When a Republican state representative quit his campaign to retake Idaho's 1st District congressional seat from the Democrats, the breach was quickly filled by one of his Capitol colleagues.

Rep. Ken Roberts, the House GOP caucus chairman from Donnelly, cited an unspecified health problem and the emergence of an unnamed candidate with "strong conservative credentials" who would run in his stead. Last week, Roberts said former Republican Rep. Bill Sali, who held the western and northern Idaho seat in 2007-09, may run.

But 90 minutes after Roberts' withdrawal Tuesday morning, Rep. Raul Labrador of Eagle told the Idaho Statesman that he was the man Roberts had in mind.

"I believe he is talking about me," said Labrador, a leader in the fight against Gov. Butch Otter's fuel tax increases in the 2009 Legislature. "I have a great deal of respect for Ken Roberts, and my prayers are with him and his family."

Labrador said he expects to make a formal campaign announcement in the next week or so. The two-term lawmaker acknowledged his late start and newcomer Vaughn Ward's big cash advantage in the race to face freshman Walt Minnick, who beat Sali last year.

"Yeah, I think this is a monumental undertaking, but I think there is enough enthusiasm out there among Idaho conservatives that we're going to be able to match and beat him (Ward) in fundraising and, more importantly, in energy," Labrador said.

Ward, a former Marine who is also from Eagle, was an aide in Sen. John McCain's 2008 presidential campaign in Nevada and worked for former Idaho GOP Sen. Dirk Kempthorne.

Ward has never sought elected office. He said Tuesday that he will continue raising money, talking to voters and winning endorsements. He cited recent backing from House Republican Whip Eric Cantor of Virginia and the American Conservative Union Political Action Committee.

"All along, I've not been the chosen one," Ward said. "All I can do is keep my head down and keep working hard."

In a news release, Roberts said he was withdrawing "with great reluctance. For the past several days, I have been dealing with an unexpected health issue that has affected my candidacy and hampered my ability to make this run," the statement said.

Roberts did not reply to a request for more information.

Before he quit the race, his former campaign manager said he left the campaign last week because Roberts was doing a poor job raising money. "I just didn't think we'd be able to pay the bills," Kevin McGowan said.

Roberts, a five-term lawmaker from McCall, is the No. 4 Republican in the Idaho House. Despite his rank, he trailed Ward 4 to 1 in fund-raising through Sept. 30. Ward raised about $246,000 compared with $62,000 for Roberts.

Sali still hasn't ruled out a possible renewed run, though he didn't report raising any money between July and September and has raised less than $9,000 this year, according to his campaign finance reports.

On Tuesday, Sali told the Associated Press that he plans to make a decision whether to run by the end of November.

In the meantime, he's been speaking to conservative Republican groups in recent weeks, including a speech Monday in Rathdrum to an organization calling itself Rally Right, which on its Web site said it aims to rebuild "the strength of the Republican Party by returning to an unwavering faith in the conservative values."

In his statement Tuesday, Roberts said, "I believe Idaho still needs a strong conservative candidate to run for this position."

Dan Popkey: 377-6438. The Associated Press contributed.