BOISE (AP) — Longtime Idaho state Rep. Shirley Ringo said she will challenge two-term incumbent Congressman Raul Labrador for the 1st Congressional District seat next year.

    Ringo, a former high school math teacher from Moscow who is in her seventh term in the Idaho House, made the announcement Monday.

    “”I think that we need to get people back in Washington, D.C., that really understand what you might call the art of politics . trying to work with people with other ideas to reach some sort of resolution,” Ringo said.

    As part of Idaho’s Democratic minority, Ringo acknowledged she’s facing an uphill battle but said she’s heard from Republicans who are unhappy with some of the positions taken by some GOP members.

    Labrador announced last week that he would seek a third term in Congress, ending speculation that he could run for Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter’s post.

    Ringo, 72, is a former Latah County Democratic Party chair. She was first elected to the state House in 1998. She said she had already decided not to seek an eighth term in that office in 2014 when state Democratic Party Chairman Larry Kenck approached her about the 1st District race.

    Ringo is the senior Democrat on the joint budget committee and also serves on several other panels. She said her legislative accomplishments have included influencing state budgets, helping constituents who have had problems with state agencies, and passing legislation that allows victims of domestic violence to register to vote without making their addresses public.