Okuniewicz to seek Idaho House seat

Republican Doug Okuniewicz has filed a declaration of candidacy to run for the District 2, Seat B seat of the Idaho House of Representatives.

The position is currently held by Eric Redman, who has announced that he will not be seeking re-election.

Okuniewicz has resided in Hayden for 11 years with his wife and two children.

He is president of the Greene Idaho Foundation, which has donated more than $1 million to local charities in North Idaho including Children’s Village, senior centers, food banks, the North Idaho STEM Charter Academy, police and fire organizations, CASA, 4-H, Fernan STEM Academy, American Legion Post 143, Family Promise, Idaho Drug Free Youth, churches, TESH, KTEC, and others.

Okuniewicz is also the president of Coeur d’Alene Racing, LP. He is an inventor with 22 U.S. patents to his name, according to a press release.

Last year, as a member of the Idaho Employer Alliance, Okuniewicz participated in meetings vetting Idaho Republican gubernatorial candidates Raul Labrador, Brad Little and Tommy Ahlquist.

Okuniewicz also served on a panel that posed questions to those candidates during a gubernatorial forum at the 2017 Idaho Republican Party State Central Committee Summer Meeting in Coeur d’Alene.