Candidate filing period for federal, state and judicial political offices is now open
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IDAHO FALLS – The filing period for federal, state and judicial elected offices opened on Monday morning.
Candidates wishing to have their names on the November ballot have until Friday at 5 p.m. to file, according to the Idaho Secretary of State’s website.
Write-in candidates for state and federal offices have until March 6 at 5 p.m. to file. Write-in candidates for county and local (judicial) offices have until March 20 at 5 p.m.. Those wanting to withdraw their candidacy for federal and state offices also have until March 6. The deadline to withdraw from county and local races is March 20.
The deadline to change political party affiliation or become unaffiliated is March 13 at 5 p.m.
On Nov. 3, voters will determine Idaho’s next governor, Lt. governor and secretary of state. Other state offices up for vote include attorney general, state controller, treasurer and superintendent of public instruction.
Legislative candidates will appear on the ballot in individual voting districts. Judicial positions on the state Supreme Court, Court of Appeals and District Court are also up for vote.
Idaho’s Congressional delegates will also be determined in the November general election.
Gov. Brad Little, R-Emmett, is in his second term as Idaho’s 33rd governor. He has led the state since 2019. Although he has not officially announced whether he’s seeking reelection, the Idaho Statesman on Friday cited a CBS2 News post on X saying a plane circling over Boise was towing a banner that read “Little for Idaho.”
A plane towing a Governor Little for Idaho banner is circling downtown Boise. pic.twitter.com/7xCTQtRKNr
— CBS2 News (@CBS2Boise) February 20, 2026
The existence of a campaign phone line — and a campaign website and campaign funding page — suggest Little is seeking a third term.
So far this election cycle, Little’s campaign funding page shows he’s received about $1.5 million in campaign contributions and spent nearly $300,000.
Republican Mark Fitzpatrick, Independent John Stegner and Democrat Terri Pickens Manweiler have announced their candidacy for governor.
If Little is re-elected, he’ll be the fourth governor in the state’s history to serve three terms — and only the third to do so consecutively. Republican Robert Smylie, who served as Idaho’s 24th governor from 1955-1967, was the state’s first three-term governor, according to the National Governors Association.
Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke announced his bid for re-election in September. The Oakley Republican was first elected in 2022 and will conclude his first term in December. He defeated Manweiler in 2022, who is now campaigning for governor.
While State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth is currently in her second term, Secretary Phil McGrane, Attorney General Raul Labrador, and Superintendent Debbie Critchfield will wrap up their first terms in November.
State Controller Brandon Woolf, who was first appointed to replace Donna Jones in 2012, was reelected in 2014. He’ll wrap up his fourth full term in office in December. While Woolf currently holds the longest tenure in Idaho’s executive branch, the longest-serving individual in a single executive office in Idaho history is Joe Williams. The state controller’s office reports that Williams served as the state auditor (now controller) for 30 years from 1959 to 1989.
Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, and Sen. Todd Lakey, R-Nampa — both of whom assumed office in 2012 — are tied for having the longest current tenure in the Senate, according to the Idaho State Journal. Denton Darrington, a Burley Republican who retired in 2012 after 30 years in office, is the longest-serving state senator in history.
Idaho Speaker of the House Mike Moyle, R-Star — who assumed office in 1998 — is the longest-serving member of the House of Representatives, as of 2022.
Idaho’s longest-serving elected official overall is Pete Cenarussa. The Carey Republican served for 52 years in total, including 16 years in the Idaho House of Representatives from 1950-1966 and 36 years as secretary of state from 1967-2003.
Among Idaho’s Congressional delegates, Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho Falls, currently holds the longest tenure. He has served in Congress continuously, beginning in 1993 in the House of Representatives. He was elected to the Senate in 1999, making him Idaho’s second-longest-serving U.S. Senator.
Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho Falls — who has served since 1999 — has the longest tenure in the U.S. House of Representatives currently. Overall, Burton French — who served in the U.S. House from 1903-1933 — is the state’s longest-serving U.S. representative.
The primary election will be held on May 19. The general election is November 3. Click here for additional information.
