Incumbents win reelection to College of Western Idaho board despite GOP challengers
Incumbent candidates will maintain their seats on the College of Western Idaho’s board of trustees.
Four candidates — Alisha Hickman, Jan Allan Zarr, Ryan Spoon and Thad Butterworth — ran as Republicans in the nonpartisan race on similar platforms that included cutting public school spending and reducing property taxes. None of them won.
The board of trustees at the College of Western Idaho is responsible for approving curricular offerings, the annual budget and investment plans. Nine candidates ran for the four seats that were up for election on the five-person board. Candidates must live in the zone in which they are running, but all trustees are elected at large by voters in Ada and Canyon counties.
The Zone 1 and 3 positions are two-year terms. Nicole A. Bradshaw received 64.2% of the votes in Zone 1, while Hickman received 35.8%. In Zone 3, incumbent Jim Reames received 57.4% of the votes over Zarr.
The Zone 2 and 4 positions are four-year terms. In Zone 2, incumbent Molly Lenty won with 52.1% over Gordon Simpson and Spoon. Incumbent Annie Pelletier Hightower in Zone 4 won with 62.8% of the vote, beating Butterworth.
Other candidates said they wanted to expand access to affordable education opportunities and to ensure they give students the tools they need to go into the workforce.
This story was originally published November 8, 2022 at 8:00 PM.
