Idaho 2020 primary election: Paulette Jordan, Russ Fulcher win big over opponents

Idahoans have decided which candidates will move on to November’s 2020 general election with the hopes of representing Idaho in Congress come January.

Idaho has two U.S. senators and two representatives. One Senate seat and both House seats are on the November ballots. Senators serve six-year terms, representatives two.

U.S. Senate races

In the Democratic primary, Paulette Jordan beat her opponent Jim Vandermaas in a landslide. Jordan received 85.7% of the vote, or 72,777 votes, to Vandermaas’ 14.3%, or 12,145 votes, wIth all votes reported as of Wednesday morning.

Incumbent U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, a Boise Republican, is seeking re-election. He had no primary challengers and will face Jordan on Nov. 3.

The U.S. Senate seat held by Idaho U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo is up for election in 2022.

U.S. House races

Incumbents Republicans Russ Fulcher of western Idaho’s District 1, and Mike Simpson of eastern Idaho’s District 2, defeated GOP primary challengers.

Fulcher, of Meridian, faced Nicholas Jones, of Boise. Fulcher garnered 93,879 votes, or 79.9%. Jones garnered 23,664, or 20.1%.

Simpson, of Idaho Falls, faced Kevin Rhoades, of Boise. Simpson had 68,675 votes, or 72%, to Rhoades’ 26,724, or 28%.

Democrats had a primary in District 1. Rudy Soto, of Nampa, beat opponent Staniela Nikolova, of Moscow. Soto received 25,112 votes, or 65.8%, to Nikolova’s 13,074, or 34.2%. Soto will face Fulcher in the general election.

The 1st District, which stretches from the Nevada state line to the Canadian border, includes all of Canyon county plus western and southern Ada County. The 2nd District includes everything to the east, including all of Boise north of I-84 and east of Cloverdale Road.

Coronavirus forced mail-only primary election

Idaho’s 2020 primary was unlike any previous statewide election: All voters cast their ballots absentee — by mail — instead of gathering at polling places.

The reasons: concerns about COVID-19 spread and a lack of polling places and poll workers.

The primary had been slated for Tuesday, May 19. When Idaho Gov. Brad Little ordered a mail-ballot only primary, May 19 became the final day to request an absentee ballot and Tuesday, June 2, the day all returned ballots would counted.

A federal judge on May 22 extended the ballot-request deadline to May 26 in response to a series of problems with the Idaho Votes website.

This story was originally published June 2, 2020 at 9:19 PM.