2026 Midterms State GuideIdaho
Hold on to your spuds and keep your Napoleon Dynamite quotes to yourself.
Polls are closed
Polls are closed in Idaho, and results aren’t finalized yet.
Ballots are still being counted, close races can take days to call, and no result is official until it’s certified.
A prayer for Idaho
O Lord, draw near to Idaho. Make Yourself known by Your Spirit to each and every voter this season. May voters not be overwhelmed by their ballots’ length or complexity. Give them wisdom to weigh each measure carefully, discernment in their choice, and the grace to trust You with the outcomes. In all things, may they, whether intentionally or by common grace, further Your glory and the good of their neighbor.
Read the whole prayerUpdated
Hi! It’s me, Shadrach. Apparently, I’m your civic guide today. If you’ve been complaining about how things are going (and I’ve heard you... the walls are thin), this guide will help you feel informed and able to vote in this year’s midterms. Now, hold on to your spuds and keep your Napoleon Dynamite quotes to yourself, and let’s get into it.
Idaho at a glance
Idaho votes on Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026, for governor, U.S. Senate, both U.S. House seats and four statewide ballot measures.
- Election Day
- Tuesday, Nov. 3, 2026
- Voter registration
- Oct. 23 (5 p.m.): Voter pre-registration deadline; deadline for absentee ballot applications to be received.
- Early voting
- Oct. 13: In-person early voting begins in eligible counties.
- Governor
- 6 candidates
- U.S. Senate
- 4 candidates
- U.S. House
- 2 seats
- Statewide ballot measures
- 4
What happens next
The counting continues
Election-night numbers are unofficial. Mail, provisional, and military ballots are still being counted, so close races can take days to call.
Officials double-check the count
Local election officials review the ballots and the tallies (the canvass). A very close race can go to a recount.
Idaho certifies the results
Results become official once Idaho certifies them, usually a few weeks after Election Day.
Winners take office
The new Congress takes office in early January. Governors and other state officials take office on dates set by state law, most of them in January too.
Important dates
- May 19Primaries This date has passed.
- Oct. 13In-person early voting begins in eligible counties. This date has passed.
- Oct. 23 (5 p.m.)Voter pre-registration deadline; deadline for absentee ballot applications to be received. This date has passed.
- Oct. 30 (5 p.m.)Early and in-person absentee voting ends. This date has passed.
- Nov. 3Election Day, polls open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., same-day registration available; absentee ballot deadline is 8 p.m. This date has passed.
What’s at stake
Idaho’s Senate race has drawn some attention because three-term Republican Sen. Jim Risch is being challenged by Todd Achilles (I), a former state legislator, after the Democratic nominee dropped out mid-summer to clear the field for a single strong challenger. Still, Republicans haven't lost a Senate race in the Gem State since 1974. Idahoans will also decide on several contentious ballot measures this year, including a reproductive-rights initiative supported by 59-61% of Idahoans. In a January 2026 Boise State University poll, Idahoans generally believed the state was headed in the right direction, though they saw the state’s economic situation as declining. 39% of Idahoans named housing as their top budget priority for the third consecutive year, followed by K-12 education (26%) and tax relief (15%). One in five Idahoans say they find it difficult to get by financially, and 37% would say healthcare is hard to access.
Who’s on your ballot
Tap a race to see the candidates.
Idaho is choosing a governor
See whose priorities line up with yours
Here are the top priorities each candidate lists, in their own words. Pick the 3 that matter most to you. Names stay hidden until you see your results.
0 of 3 picked
Brad LittleRepublicanincumbent seeking third four-year term
Top priorities- Continuing to cut red tape after simplifying or eliminating most state regulations
- Supporting schools with teacher pay raises, more literacy funding and school facility investments
- Continuing tax relief for residents and businesses while keeping a balanced budget
- Top priorities
Terri PickensDemocrat- Growing Idaho's economy by focusing on small businesses and fostering programs for businesses
- Protecting workers' rights, including fair wages, safe workplaces, and strong unions
- Repealing the school voucher program and better funding public education, including rural districts, pre-K and full-time kindergarten
- Top priorities
Paul SandLibertarian- Shifting power from state government to counties, leaving the state a much smaller role
- Eliminating Idaho's state income and sales taxes
- Opposing the privatization of public lands
John StegnerIndependentformer Idaho Supreme Court justice
Top priorities- Making Idaho more affordable, including tackling the state's grocery tax and high housing costs
- Expanding healthcare access in local communities, including reinstating Medicaid access
- Funding a quality public education for every child, as Idaho's Constitution requires, and undoing the school voucher law
Pro-LifeConstitution Party(born Marvin Richardson; legally changed his name to Pro-Life in 2006)
Top priorities- Ending abortion by treating it as murder, with legal personhood beginning at fertilization
- Shifting education, health and welfare from government to faith-based organizations
- Opposing transgender procedures and state recognition of same-sex marriage
- Jacob BurnettIndependent
write-in
- Get to know ’em
Matt LoesbyLibertarian - Get to know ’em
Natalie FlemingIndependent
All U.S. House of Representatives seats are up for election every two years. Find your district here.
- Shadrach’s big picture
Idahoans will elect two candidates to represent them in the House. Republicans are expected to hold both seats.
- Open seats
None
- Competitive districts
Neither Idaho district is considered competitive (both are solidly Republican). Candidates in both parties filed to run in both districts, so no district is guaranteed to either party, but a Democrat hasn’t won a congressional seat in Idaho since 2008.
Statewide ballot measures
4 to read before you go. Tap one to open it.
This measure would create a right to reproductive freedom and privacy (including abortion up to fetal viability), declaring that the government can regulate abortion after the point of fetal viability (except in medical emergencies) but the government can’t interfere with the following: childbirth care; contraception; fertility treatment; miscarriage care; and prenatal, pregnancy, and postpartum care. The measure defines fetal viability as the point when a fetus has "a significant likelihood of sustained survival outside of the uterus without the application of extraordinary medical measures" based on the good-faith judgment of the doctor in that specific case. Currently, abortion is illegal at any point in pregnancy in Idaho except for narrow special circumstances.
Voting yessupports creating a right to abortion before fetal viability (defined as a fetus’ ability to survive without extraordinary medical measures) and after fetal viability in cases of medical emergency; providing protections against professional discipline and civil and criminal liability for healthcare providers; and codifying a statutory reproductive right to freedom and privacy.Voting nosupports making no change to Idaho’s current law, which does not allow abortion, except when necessary to prevent the death of the pregnant woman and during the first trimester in documented cases of rape or incest reported to law enforcement.This measure is proposing to give the Idaho State Legislature the sole authority to legalize or decriminalize marijuana, narcotics, and other psychoactive substances and takes away Idaho citizens’ abilities to initiate state statutes (ie, ballot initiatives) that might legalize these things. In other words, the power to legalize or decriminalize these substances would rest only with the state government.
Voting yesgives the Legislature exclusive authority to legalize marijuana, narcotics, or other psychoactive substances in the State of Idaho.Voting nomakes no change to Idaho’s Constitution, which currently allows changes to Idaho’s controlled substances laws using the initiative process.An amendment to add explicit language to the state constitution designating English as the official language of Idaho. English is already the official language, but this would cement that in the constitution.
Voting yeswould designate English the official state language of Idaho.Voting nowould make no change to Idaho’s Constitution, which currently does not have official state language written in the constitution.This advisory question asks Idahoans to designate which gun they would like to have as the official Idaho State Gun. This is a non-binding measure, and the Legislature would have to take action during a future legislative session to officially designate a gun as the Idaho State Gun. The choices are: Winchester Model 1894 (.30-30); Winchester Model 1873 “Gun that Won the West” (.44-40); 1873 Colt Single Action Army Revolver “Peacemaker” (.45 Colt); M1 Garand rifle (.30-06); Colt M1911 .45 automatic Colt pistol (.45 ACP); or Remington Model 700 bolt-action rifle (.30-06)
Voting yesThere is no yes or no on this one: voters pick, from the list of six guns, the one they would like to be Idaho's official state gun.Voting noWhichever gun wins, nothing changes in law yet. The result is non-binding, and the Legislature would have to act in a future session to make it the official state gun.
Also on the ballot
Other races Idaho voters will decide.
- Lieutenant Governor
- Attorney General
- Secretary of State
- Controller
- Superintendent of Public Instruction
- Treasurer
- State Senate
- State House
- State Supreme Court
- Intermediate appellate courts
- School boards
- Municipal government
Whose job is it?
Ten things government does. Tap the office that does each one.
Whose job is it to…
1 of 10
Declare a state of emergency after a hurricane or flood?
Pass it on
Know someone voting in Idaho?
Send them the guide. It takes one tap, and it saves them an evening of arguing in a group chat.
A prayer for Idaho
O Lord, draw near to Idaho. Make Yourself known by Your Spirit to each and every voter this season. May voters not be overwhelmed by their ballots’ length or complexity. Give them wisdom to weigh each measure carefully, discernment in their choice, and the grace to trust You with the outcomes. In all things, may they, whether intentionally or by common grace, further Your glory and the good of their neighbor.
For every candidate running, work Your good purposes through their actions. May they campaign with integrity and kindness toward their fellow candidates and constituents. Equip the leaders that win to serve with love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, and faithfulness. Comfort the ones who lose and help them do so with grace.
Grant Your Spirit of peace, which surpasses all understanding, to guard the hearts and minds of anyone who feels anxious, angry, or frustrated this election season. Keep us from putting our security in elected leaders, and remind us of the hope we have in our eternal citizenship in heaven.
Amen.