 24A | R | 46.1 percent
District 24B | R | 22.6 percent
District 25A | R | Unopposed
District 25B | R | Unopposed
District 26A | R | 1.5 percent
District 26B | D | 8.2 percent
District 27A | R | Unopposed
District 27B | R | Unopposed
District 28A | R | 29.9 percent
District 28B | R | 34.1 percent
District 29A | R | 4.4 percent
District 29B | D | Unopposed
District 30A | R | 54.1 percent
District 30B | R | Unopposed
District 31A | R | Unopposed
District 31B | R | Unopposed
District 32A | R | Unopposed
District 32B | R | Unopposed
District 33A | R | 31.6 percent
District 33B | R | 32.5 percent
District 34A | R | Unopposed
District 34B | R | Unopposed
District 35A | R | Unopposed
District 35B | R | Unopposed

## Important dates and deadlines[edit]

See also: Idaho elections, 2016

The calendar below lists important dates for political candidates in Idaho in 2016.

Dates and requirements for candidates in 2016

Deadline  |  Event type  |  Event description
March 8, 2016 | Election date  |  Presidential preference primary election
March 11, 2016 | Ballot access  |  Filing deadline for both party and independent candidates
April 19, 2016 | Ballot access  |  Deadline for write-in candidates to file declarations of intent for the primary election
May 10, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  7-day pre-primary report due
May 17, 2016 | Election date  |  Primary election
June 16, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  30-day post-primary report due
August 1, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  Semi-annual report due (for non-active statewide candidates only)
August 30, 2016 | Ballot access  |  Last day to file new political party formation petitions
October 11, 2016 | Ballot access  |  Deadline for write-in candidates to file declarations of intent for the general election
October 11, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  Pre-general report due
November 1, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  7-day pre-general report due
November 8, 2016 | Election date  |  General election
December 8, 2016 | Campaign finance  |  30-day post-general report due
January 31, 2017 | Campaign finance  |  Annual report due
Sources: Idaho Secretary of State, "Elections–2016 Election Consolidation Calendar," accessed July 9, 2015
Idaho Secretary of State, "Idaho Sunshine Law - Reporting Dates - 2015/2016 Election Cycle," accessed July 9, 2015

## Competitiveness[edit]

### Candidates unopposed by a major party[edit]

In 28 of the 70 seats up for election in 2016, there was only one major party candidate running for election. A total of 4 Democrats and 24 Republicans were guaranteed election barring unforeseen circumstances.

Two major party candidates faced off in the general election in 42 of the 70 seats up for election.

### Primary challenges[edit]

Twenty-six incumbents faced primary competition on May 17. Seven seats were open, leaving 37 incumbents that advanced past the primary without opposition. The following incumbents were defeated in the primary election:

* District 4B: Kathleen Sims (R)
* District 7A: Shannon McMillan (R)
* District 8B: Merrill Beyeler (R)
* District 23A: Richard Wills (R)
* District 23B: Pete Nielsen (R)
* District 35B: Paul Romrell (R)

### Retired incumbents[edit]

Seven incumbent representatives did not run for re-election, while 63 ran for re-election. A list of those incumbents, four Republicans and three Democrats, can be found above.

### Results from 2014[edit]

See also: 2014 state legislative elections analyzed using a Competitiveness Index

There were 6,057 seats in 87 chambers with elections in 2014. All three aspects of Ballotpedia's Competitiveness Index—the number of open seats, incumbents facing primary opposition, and general elections between partisan candidates—showed poor results compared to the prior election cycle. States with elections in 2014 held fewer general elections between partisan candidates. Additionally, fewer incumbents faced primary opposition and more incumbents ran for re-election than in recent years.

Since 2010, when the Competitiveness Index was established, there had not been an even-year election cycle to do statistically worse in any of the three categories. See the following chart for a breakdown of those scores between each year.

Overall Competitiveness

|  2010  |  2012  |  2014
Competitiveness Index  | 36.2  | 35.8  | 31.4
% Open Seats  | 18.6%  | 21.2%  | 17.0%
% Incumbent with primary challenge  | 22.7%  | 24.6%  | 20.1%
% Candidates with major party opposition  | 67.3%  | 61.7%  | 57.0%

The following table details Idaho's rates for open seats, incumbents that faced primary challenges, and major party competition in the 2014 general election.

Idaho Legislature 2014 Competitiveness

% Open Seats  |  % Incumbent with primary challenge  |  % Candidates with major party opposition  |  Competitiveness Index  |  Overall rank
10.5%  |  33.0%  |  52.3%  |  31.9  |  16

### Historical context[edit]

See also: Competitiveness in State Legislative Elections: 1972-2014

Uncontested elections: In 2014, 32.8 percent of Americans lived in states with an uncontested state senate election. Similarly, 40.4 percent of Americans lived in states with uncontested house elections. Primary elections were uncontested even more frequently, with 61 percent of people living in states with no contested primaries. Uncontested elections often occur in locations that are so politically one-sided that the result of an election would be a foregone conclusion regardless of whether it was contested or not.

Open seats: In most cases, an incumbent will run for re-election, which decreases the number of open seats available. In 2014, 83 percent of the 6,057 seats up for election saw the incumbent running for re-election. The states that impose term limits on their legislatures typically see a higher percentage of open seats in a given year because a portion of incumbents in each election are forced to leave office. Overall, the number of open seats decreased from 2012 to 2014, dropping from 21.2 percent in 2012 to 17.0 percent in 2014.

Incumbent win rates: Ballotpedia's competitiveness analysis of elections between 1972 and 2014 documented the high propensity for incumbents to win re-election in state legislative elections. In fact, since 1972, the win rate for incumbents had not dropped below 90 percent—with the exception of 1974, when 88 percent of incumbents were re-elected to their seats. Perhaps most importantly, the win rate for incumbents generally increased over time. In 2014, 96.5 percent of incumbents were able to retain their seats. Common convention holds that incumbents are able to leverage their office to maintain their seat. However, the high incumbent win rate may actually be a result of incumbents being more likely to hold seats in districts that are considered safe for their party.

Marginal primaries: Often, competitiveness is measured by examining the rate of elections that have been won by amounts that are considered marginal (5 percent or less). During the 2014 election, 90.1 percent of primary and general election races were won by margins higher than 5 percent. Interestingly, it is usually the case that only one of the two races—primary or general—will be competitive at a time. This means that if a district's general election is competitive, typically one or more of the district's primaries were won by more than 5 percent. The reverse is also true: If a district sees a competitive primary, it is unlikely that the general election for that district will be won by less than 5 percent. Primaries often see very low voter turnout in comparison to general elections. In 2014, there were only 27 million voters for state legislative primaries, but approximately 107 million voters for the state legislative general elections.

## Campaign contributions[edit]

The following chart shows how many candidates ran for State House in Idaho in past years and the cumulative amount of campaign contributions in State House races, including contributions in both primary and general election contests.[4]

Idaho House of Representatives Donations

Year  | Candidates  | Amount
2014  |  155  |  $2,821,299
2012  |  225  |  $2,763,023
2010  |  142  |  $2,164,091
2008  |  148  |  $2,601,652
2006  |  145  |  $2,044,999

### State comparison[edit]

The map below shows the average contributions to 2014 candidates for state houses. The average contributions raised by state house candidates in 2014 was $59,983. Idaho, at $18,202 per candidate, is ranked 38 of 45 for state house chambers with the highest average contributions. Hover your mouse over a state to see the average campaign contributions for that state’s house candidates in 2014.[4][5]

## Qualifications[edit]

Article III, Section 6 of the Idaho Constitution states: No person shall be a senator or representative who, at the time of his election, is not a citizen of the United States, and an elector of this state, nor anyone who has not been for one year next preceding his election an elector of the county or district whence he may be chosen.

## See also[edit]

* Idaho House of Representatives
* Idaho State Legislature
* State legislative elections, 2016

## External links[edit]

|  Suggest a link

|

* Idaho Secretary of State \- primary candidate list
* Idaho Secretary of State \- Third party general election candidates
* Idaho Secretary of State \- Primary election results

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ Under Ballotpedia's competitiveness criteria, districts that have a margin of victory of less than 5 percent are considered highly competitive. Districts that have a margin of victory from 5 to 10 percent are considered mildly competitive.
2. ↑ This calculation excludes chambers that had elections where two or more members were elected in a race. These chambers are the Arizona House, the New Hampshire House, the North Dakota House, the South Dakota House, the Vermont House, the Vermont Senate, and the West Virginia House.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Excludes unopposed elections
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 followthemoney.org, "Contributions to candidates and committees in elections in Idaho," accessed July 28, 2015
5. ↑ This map relies on data collected in July 2015.

[show]

Current members of the Idaho House of Representatives

Leadership

Speaker of the House:Scott Bedke

Representatives

District 1A

Heather Scott (R)

District 1B

Sage Dixon (R)

District 2A

Vito Barbieri (R)

District 2B

Doug Okuniewicz (R)

District 3A

Ron Mendive (R)

District 3B

Tony Wisniewski (R)

District 4A

Jim Addis (R)

District 4B

Paul Amador (R)

District 5A

Brandon Mitchell (R)

District 5B

Caroline Troy (R)

District 6A

Lori McCann (R)

District 6B

Mike Kingsley (R)

District 7A

Priscilla Giddings (R)

District 7B

Charlie Shepherd (R)

District 8A

Terry Gestrin (R)

District 8B

Dorothy Moon (R)

District 9A

Ryan Kerby (R)

District 9B

Judy Boyle (R)

District 10A

Julie Yamamoto (R)

District 10B

Greg Chaney (R)

District 11A

Scott Syme (R)

District 11B

Tammy Nichols (R)

District 12A

Bruce Skaug (R)

District 12B

Rick Youngblood (R)

District 13A

Brent Crane (R)

District 13B

Ben Adams (R)

District 14A

Mike Moyle (R)

District 14B

Gayann DeMordaunt (R)

District 15A

Steve Berch (D)

District 15B

Codi Galloway (R)

District 16A

John McCrostie (D)

District 16B

Colin Nash (D)

District 17A

John Gannon (D)

District 17B

Susan Chew (D)

District 18A

Ilana Rubel (D)

District 18B

Brooke Green (D)

District 19A

Lauren Necochea (D)

District 19B

Chris Mathias (D)

District 20A

Joe Palmer (R)

District 20B

James Holtzclaw (R)

District 21A

Steven Harris (R)

District 21B

Greg Ferch (R)

District 22A

John Woude (R)

District 22B

Jason Monks (R)

District 23A

Matthew Bundy (R)

District 23B

Megan Blanksma (R)

District 24A

Lance Clow (R)

District 24B

Linda Wright Hartgen (R)

District 25A

Laurie Lickley (R)

District 25B

Clark Kauffman (R)

District 26A

Muffy Davis (D)

District 26B

Sally Toone (D)

District 27A

Scott Bedke (R)

District 27B

Fred Wood (R)

District 28A

Randy Armstrong (R)

District 28B

Kevin Andrus (R)

District 29A

Dustin Manwaring (R)

District 29B

James Ruchti (D)

District 30A

Gary Marshall (R)

District 30B

Wendy Horman (R)

District 31A

David Cannon (R)

District 31B

Julianne Young (R)

District 32A

Marc Gibbs (R)

District 32B

Chad Christensen (R)

District 33A

Barbara Ehardt (R)

District 33B

Marco Erickson (R)

District 34A

Jon Weber (R)

District 34B

Ronald Nate (R)

District 35A

Karey Hanks (R)

District 35B

Rod Furniss (R)

Republican Party (58)

Democratic Party (12)

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