All of the incumbent legislators in Southeast Idaho are running for re-election — and many of them will have to fight to keep their seats.

As the filing deadline closed Friday for Idaho’s 2026 elections, local lawmakers showed a unanimous desire to return to Boise in what figures to be a busy election year across the state.

On the statewide level, Republican incumbents holding Idaho’s constitutional offices — governor, lieutenant governor, attorney general and others — are largely running for re-election without facing primary challengers, with the governor’s race being a notable exception.

The elections will be wide-ranging. All 105 seats in the Idaho Legislature are up for grabs, as are all statewide constitutional offices and three of Idaho’s four congressional seats, with contests in both the May primary and November general elections.

First, candidates with a declared party will vie for the party’s bid in the May 19 primary election. Then, winners of the races will ultimately be determined in the November general election.

But in Idaho, Republican primary elections often decide major elections. Idaho voters last elected a Democrat to statewide office in 2002. Since 1992, Republicans have held a supermajority in both chambers of the Idaho Legislature. Only registered Republican voters can vote in Idaho’s closed GOP primary elections.

Local legislative races

In Idaho Legislative District 28 (Bannock, Franklin and Power counties), incumbent GOP Sen. Jim Guthrie is facing a primary challenge from David Worley. Democrats Mandy Peace and Rosann Mathews are squaring off in the District 28 senatorial primary with the winner to face either Guthrie or Worley in November.

In the District 28 state representative Seat A race, incumbent Republican Rick Cheatum is being challenged by Mike Saville and James Lamborn in the primary. The winner will face Kim Jackman, the lone Democrat in the race, in November. In the state representative Seat B race, the only candidates are GOP incumbent Dan Garner and Democrat Jayson Meline with the winner to be decided in November.

In Idaho Legislative District 29 (Pocatello area), incumbent Democratic Sen. James Ruchti and GOP challenger John Crowder, the only candidates in the race, will face off in November. There will be no primary either in the District 29 state representative Seat A race between GOP incumbent Dustin Manwaring and Democratic challenger Mary Shea. In the state representative Seat B race, Republican incumbent Tanya Burgoyne is facing a primary challenge from Jennifer Miles. The winner will face Democrat Nate Roberts in November.

In Idaho Legislative District 30 (Bingham and Butte counties), incumbent Republican Julie VanOrden is facing a primary challenge from Ethan Neff in the state Senate race. The winner will face Democrat Joni Lin Sorenson in November. In the Seat A state representative race, Republican David Cannon is the only candidate. State representative Seat B will see GOP incumbent Ben Fuhriman squaring off against challenger Julianne Young in the primary with the winner then facing Democrat Bree Buckingham in November.

In Idaho Legislative District 35 (Bannock, Bear Lake, Caribou, Teton and Bonneville counties), incumbent Republican Sen. Mark Harris has no primary opponent but will face off against Democrat Marty Rotz Kilhefner in November. In the state representative Seat A race, GOP Rep. Mike Veile, who was appointed last year, is facing a primary challenge from Chad Christensen. The winner will face Democrat Walter Boyd in November. In the state representative Seat B race, GOP incumbent Josh Wheeler has no primary opponent but will face Democrat Mary Kaufman in November.

Statewide offices

Here’s a look at who’s running to represent Idaho in statewide offices including offices for the governor, attorney general, secretary of state, state controller, state treasurer, and superintendent of public instruction, as well as key legislative races.

The deadline to declare candidacy for Idaho federal, statewide and legislative offices was 5 p.m. Friday. Candidates have until 5 p.m. March 6 to withdraw their candidacy, or to declare their intent to be a write-in candidate.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little faces seven Republican challengers

Idaho Republican Gov. Brad Little is seeking re-election to a third four-year term. He’s set to face seven Republican challengers in the May primary election: Daniel C. Fowler, Ethan Giles, Justin R. Plante, Lisa Marie, Ron James, Sean Calvert Crystal and Mark Fitzpatrick, who owns State Street Saloon in Eagle and organized the Hetero Awesome Fest in downtown Boise in 2025.

Four candidates have filed to run as Democrats: Chanelle Torrez, Jill C. Kirkham, Maxine Durand and Terri Pickens, an attorney who ran unsuccessfully for lieutenant governor in 2022.

Two candidates filed to run as Libertarians: Paul Sand and Melissa-Sue Robinson. Retired Idaho Supreme Court Justice John Stegner filed to run for governor as an independent. One candidate, who legally changed his name to Pro-Life, filed under the Constitution Party.

Little, a rancher from Emmett, was first elected governor in 2018 after previously serving as lieutenant governor and a member of the Idaho Senate.

The May Republican primary election for governor is set to be an eight-way race between Little, Fowler, Giles, Plante, Marie, James, Calvert Crystal, and Fitzpatrick.

The winners of the May 19 primary elections will advance to the Nov. 3 general election.

Republican Lt. Gov Scott Bedke faces no primary challenger in his bid for re-election. Eric Myricks is running as a Democratic candidate for the lieutenant governor’s office.

All constitutional offices in Idaho are elected separately — including the governor and lieutenant governor.

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador is sole Republican candidate

Republican Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador faces no primary challenger in his bid for a second four-year term as the state’s top attorney.

Lori Hickman filed to run as a Democrat in the attorney general’s race. Hickman is an Idaho attorney with two decades of experience, and has served as board chair of Mormon Women for Ethical Government, the Idaho Democratic Party announced in a news release.

Labrador and Hickman are not set to compete against each other until the Nov. 3 general election.

The attorney general’s office is responsible for providing legal representation for the state of Idaho, including its state agencies, offices and boards to protect the state’s legal interests. It is part of the executive branch.

In 2022, Labrador defeated the state’s long-time Republican attorney general, Lawrence Wasden, in the primary election. Born in Puerto Rico, Labrador was the first Hispanic member of Idaho’s congressional delegation and a founding member of the U.S. House Freedom Caucus.

Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane is sole Republican candidate

Republican Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane faces no Republican challenger in his bid to be re-elected to a second four-year term.

Shawn Keenan, who lives in Coeur d’Alene and unsuccessfully ran as a Democrat for Secretary of State in 2022, also filed to run as a Democrat.

The secretary of state’s office manages the state’s elections, runs an online campaign finance transparency database, and manages business filings.

McGrane and Keenan will face off in the November general election.

Superintendent of public instruction, state treasurer, state controller candidates face no primary challengers

Republican Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield faces no primary challenger in her bid for a second four-year term leading the office that leads the state’s K-12 public school system.

Becky Sundin, a Nampa resident named 2018 Idaho Teacher of the Year, is running as a Democrat, Idaho Education News reported. Teresa Roundy filed as a Constitution Party candidate.

Republican Idaho State Controller Brandon Woolf faces no primary challenger in his bid for re-election. He has served in the office since being appointed in 2012, and was first elected in 2014.

But in the November general election, Woolf is set to face a Democratic challenger who is well known in Idaho state politics.

Rakesh Mohan, a longtime director of an independent state watchdog agency, filed to run for state controller as a Democrat. Mohan retired from leading the Office of Performance Evaluations in June 2024.

Republican State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth faces no primary challenger in her bid for re-election. Kevin A. Jones, who lives in Boise, filed to run as a Democrat.

Congress

All members of Idaho’s congressional delegation who are up for re-election are running, and they are facing primary election challengers.

This year, three of Idaho’s four congressional seats are up for election — one seat in the U.S. Senate and both of its seats in the U.S. House.

First, candidates with a declared party will vie for the party’s bid in the May 19 primary election. Then, winners of the races will ultimately be determined in the November general election.

But in Idaho, Republican primary elections often decide major elections. Idaho voters last elected a Democrat to statewide office in 2002. Since 1992, Republicans have held a supermajority in both chambers of the Idaho Legislature. Only registered Republican voters can vote in Idaho’s closed GOP primary elections.

Here’s a look at who’s running to represent Idaho in Congress. Find the full list of candidates for all offices online in the Idaho Secretary of State Office’s candidate database.

The deadline to declare candidacy for Idaho’s federal, statewide and legislative offices was 5 p.m. Friday. Candidates have until 5 p.m. March 6 to withdraw their candidacy, or to declare their intent to be a write-in candidate.

U.S. Sen Jim Risch faces three Republican challengers

U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, 82, is running for a fourth six-year term. The Republican was first elected to the seat in 2008 and now chairs the U.S. Senate Foreign Relations Committee.

He faces three Republican challengers in the May primary election: Denny LaVe, Joe Evans, and Josh Roy.

Three candidates — David Roth, Brad Moore and Nickolas 007 Bonds — are running as Democrats. Roth has previously unsuccessfully run for an Idaho congressional seat.

Two candidates have filed independent bids for U.S. Senate: Natalie M. Fleming and Todd Achilles, who resigned in June 2025 from a state House of Representatives seat as a Democrat to challenge Risch.

Matt Loesby is the sole Libertarian Party candidate.

In announcing his re-election bid in an April 2025 post on X, Risch touted an endorsement from U.S. President Donald Trump.

U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo, a Republican serving his fifth term, is not yet up for re-election. His six-year term began in 2023.

U.S. Rep. Russ Fulcher faces two Republican challengers

U.S. Rep. Russ Fulcher, 63, is running for a fifth two-year term. The Republican has represented Idaho’s 1st Congressional District since 2019.

He faces two Republican challengers in the May primary election: Joseph P. Morrison and Andy Briner.

Two candidates have filed Democratic bids for the U.S. House seat: Kenneth Brungardt and Kaylee Peterson, who unsuccessfully challenged Fulcher in 2022 and 2024. Sarah Zabel is running as the sole independent candidate. Brendan J. Gomez is the sole Constitution Party candidate.

Idaho’s 1st Congressional District — home to roughly 1 million people — splits Ada County, includes some of Boise and spans the state’s western border through the Idaho panhandle in the north.

Since 2000, only one Democrat has been elected to represent the district, for one term. Fulcher did not face a Republican challenger in the 2024 primary election.

U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson faces two Republican challengers

U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, 75, is running for a 15th two-year term. The Republican has represented Idaho’s 2nd Congressional District since 1999 and chairs the House Interior and Environment Subcommittee on Appropriations.

He faces two Republican challengers: Brian Keene and Perry Shumway.

Ellie Gilbreath and Julie Wiley are running as Democratic candidates. Emre Houser and Tripp Charles Hutchinson are running as independent candidates.

Will Johanson is running as the sole Libertarian candidate. The sole Constitution Party candidate is C. Sierra — ID Law — Idaho Lorax.

Idaho’s 2nd Congressional District — home to almost 1 million people — splits Ada County, includes most of Boise, and spans central and eastern Idaho.

Simpson has widely won re-election bids.

Idaho county offices

Many county offices including numerous commissioner posts throughout the state will be up for re-election this year as well. The filing deadline to run for those offices is March 13.