BOISE, Idaho — After a late primary election night in Idaho, members of the Idaho Republican party rallied on the Statehouse steps as a part of the traditional GOP ‘Unity Rally.’ The tradition is meant to unify the Gem State GOP after the heated primary season that pitted Republican against Republican.
The rally is designed to include winners and losers from the primary as a show of unity to prepare for the November general election. Major winners from primary night spoke to a crowd from the Capitol steps, including Governor primary winner, Gov. Brad Little; Lt. Governor winner, Rep. Scott Bedke; Secretary of State winner, Ada County Clerk Phil McGrane; AG winner Raul Labrador; and Superintendent of Public Instruction winner Debbie Critchfield.
Some notable names that fell short on election night were not spotted at the rally, including Lt. Governor Janice McGeachin who failed to beat Little, Rep. Priscilla Giddings who lost to Bedke, Rep. Dorothy Moon who fell short of McGrane, current Superintendent of Public Instruction Sherri Ybarra who lost re-election to Critchfield, and longtime AG Lawrence Wasden, who was defeated by Labrador.
After the event, there were still some questions, like just how united is the Idaho GOP after a contentious election and how can party leaders unite the party?
House Speaker Scott Bedke, projected to be the next Lt. Governor, says there is more the GOP agrees on than not.
“I think the last thing that we want to do is engage in a war of attrition. I think that's counterproductive. The things that bring us together are our love for the state and the opportunities that all of us have had here. I think that we all agree that we have something special, the best place to live, to work, and to raise a family I think everybody wants to keep it that way," said Bedke.
Did the Idaho Democrats hold a unity rally today?
No, Idaho Democrats Party Chair, Rep. Lauren Necochea, tells KTVB that the Idaho Dems do not need a rally to unify, they already feel that way.
Democrats mostly had uncontested races on primary election night, so not a lot to follow on their side.
However, Dems are keeping a close eye on GOP winners heading into November. Necochea says the party believes extremist candidates for major statewide offices were defeated in the GOP primary, but there are still concerns over other races.
"The Republicans had a candidate who cozies up to white nationalists. They had a candidate who doxed a rape victim and lied about it. These people don't meet the basic ethical standards for holding public office. I'm glad to see that those people were rejected. At the same time, we see a difference. It's more style than substance. We have, you know, Governor Little wringing his hands, but then still enacting laws that provide cash rewards for family members of rapists," she said.
Another major theme after the primary, huge turnover in the state legislature.
A group of GOP incumbents lost on primary night, meaning the legislature will look and likely operate differently than this past year, or recent years in general. Members of the powerful legislative budgeting committee, as well as a handful of committee chairs, lost. Idaho political expert, Boise State Professor Dr. Stephanie Witt provided insight on what that means going forward.
"I think when you bring that many new people in, you get a new sense of the direction of the two chambers. In the most recent sessions, we've seen the Senate serving as kind of a backstop to the right-wing of the parties, bills they would pass in the House, come over to the Senate and not get anywhere. I don't know if that's going to be the same. It looks like the makeup of the Senate is going to be a little more conservative. So we may see a more hospitable landing place for those House bills. That in the last couple of sessions didn't make it through the Senate," Witt said.
As a reminder, vote leaders on primary night are projected winners until the vote is certified officially by the Secretary of State’s Office in the coming weeks.
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