MY TURN: Will voters stand up?

Election season is in full swing, and voters know exactly which team they are supporting for president. Having a news cycle injected with an abundance of personal opinions 24/7 and 365 days a year has shaped political views and polarized citizens across the nation, especially in the presidential race.  

When it comes to local and state issues, however, there’s a high percentage of voters who are much less informed about the candidates seeking positions for both partisan and nonpartisan offices. Simply “winning the election” has become so important that voters rely on their “political team” to provide them with a list of candidates to support, never verifying whether the information is accurate and truthful.  

Only the Republican candidates who share political views, no matter how extreme on every issue, will gain the support and financial backing of groups like the Kootenai County Republican Central Committee (KCRCC). Pertinent knowledge and experience needed for the nonpartisan positions are overlooked in exchange for agreement on the most divisive social issues. 

The government overreach and damage exhibited by the “KCRCC-backed majority” trustees at North Idaho College (NIC) and the Community Library Network (CLN) never ends. The woman who recently lost a high-profile court battle for defamation continues to peddle misinformation and untruths on social media pitting Republican against Republican and neighbor against neighbor. The KCRCC leadership partners with groups and publications including The People’s Pen, The Kootenai Journal, Idaho Freedom Foundation and Idaho Citizen’s Alliance to broadcast their fabricated tales. Most are intentionally secretive using loopholes in the law to hide information from the public, including donors.  

These groups hunker down and embellish the qualifications of the candidates who reflect and will fight for their team, often taking positions that are neither principled nor Republican. For the KCRCC, experience, education and understanding of the office or local community are not required. Recruitment and endorsements are done by a few in secrecy, so nothing can be challenged, even by other Republican precinct committeemen elected to the KCRCC. 

Recently, a KCRCC campaign piece (“Voter Guide”) designed to look official arrived in mailboxes. Its purpose: to influence the busy and uninformed Republican voter on nonpartisan races at NIC and Soil and Water Conservation District (SWCD) for the purpose of controlling every partisan and nonpartisan board. Ironically, every candidate running is a registered Republican. 

More questions were asked about social issues than understanding the job. Missing were questions about contributions of time or talent in the community or length of residency. Michael Angiletta registered to vote in Idaho only last year and hasn’t had much time to get to know our community, or let the community know him. Oddly enough, however, the newcomer quickly became the Regan-appointed chair of the KCRCC communications committee. Running mate Greg McKenzie totally misrepresented his destructive role at NIC, reinventing himself with a complete lack of self-awareness regarding his actual record.   

Additional research shows that at least one of the KCRCC candidates had the opportunity to completely change his original answers to their questionnaire, making him look like a more viable choice. After reading his initial response, it was clear he needed help. 

Paul Mahlow is seeking a position on the SWCD board. Over the past two years, he lost elections for school trustee, hospital trustee and, most recently, Republican precinct committeeman. When first asked why he was running, Mahlow said, he was “asked to run for this position” and continued with “beyond diligence and a work ethic I am not sure of my qualifications.” When asked about any involvement in church, nonprofit, club, boards or commissions, he wrote, “I have no specific public service experience.”   

Overlooked by the KCRCC are the current SWCD supervisors, all Republicans seeking reelection who have backgrounds in the complex issues of land management and conservation, which seems to be a critical need in this rapidly growing county. 

KCRCC “team” recommendations are causing harm to the Republican brand because they care more about control than the good of the community; and a willingness to say and do almost anything to keep that control.   

Is this the election where voters will finally reject the reckless control Brent Regan and his team have held over our community? Will the voters toss out the inept candidates who have engaged in years of conflict at NIC jeopardizing accreditation and bringing the college close to closure? Will voters stand up to the KCRCC-backed CLN censors who have cut off public access to libraries on Sunday? Will the voters stop following organizations and people who threaten and defame good citizens? Will the voters send a message that they’ve had enough of the chaos? 

Voters, I encourage you to do your homework, learn about the candidates and not just be another puppet on the end of someone else’s strings. Do it to save our community. 

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Sandy Patano is co-founder of the North Idaho Republicans and former Idaho State GOP vice-chair.