Conservative Picks for the Idaho Primary

Idaho sends few people to DC but out of the four, they only send one RINO, Mike Simpson. Being far away from the capital and not having a long history of union labor have contributed to a strong Conservative presence in Idaho. With only two races to focus on, Conservative Picks is more about maintaining what Idaho contributes to the movement. The Gubernatorial race will not be a focus, rather the Congressional races.

Best Pick: Russell Fulcher

Worst Pick: Luke Malek

Best Race: District 1

Worst Race: District 2

District 1

Raul Labrador was a fine Congressman who is seeking the Governor’s nomination before becoming to entrenched in DC. This leaves a vacancy with many newcomers looking to fill. This race has three heavy hitters. The first being Russell Fulcher. Russ Felcher is former State Senator who nearly unseated Governor Bob Otter in a primary race in 2014. That’s a hard feat, and though he failed, losing to an incumbent by single digits shows some campaign prowess. Fulcher also comes with some very concise policies on healthcare, debt reduction, and medicaid expansion. What especially stands out is a campaign full of unique ideas, not relying on buzzwords and unoriginal talking points. His campaign is not immigration focused like so many Trump wannabees. In fact, his campaign is Conservative with little mention of Trump. On the endorsement front Ted Cruz has weighed in on his behalf along with the respectable Raul Labrador and several local figures.

The next challenger is David Leroy. The former Lt. Governor and Idaho Attorney General is going for the 1st District. He’s another Conservative, but in contrast to Fulcher he is riding Trump’s coattails some. His platform isn’t significantly different. While Fulcher speaks of joining the Freedom Caucus, Leroy wants to form a small states caucus. Leroy isn’t a bad guy, however he’s been in politics a long time.

The worst of the heavyweights is Luke Malek. Malek was a McMuffin supporter in 2016, indicating he’s toward Bill Krystol on the political spectrum. In stark contrast to the other two, Malek would have voted in favor of omnibus, citing there is a job to be done and is quite leftist on healthcare.

Fulcher and Leroy are strong picks with the most likelihood of winning, but I would favor Russ Fulcher.

Conservative Pick: Russell Fulcher

District 2

Mike Simpson is an unchallenged incumbent. He is a major RINO who ought to have been challenged. This was a lost opportunity, and I think a Conservative could have unseat the nearly two decade swamp creature.