Who’s running to unseat Idaho Republican congressmen? Hear from the candidates

Republican voters this month will decide whether to back Idaho’s longtime congressional delegates or seek a change.

U.S. Sen. Mike Crapo and U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson were elected to their seats in 1998, and now have a slew of challengers looking to unseat them in the May 17 GOP primary. Crapo has been in Congress since 1992, while Simpson, who represents the 2nd Congressional District encompassing East Idaho, is running for a 13th term.

The Idaho Statesman sent out surveys to each of the candidates in contested primary races. Their responses, unedited, are below.

In the primary, Crapo faces challengers Brenda Bourn, Natalie Fleming, Scott Trotter and Ramont Turnbull. U.S. senators serve six-year terms.

The Republican nominee will move on to the November general election to face the Democratic nominee — either David Roth or Ben Pursley — Constitution Party candidate Ray Writz, Libertarian Idaho Sierra Law (aka Carta Reale Sierra), and independent Scott Cleveland.

Simpson faces primary challengers Bryan Smith, Chris Porter, Daniel Levy and Flint Christensen. The Republican nominee will run against Democrat Wendy Norman in November. U.S. representatives serve two-year terms.

Turnbull, a Senate candidate, did not respond to the survey. Among House candidates, Smith did not respond, and Porter could not be reached.

U.S. Rep. Russ Fulcher, who is running for reelection in the 1st Congressional District, is uncontested in the primary. He will face Democrat Kaylee Peterson and Libertarian Joe Evans in November.

Learn more about other local elections at IdahoStatesman.com/Voter-Guide.

Use the horizontal scroll bar underneath each Q&A as needed to read the full Q&A. You also can click on the chart and drag horizontally.

Hayat Norimine

Idaho Statesman

Hayat Norimine is a former journalist for the Idaho Statesman