What do your friends and neighbors think about living in Idaho?

Boise State University political scientists attempt to answer this question with an annual survey of Idaho residents. The 2024 survey results, sampling 1,007 Idahoans from around the state, were released this week.

This year’s survey found some predictable responses. Idahoans are nervous about inflation, especially the escalating price of new homes. The economy is still a concern, and parents are worried whether their kids will gain the knowledge needed to find rewarding employment.

In addressing these concerns most Idahoans are politically conservative, meaning government isn’t expected to have all the answers. But Idaho’s conservativism is still pragmatic. Constitutional functions like free common public schools are expected to be helpful in seeking paths forward on family and career goals.

A few results contradict recent headlines. It is reassuring to see that most Idahoans have comfortable trust in their local librarians, and don’t think “the library” is a place where their children are at heightened risk of exposure to harmful words or pictures.

Also, surveyed Idahoans seem to be more sympathetic to young mothers than one might guess from publicized abortion debates. Most Idahoans want to protect life before birth, but they also care about the mental and emotional health of the mother.

This survey was the ninth consecutive by Boise State and comes at a time when national survey data is also available online. Tracking changes over time and against national trends is perhaps the most informative use of the BSU survey.

Again, some observations are not surprising. Idaho continues to get “redder,” with more self-identified Republicans. But place that against the national backdrop of a decades-long 30-30-40 split, with Republicans and Democrats roughly equal. Nationwide the largest group of voters still calls themselves “independent.”

What that means is that as Idaho gets redder, somewhere else is getting bluer.

One question political scientists use surveys, like BSU’s, to answer is “How are the west coast refugees moving into Idaho changing the state?” Beginning to emerge out of this 9th annual BSU survey is “not as much as you would think, and possibly not persisting beyond a generation.”

On questions of “right direction or wrong direction” in state policy, and the quality of K-12 public schools, there are distinct differences between long time residents and those who have moved into Idaho within the last 10 years. On public education, newer move-ins are more skeptical.

But that difference washes out when you pare away the respondents who do not have children in Idaho’s public schools. It appears that many recent move-ins either didn’t come to Idaho with school-age children, or never enrolled their children in public schools once here.

The eastern region of Idaho is, in fact, the only part of the state where half of the 2024 survey respondents had a child in a public school. For future surveys it would be informative to know if this results from new move-ins with no or grown children, or if it is the result of a pandemic-led trend toward home and private schooling.

One other finding that is a little surprising: eastern Idaho also stands out in its assessment of Idaho’s general direction, being the only region where “right direction” significantly out-polled “wrong direction.” Statewide that question was a virtual tie at 43% (wrong) to 41% (right).

For perspective, polls show national “wrong direction” sentiments beating “right direction” two to one. The “net positive” response from eastern Idaho is fairly rare nationwide and someone (although not sure who) deserves credit for doing a good job.

Explore the survey for yourself at https://www.boisestate.edu/sps/2024-idaho-public-policy-survey/.

Trent Clark of Soda Springs is President and CEO of Customalting Inc. and has served in the leadership of Idaho business, politics, workforce, and humanities education.