Teton sheriff re-election bid unclear; GOP rallies behind him despite technicality

“An obscure election law has caused the county clerk to declare Sheriff Tony Liford’s Declaration of Candidacy to be invalid, which means his name will not appear on the Republican primary election ballot.”

Teton County Clerk Mary Lou Hansen released that information in an emailed statement Tuesday, hampering Sheriff Tony Liford’s bid for reelection in November.

She wrote that Liford originally filed for candidacy on Feb. 29 as a Democrat, but withdrew that paperwork and re-filed as a Republican.

“Unfortunately,” Hansen wrote, “neither Sheriff Liford nor Clerk Mary Lou Hansen were aware of the provisions of Idaho Code 34-627, which requires candidates holding partisan elected office to provide a notice of intent to change political parties five days prior to the change.”

Liford filed his change on March 10.

Hansen said Liford may now run as a write-in candidate on the Democratic ballot. However, Teton County Republican Committee Chairman Harley Wilcox disagreed.

“The clerk and the attorney are both telling Liford the only option he has is to run as Democrat in the primary election as a write-in,” Wilcox said. “If he was to listen to their advice, he would actually disqualify himself because you can only change parties once.”

Wilcox said that when he spoke with state officials, they said Liford would still be able to run as a write-in candidate on the Republican ticket as long as he files a declaration of candidacy by April 19. But Clerk Hansen said Tuesday that Liford’s name will not be on the Republican primary election ballot on May 17.

Early voting ballots went out in April, and voters have already had the chance to vote for Liford in the primary election.

“Nobody knew this,” Liford told the TVN Tuesday. “The official who oversees the election process in Idaho didn’t know this, but I’m supposed to know it?

“It’s absurd beyond belief. I was told that I had until March 11 at 5 p.m.”

The county’s release stated that the five-day notice requirement “delayed the effective date of the sheriff’s change of political party until after the candidate filing deadline.”

According to Hansen, state election officials were unaware of the “obscure” law. She said the Idaho Secretary of State’s office had instructed Hansen how Sheriff Liford should re-file as a Republican.

“I feel terrible about the situation and have apologized to Sheriff Liford,” Clerk Hansen wrote in the release. “It’s a very unfortunate situation.”

Hansen said she accidently found the law while researching another candidate who’s candidacy had been declared invalid.

“We had received an affidavit from a concerned citizen about the fact that Democratic Precinct Committeeman Candidate Scott Fitzgerald was not a registered Democrat, which violated 34-704,” Hansen wrote in an email. “She was correct and I declared [Fitzgerald’s] Candidacy invalid. As part of that process, I researched election law so that I could provide accurate information regarding his write-in options.”

Liford said his calls to state officials have not been returned.

Hansen admitted in her press release that a similar situation took place two years ago, when Assessor Bonnie Beard “switched her party affiliation at the same time she filed her candidacy paperwork,” but that Idaho Code 34-627 remained unknown at that time.

Teton County Prosecuting Attorney Kathy Spitzer said that since Beard’s name was on the ballot and she was elected she would not challenge her position.

“But that is not to say it couldn’t be challenged,” Spitzer wrote in an email.

The Democratic candidate for Sheriff, Lindsey Moss, is the only remaining name on the ballot.

Wilcox said the local Republican party is planning the steps they can take — including legal action — to keep Liford’s name on the ballot.

“This community knows that the prosecutor’s office supports Tony Liford’s challenger,” Wilcox wrote in an email. “The clerk is relying on that same prosecutor’s advice to oust Liford from the race.”

This article was originally published in the Teton Valley News. It is used here with permission.