Candidates confident, happy to 'stir the pot'

Votes trickled in as ballots were counted for legislative candidates on election night.

Here is the rundown of what happened early in contested legislative races across districts 2, 4 and 5 as of 10:30 p.m. press time Tuesday.

District 4 Seat A

Coeur d'Alene Republican Joe Alfieri was ahead of Coeur d'Alene Democratic candidate Megan Dardis-Kuns for Idaho House of Representatives District 4 Seat A. In May, newcomer Alfieri won the Republican nomination for the seat after he defeated incumbent Rep. Jim Addis, R-Coeur d'Alene, by 344 votes.

"I’m feeling very comfortable and very grateful for the people who turned out to vote for me," said Alfieri, who celebrated at a party among friends and loved ones. "I'm very hopeful and looking forward to serving, taking the interests of the people to the legislature."

He said North Idaho residents are blessed to live here.

"Preservation of North Idaho is so critical, preserving our way of life is so critical and I see that as my job," he said.

Alfieri said while out campaigning, he spoke to people who said they would not vote for him, to which he responded, "That’s OK, I’m still going to be your legislator and I will represent you."

"I want to hear from all sides," he said. "I represent everybody. The only way we can survive is to talk to each other, and we've unfortunately lost that ability. We have to stop shouting at each other and have meaningful conversations. I feel terrible we can’t have those conversations. We can still disagree and have a glass of wine or beer afterward. That’s being civil, being human."

In a text message to The Press, Dardis-Kunz said she hopes Idaho can reach a balance that will meet the needs of all citizens.

"I'm hopeful that we will get back to the basics on why North Idaho is so great — safe communities, stellar public education and kind, thoughtful people. I think it can happen," she said. "We just need to be mindful of the bad actors trying to tear down what is so good already."

District 4 Seat B

Republican candidate Elaine Price of Coeur d'Alene was enjoying her evening as she held a lead over longtime Coeur d'Alene coach and teacher, Democrat Larry Bieber, in the race for District 4 Seat B. Price ousted incumbent Rep. Paul Amador and won the Republican nomination for the seat by 220 votes in May.

"I’m feeling good right now. It's good to see numbers that are favorable starting out, especially with the last couple campaigns I’ve had," said Price, who unsuccessfully ran for Coeur d'Alene City Council in 2019.

She said even though she won the nomination in the primary, she worked hard throughout the whole election season.

"I campaigned this entire election and I feel good," she said. "I really want to be the voice of North Idaho down in Boise. I don't feel like we’re listened to enough down there."

Price said she wants to be a strong voice for all of North Idaho, even those who didn't vote for her.

"I want to hear from everybody," she said. "I understand that not everybody voted for me, but I still represent everybody in this district, and I want them to reach out to me so I can listen to their concerns as well."

Bieber, who also enjoyed being out in the community with loved ones as results were tallied, said he felt good even at 711 votes as Price had 1,247 votes.

"I've never done this before — everybody tells me it's early and that doesn't mean much, that I’m actually doing pretty good," he said. "The only person who really knows how this is going to come up is the Good Lord, he knows."

Win or lose, Bieber was pleased to "stir the pot" in this election.

"The main reason I got in is because I saw what was happening at NIC and in public education and I couldn't sit and watch that," he said. "I'm retired and my dad always said, 'If you don't like what's going on, then get off your butt and get in the game and do something about it.'"

District 5 Seat A

Rep. Ron Mendive, R-Coeur d'Alene, was ahead of longtime Post Falls resident and Democrat Kristy Reed Johnson as of 10:30 p.m. Mendive would enter his sixth term serving the state of Idaho if he is the successful candidate.

Attempts to reach Mendive were not returned by press time.

Johnson said early in the day she had mixed feelings about the election. She said Democrats usually lose in a 30-60 split in heavily conservative areas such as North Idaho.

"However, I’m getting undercurrents of the North Idaho Republicans that I know personally who live in District 5 and I know will vote for me," Reed Johnson said. "I think that might help Larry Bieber. I think we have this one in the bag for North Idaho College. I think we’re going to get the really good people for NIC (Pete Broschet, Tarie Zimmerman and Brad Corkill) — I think that’s going to work."

Someone has to stand up to the bullies, she said.

"Somebody has to stand up and say, 'No, that's enough — we’ve had it,' without being ugly, without name calling," she said. "If you’re owned by the Idaho Freedom Foundation and you do nothing other than what they tell you to do, who are you helping? It’s an oxymoron."

District 5 Seat B

Rep. Tony Wisniewski, R-Post Falls, would serve a third term in the House if he is successful in defeating Democratic candidate Teresa Borrenpohl for District 5 Seat B.

"Voter turnout today has been extraordinary," Borrenpohl said via text message around 9 p.m. while eagerly awaiting returns with her Kootenai County neighbors. "When we vote, we create the world we want to have."

Wisniewski did not return requests for comment by press time.

District 2 Seat B

The three-way race for District 2 Seat B between Republican Dale Hawkins of Fernwood, Democrat Tom Stroschein of Elk River and Jennifer Ann Luoma of Bayview showed Hawkins by press time.

"I think we’re feeling confident," Hawkins said. "We're hoping to be successful and work hard for Idaho's future."

County Clerk Jim Brannon told The Press Monday that he hoped to have final results by 5:30 a.m. today. Additional results will be reported on cdapress.com today and in Thursday's print edition.