GOP incumbents defend seats in Bonneville County district elections
IDAHO FALLS, Idaho (KIFI) — Republicans retained complete control of both the House and Senate across Bonneville County’s legislative districts on Election Night, with all GOP incumbents successfully defending their seats.
In a tightly contested race for District 33 Seat A, Republican incumbent Rep. Barbara Ehardt defeated Democratic challenger Chance Marshall by just 584 votes, securing re-election with 51.9% of the vote (7,955 votes).
In District 33 Seat B, Republican Rep. Marco Erickson won re-election against Democrat Todd DeVries by nearly 2,000 votes, finishing with 55.6% to DeVries’ 44.4%.
Elsewhere across the region, Republican State Sens. Dave Lent, Kevin Cook, and Mark Harris kept their Senate seats, while GOP incumbents across Districts 32 and 35 also held off challengers.
The local victories took place as candidates and supporters gathered at the Bonneville County GOP watch party, where attendees monitored local returns alongside national results showing Democrats taking control of the U.S. House of Representatives.
Rep. Ehardt pointed to national economic conditions as a driving factor for voters locally and across the country.
“Despite all of these fantastic things reflecting on Idaho—which I believe reflects on the job that we’ve been doing—we’re still at the mercy of what’s happening nationally,” Ehardt said. “You just can’t get away from it. We can’t control, for example, the price of gas. But again, we’re all going to have to weather what’s happening nationally.”
Rep. Erickson echoed those sentiments, highlighting how inflation and rising household expenses impacted voter sentiment even as state-level metrics remain strong.
“When you have a downturn in the economy, when housing, food, shipping, and everyday expenses are high, everything is really difficult for people to purchase right now,” Erickson said. “They’re struggling, and that’s how they vote: with their pocketbooks. But in Idaho, our economy is doing super well. We’re doing great, and we’re going to continue to do that.”
Despite coming up short locally, area Democratic candidates found reason for optimism in national returns, pointing to gains in states like Florida, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Texas as evidence of shifting political trends.
Marshall expressed confidence that Idaho could eventually follow suit.
“I think Idaho is maybe a little bit behind the curve nationally, but we’re seeing success in places like Florida, North Carolina, and South Carolina,” Marshall said. “I don’t think Idaho is too far behind. Within the next two or three election cycles, I could see Idaho shifting that way, depending on how districts are aligned.”
Local Democratic candidate Jan Brown attributed national Democratic gains to a public reaction against federal policies.
“There’s a cruelty to President Trump’s policies that I think is where this backlash is coming from,” Brown said. “Idahoans can feel good for the rest of the country is not buying into a cruel and mean approach to immigration or to deal with people who are different from us. That’s where the Democrats, I think, are really shining, frankly.”
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