Electioneering trial approaches
Laura Van Voorhees speaks out against social emotional learning at an Idaho Parents for Educational Choice event at the Statehouse in Boise in January.
Idaho Statesman file
COEUR d’ALENE — A former poll worker accused of misconduct during last November’s local elections is expected to stand trial next month.
Laura L. Van Voorhees of Hayden is charged with electioneering, a misdemeanor offense punishable by a fine of up to $1,000.
A one-day trial is scheduled for the week of Sept. 6. Kootenai County Prosecuting Attorney Barry McHugh told The Press last year electioneering complaints are rare and that his office has not previously prosecuted any case related to electioneering.
The criminal complaint stems from Nov. 2, 2021, when Van Voorhees allegedly offered cards printed with information about critical race theory to voters while she worked at the polls.
Critical race theory (CRT) is an academic concept. The central idea is that race is a social construct and that racism is not just a product of individual prejudice, but also embedded in legal systems and policies.
CRT is taught at the college level, particularly in law school.
Idaho’s electioneering law specifically forbids circulating “cards or handbills of any kind” within 100 feet of a polling place.
Dave Eubanks, a retired teacher and former school board trustee, said he approached Van Voorhees at the polling place after he saw her offer a card to a voter.
He later filed a complaint with the Kootenai County Sheriff’s Office, which conducted an investigation.
Van Voorhees is a member of Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin’s “Task Force to Examine Indoctrination in Idaho Education,” which aims to root out alleged teachings of “critical race theory, communism and Marxism” in Idaho schools.
During the task force’s first meeting last year, Van Voorhees blamed a poor relationship with her daughter in part on CRT teachings at her daughter’s former college in California.