Who’s running in this Boise Bench legislative district? What the candidates have to say

Boise Bench voters this November will decide whether to return incumbent Democratic lawmakers to the Idaho Capitol or seek new representation.

Two incumbent Democrats in Legislative District 17 — Rep. Megan Egbert and Sen. Carrie Semmelroth — face Republican challengers vying for their seats. Rep. John L. Gannon, the Democratic incumbent in Seat A, is running uncontested.

District 17 encompasses about 52,000 residents and includes part of West Boise, bordered by South Cloverdale Road in the west, Interstate 84 in the north, West Victory Road in the south and the railroad tracks near South Federal Way in the east.

Republican Benjamin Chafetz is challenging Semmelroth for the Senate seat. Semmelroth was appointed to the seat by Gov. Brad Little in late 2021 to replace Democratic Sen. Ali Rabe, who had stepped down after moving to another legislative district.

(Rabe is now wrapping up her first term as a state senator for District 16, which includes Garden City and parts of Northwest Boise. Under state law, Little, a Republican, was required to appoint a Democrat, to succeed her in District 17, since the party had won that seat with Rabe.)

Chafetz previously ran against Semmelroth in 2022 and lost.

Jazz Alexis is the Republican candidate challenging Egbert, a librarian and aspiring attorney, for Representative Seat B. Egbert has served one term in the House. Alexis has worked with House staff as a pool secretary for the past two legislative sessions.

For this Voter Guide story, the Idaho Statesman sent questionnaires to each District 17 candidate in a contested race. Chafetz did not respond to the survey and declined to fill it out when the Statesman called him with a last-minute reminder.

Read the candidates’ responses below. Use the horizontal scroll bar underneath each candidate to read the full Q&A. You also can click on the chart and drag horizontally.

Learn more about these races and other local elections at IdahoStatesman.com/Election. Find more Treasure Valley candidate Q&As like this in the Statesman’s Voter Guide.

Find the legislative district you live in here, and find your polling place here. The deadline to register to vote online has passed, but you can still register to vote in person at the polls on Election Day, which is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Early voting begins Oct. 15 and lasts for three weeks.

This story was originally published October 15, 2024 at 4:00 AM.

Angela Palermo

Idaho Statesman

208-377-6285

Angela Palermo covers business and public health for the Idaho Statesman. She grew up in Hagerman and graduated from the University of Idaho, where she studied journalism and business. Angela previously covered education for the Lewiston Tribune and Moscow-Pullman Daily News.  Support my work with a digital subscription