BOISE, ID – The candidate filing period for Idaho 2026 elections opened Monday and will run until Friday.
Multiple incumbents and some former lawmakers have declared their candidacy, with more than 118 people filing by 5:30 p.m. Monday.
This year, all statewide constitutional offices — such as governor, lieutenant governor, and attorney general — are up for election as well as all 105 seats in the Idaho Legislature. Some of Idaho’s congressional seats will also be on the ballot in the May primary and November general elections.
All of the candidates who have filed may be found online in the Idaho Secretary of State’s candidate database.
Both of Idaho’s incumbent U.S. representatives filed Monday
Idaho’s two incumbent U.S. House representatives, Russ Fulcher for District 1 and Mike Simpson for District 2, had filed as of Monday. Simpson has served in his position since he was first elected in 1999, and Fulcher was first elected in 2019.
U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, is also up for election. He has announced his bid for reelection, but his name didn’t appear in candidate filings Monday.
Familiar names appear to appear on statewide ballots
Current statewide office holders Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke, Controller Brandon Woolf, and Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield have all filed to run for reelection.
Current Gov. Brad Little’s name did not appear in filings Monday. Democrat Terri Pickens, who ran for lieutenant governor in 2022, has filed to run for governor. Owner of the Eagle bar Old State Saloon and organizer of the Hetero Awesome Fest in Boise, Mark Fitzpatrick, had filed to run for governor as a Republican.
Idaho legislative races see current and former lawmakers
More than 85 candidates had filed for seats in the Idaho Legislature across all of Idaho’s 35 legislative districts as of Monday evening. Each seat has a two-year term.
Idaho’s longest-serving state legislator, House Speaker Mike Moyle, a Republican from Star, was among the candidates who filed Monday. Moyle is currently serving his 14th term.
Rep. Brent Crane, a Nampa Republican in his 10th term, was also listed as a candidate.
Rep. Lori McCann, R-Lewiston, filed Monday, but for a seat in the Idaho Senate, running against incumbent District 6 Sen. Dan Foreman, R-Moscow. Foreman also declared his candidacy for the seat.
Some former lawmakers who lost in close races are also putting their hats in the ring again.
Former Sen. Scott Herndon, a Sagle Republican, has entered to run for District 1 state senator. He narrowly lost to Sen. Jim Woodward, another Sagle Republican, in the 2024 primary. Woodward’s name didn’t appear in filings Monday.
Former Blackfoot Republican Rep. Julianne Young also filed Monday. She was defeated by Rep. Ben Fuhriman, a Shelley Republican, in the 2024 primary by four votes.
Candidates this year have one week to file at voteidaho.gov. The filing period was shortened from two weeks by legislation approved last year through House Bill 278. The primary election is May 19, and the general election will be Nov. 3.
This story first appeared on Idaho Capital Sun.
