Little wins Republican gubernatorial primary, Terri Pickens Democratic victor

BOISE — Gov. Brad Little retained his position as the Republican Party’s leading gubernatorial candidate Tuesday, winning the majority of votes in Idaho’s 2026 Republican Primary.

Little won handily in a field of seven other Republican candidates, accruing about 60% of the vote by about 9:40 p.m. Mountain Time on Tuesday, when the race was called by the Associated Press. Far-right challenger Mark Fitzpatrick came up second in the race, accruing about 25% of the vote at the time the race was called. 

Little, 72, a rancher from Emmett, began his legislative career through an appointment to fill an Idaho Senate vacancy in 2001. He went on to serve multiple terms as senator and lieutenant governor before he was elected governor in 2018. After being reelected in 2022, Little is seeking his third four-year term as governor. There are no gubernatorial term limits in Idaho. 

As was the case with his previous campaign, Little has not participated in debates against the field.

During his time as governor, Little has overseen the establishment of the LAUNCH program, which provides education and training grants for in-demand careers, bolstered state education funding and, for the first time in state history, dedicated tax dollars toward private and religious K-12 education. His administration has also seen infrastructure investments, in both roadways and broadband.

Since taking office, Little also signed into law more than $4 billion in tax cuts, including the largest income tax cut in state history last year.

This legislative session faced far greater financial constraints compared to Little’s most recent years in office, which saw an influx of federal COVID relief dollars and multiple years of budget surpluses to the tune of hundreds of millions of dollars.

These surpluses came alongside cumulative tax cuts of $4.5 billion, a total that includes the more than $400 million in tax cuts passed in 2025.

In the wake of low revenue projections last year, in August Little issued an executive order directing state agencies — with the exception of K-12 schools — to reduce their budgets by 3%. This preceded further reductions passed by the legislature of 1% this fiscal year and 2% next fiscal year.

After this year’s budget recessions to the tune of $131 million, Idaho is now on track to conclude the year with a budget surplus of about $94 million, according to the state’s most recent budget report. 

Little significantly out-raised his Republican challengers heading into the primary with $1.9 million in campaign contributions. Fitzpatrick was a distant second among Republican challengers with $185,752 raised.

Fitzpatrick, the owner of Eagle’s Old State Saloon, has mounted several controversial political stunts in the past year. In June he organized “Hetero Awesome Fest” — framed as an alternative to Pride Month celebrations. Fitzpatrick also issued a bounty-style reward for information that would lead to the arrest of Boise’s Democratic Mayor Lauren McLean. 

Little’s advancement represents a victory for the moderate wing of the GOP in the state. As he advances to the general election in November, he will face a Democratic and Independent challenger for the state’s chief position.

Democratic field 

Terri Pickens emerged as the leading candidate from the Democratic primary Tuesday, having received 65.5% of the vote at the time the race was called by the Associated Press at around 9:30 p.m. Mountain Time on Tuesday.

Pickens is the owner and founding partner of Pickens Law, P.A., which specializes in estate planning, real estate and construction litigation. Pickens previously ran as the Democratic candidate for lieutenant governor of Idaho in 2022, winning an uncontested primary election before ultimately losing out to Republican Scott Bedke.

In the announcement of her candidacy, Pickens took issue with the state working with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents as well as recent legislative trends including the implementation of private and religious school vouchers in Idaho that passed last year. 

Pickens raised $112,759 for her campaign thus far, the fourth-most amongst all gubernatorial candidates.

Independent challenge in place for November 

Former Idaho State Supreme Court Justice and independent candidate John Stegner spent decades serving Idaho from the bench and is now seeking the state’s highest office.

Stegner was born and raised in Grangeville and practiced law in Lewiston before serving as a district judge in Moscow and being appointed to the Idaho Supreme Court in 2018, a position he held before retiring in 2023.

Stegner previously told the Idaho Press a key issue inspiring his run was the state’s loss of OB-GYNs and voiced support for maintaining Medicaid expansion as well as bolstering public education funding.

Stegner has the second-highest fundraising total through the primary with $283,127 in campaign contributions. 

Executive Branch officials 

Outside of the governorship, each of Idaho’s statewide executive officials ran uncontested races in the Republican Primary this year. Each serve four-year terms and do not have term limits.

Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke has presided over the Senate since 2023. He previously served in Idaho’s House of Representatives. 

Secretary of State Phil McGrane has served in the role since 2023. His office is tasked with administering elections and processing business filings in the state.

Attorney General Raúl Labrador has provided legal representation for the state of Idaho since assuming office in 2023. Labrador previously served as a representative for Idaho in the state legislature and in the U.S. Congress.

State Controller Brandon Woolf has served as the Idaho Controller since 2013 after being nominated by Gov. Butch Otter. The controller position acts as the head financial watchdog for the state and validates and authorizes payments made by the state.

State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth has served as Idaho’s Treasurer since being elected in 2018. In the role, Ellsworth acts as the chief financial officer and banker for the state.

Superintendent of Public Instruction Debbie Critchfield has served as the state superintendent since 2023. She oversees K-12 public schools in the state and serves as the head of the Idaho Department of Education.