Shellie Blanchard, Blair Dance and Matt Froehlich running for Fremont County Commission seat

ST. ANTHONY — Incumbent Commissioner Bill Baxter is not seeking re-election to Fremont County Commission District 1, and Chester residents Shellie Blanchard and Matt Froehlich, along with Blair Dance of Ashton, are looking to fill the empty seat.

All three candidates are competing in the May 19 Republican primary. To learn more about their platforms, EastIdahoNews.com sent the same eight questions to each candidate. Their responses, listed below, were required to be 250 words or less.

For more information on Blanchard, call her at (208) 317-5331 or email her at
Shellblan1@gmail.com.

More information on Dance can be found on his Facebook page.

More information on Froehlich can be found on his Facebook page.

Candidate questions

Tell us about yourself — include information about your family, career, education, volunteer work and any prior experience in public office.

Blanchard: I was born and raised in Ashton, Idaho, and grew up on a farm outside of Ashton. I graduated from North Fremont High School in 1972. I also have an Associate Degree in Arts and Sciences from Ricks College — now BYU-I. I married Rick Blanchard in 1974, and for over 35 years, we worked on the family sheep and cattle ranch in Chester with his parents. Rick was a third-generation owner of the ranch. We are now retired. We have five children, 4 daughters and one son, and 18 grandchildren.

I have always been active in my church, and especially love working with the youth. I have served on the South Fremont Education Foundation and currently serve on the Fremont Republican Central Committee as the state committeewoman. For the past 20-plus years, I have been part of the softball coaching staff at South Fremont High School, retiring after last season.

Dance: I was born and raised in Bingham County, graduating from Blackfoot High School. I received an associate degree in business finance from Ricks College, then went on to take numerous banking-related courses through the American Institute of Banking, eventually serving as an AIB Principles of Banking course instructor. I am a three-time Rotary Club president, two-time Chamber of Commerce president and four-time lobbying delegate to the Idaho Legislative Delegation in Washington, D.C.

I have served 13 years on the Ashton Memorial Inc. Board with two terms as chair; 10 years on the nine-county regional Workforce Investment Board with two terms as chair; six years on the board of East Central Idaho Planning and Development Company, aka The Development Company.

I have served on a Fremont County School District Building and Improvement Bond Committee. I served one year as a federal district court juror in the Eastern Idaho Division of the District of Idaho. The last 11 years have been spent as a private business owner. I have lived seven years in St. Anthony and 22 years in Ashton with my wife, Laurie Jo (Nield) Dance, and we have five children and 17 grandchildren.

Froehlich: I was born in Prescott, Arizona. I moved to Fremont County with my family 35 years ago when I was 3. I attended school in South Fremont and graduated high school in 2000. I was active in high school sports and was a member of the Saint Anthony Boxing Club. I currently live in Chester, Idaho. I love hunting, fishing, riding, camping, among other activities. I worked in law enforcement for Madison County and Teton County before returning to Fremont County to build the rest of my life. I bought a business in 2008, and it has been a successfully growing business.

What are your proudest accomplishments in your personal life or career?

Dance: Successfully starting, building and then profitably selling a property management company. I was instrumental in bringing Bank of Idaho to Fremont County, opening branches in Ashton, Island Park and St. Anthony. I assisted numerous farmers in Fremont County with Farm Service Agency Guaranteed Agricultural term financing to help keep them in business after the 1985 potato crop disaster. We were privileged to spend 18 months in Argentina providing support services to the Buenos Aries Argentina South Mission.

Froehlich: One of my proudest accomplishments in my career is owning a business in Fremont County. I am proud of building a business that provides about 30 community members with a job and help provide (for) families.

Blanchard: My proudest accomplishment would be my family. Three of our daughters have college degrees, one daughter is a cosmetologist and our son is a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force stationed in San Antonio, Texas. They were all raised on the family ranch and learned the value of hard work, which I think has served them very well in their lives.

Briefly explain your political platform, and/or legislative goals if you are elected to office.

Froehlich: My main platform is to support small business and protect property rights. Also, keep citizens informed and involved with what is happening in the community and to get input or ideas to better the future.

Blanchard: My parents, Stan and Joyce Clark, were always active in the Republican Party on the local and state level. Even though they have both passed away, I can still feel their influence. My dad encouraged me to find the right time in my life and run for political office. It was his encouragement, along with other people that gave me the confidence to pursue the office of county commissioner. The solid, conservative values my parents taught me will be my foundation if I am elected.

I know in our county there is a delicate balance between agriculture and tourism. Something I would like to explore is the possibility of forming a recreation commission. This would be a group of volunteers from a wide variety of backgrounds and interests. For example, an avid hunter, kayaker, fisherman, farmer, outfitter, businessman, bike rider and others to be determined. This group of people would have a two-fold assignment — to help promote the many recreation resources the county has to the general public, but also to help educate the citizens of the county on using those same recreation resources. I know establishing this commission could be a great benefit to the county.

Dance: I have no previous political experience and have never sought for political office. I am approaching the commissioner position as an opportunity to effectively give back to my community through service by applying my extensive experience and knowledge to the operations and functions of the county. Fremont County is geographically large with a multi-million dollar budget, sizable workforce and immense asset base that requires competent and qualified management to effectively and efficiently provide the services expected by the taxpayers.

What are the greatest challenges facing your county?

Blanchard: Budgets, infrastructure and the landfill are at the top of the list. But I think perhaps after we move through the next few phases of COVID-19, we will be facing some challenges and problems that we couldn’t have anticipated. I would think that with all these businesses closed and the lack of sales tax revenue to the state, it will certainly trickle down and affect the money coming into the county.

Dance: There will be continuing effects from the COVID-19 pandemic that will affect Fremont County economically either directly or indirectly. Growth in population, second-home residents and recreation will place greater demands on the county infrastructure and services. Demands from the federal government through the various agencies that Fremont County has as partners will require clear understanding of the issues presented and how those might affect the county.

Froehlich: I think tourism is one of the challenges we are facing. With tourism, it brings great cost to the county and its taxpayers by providing emergency services, law enforcement, landfill costs and parks and rec.

How is your experience better suited to dealing with these unique challenges than your competitor(s)?

Dance: After 27 years of banking, 13 years of which in Fremont County, I am uniquely qualified to tackle the economic challenges that will face the county in the future. With my service on the ECIPDA board and current position as commissioner on the Fremont County Planning and Zoning Commission, I have a working knowledge of the county comprehensive plan and how to help manage growth and development. My experience in being a lobbying delegate to our legislators in Washington, D.C., will give the county an experienced voice at the federal level in managing federal regulations.

Froehlich: With my experience in law enforcement and running a small business, I understand the cost and labor with providing services to tourists. The county needs to offset costs and benefit from our county’s tourism.

Blanchard: When we discuss budgets, don’t we all have to budget? Either in our personal households or businesses? I would say yes. Realizing that a county budget is at times complicated, there is one simple concept about a budget that needs to be relied on — bring in more revenue than you spend. Next, save for a rainy day so you can cover unexpected expenses and finally, spend that money as wisely as you possibly can — get your best bang for your buck! As my husband and I worked and ran our sheep and cattle ranch, it was imperative that we use those principles of budgeting. To me, a strong budget is the foundation for a successful county.

How will you best represent the views of your constituents – even those with differing political views?

Froehlich: By listening to what the public has to say, stay open-minded and learn from their views and ideas so I can better represent them.

Blanchard: The first step to representing my constituents requires that I be available to them and listen to them while trying to understand their point of view. This will require me to be open to their comments and sometimes their criticism. I really am a people person. Researching and studying issues is a priority with me. With knowledge comes confidence. If I really know and understand the issues and I know how my constituents feel, that will be one of the best ways I can represent them when voting on the issues. Our lives would be very dull if we were all the same and thought exactly alike. Again, listening is the key to understanding, especially when discussing a difference of political opinion. And understanding that at times you simply must agree to disagree has served me well more than once.

Dance: By listening to the constituents’ concerns, asking questions to them and others to better understand the issues then doing the necessary research to find the best solution for all concerned. All who take the time to come before the county commission or to seek out a commissioner with a concern deserve to be treated with respect and understanding. I also believe that the governance of a county has less to do with political views but is more about operations, functions and giving the taxpayer more return for their tax dollar.

How do you plan to improve relationships with other elected officials in your county and with state legislative officials?

Blanchard: Improving relationships with other elected officials is accomplished best by respecting each person as an individual and the office they were elected to. In order for the county to run well, each elected official has to do their part, to their very best ability, including myself if elected. The key to accomplishment is cooperation. I have tremendous respect for our current legislators. As I have served on the Fremont County Republican Central Committee, I have had the opportunity to be in meetings and listen to these gentlemen. I know they have a genuine concern for our county. I feel I have already established a good working relationship with them, and if I’m elected, I look forward to learning even more from them and relying on their knowledge to help us with problems in our county.

Dance: I am a team player and look to always build collaborative relationships. I have always been successful in managing with a strong sense of team cooperation. We all have one entity to serve, and that is the taxpayers of the county, who are the ones paying our salaries. They are the customer, and they need to be treated as such.

Froehlich: I would like my relationship with other elected officials to be as good as it can possibly be. I think that by listening with an open mind, communicating and working together, we can come to an agreement with whatever issue it is that comes across.

What are your views regarding the role of the media in covering your county? How can you best work with local reporters to ensure coverage of the issues?

Dance: We as elected officials need to be open and direct to the media. We can do this by making sure the media feels welcome in commissioner meetings and that they will be treated with respect. However, the media must also return to the elected officials the same respect as would be expected. It is important that the open meeting regulations are understood and adhered to by both parties.

Froehlich: I believe media is especially important. In this world nowadays, getting the information needed out to the public is beneficial to come to the right decision. Having everyone’s involvement is crucial to better our county, and what a better way than to get media involved so everyone is informed.

Communicating with media and providing them information needed to cover important issues in our county and keeping them informed and up to date is something I can do to make sure people are aware of what is going on in our community.

Blanchard: I feel the role of the media is to provide an unbiased opinion while informing the citizens of the county. One of the best ways to help the media is to be willing to work with local reporters and give the media the opportunity to cover local issues. The media can’t report on something they don’t know about. Again, open communication will serve well for all parties involved.