Idaho November 2023 Election Live Updates

The City of Eagle will have to host another election to determine who should be the mayor.  Neither mayor Jason Pierce nor his closest challenger Brad Pike were able to get the majority of votes, so the City of Eagle will have a mayoral runoff election in early December.

Lauren McLean has secured a second term in office and will remain the mayor for the City of Boise. With all precincts reporting, McLean received just over 55% of the vote, while challenger Mike Masterson won about 43% of the vote.

Turnout was very impressive in Boise: nearly 44% of registered Boise voters cast a ballot in this year’s mayoral election.

Here’s a quick look at the Boise City Council races:

• Incumbents Colin Nash and Meredith Stead won their districts
• Jordan Morales, Department Manger in the Department of Computer Science at Boise State, will join the council after winning his race in District 4
• And in one of the closest races of the evening, Kathy Corless has won the District 3 Boise City Council Race by 15 votes over Josh Johnston

The Mayor and new council will be sworn into new terms of office in the new year.
Meanwhile, the Ada County Jail Bond just came up short in securing a necessary super majority of the vote.

Over 65% of voters said agreed to a new bond to help fund an expansion of the Ada County Jail, but that came up short of the necessary 66.7% for a supermajority.

Incumbent Boise Mayor Lauren McLean has won a second term, after challenger and former Boise police chief Mike Masterson conceded the race.

During her speech, McLean said she's grateful for the people of Boise giving her the responsibility for another four years.

"I am a mayor for all of Boise, and will continue to be that. I work with so many people where we disagree on a lot, but we can always find something that unites us, and that is this love for this place that we call home," said McLean.

With 104 of 106 precincts reporting, McLean has received 55.6% of the vote. Masterson had the next highest percentage, with 43.2%. The other two candidates each had less than 1% of the vote.

The open city council race in Ketchum among five candidates was close, with contenders getting somewhere between 322 and 593 votes, but the youngest candidates on the ballot came out on top.

Tripp Hutchinson, 25, recently worked for the city’s planning department. Spencer Cordovano, 35, ran for mayor two years ago against Neil Bradshaw and received the second-most votes among candidates. He’s a filmmaker and real estate agent and has been serving on the Planning and Zoning Commission since late 2021.

Hutchinson and Cordovano received more votes than incumbent Michael David, and other contenders Perry Boyle and Jen Smith.

Hailey Mayor Martha Burke and Bellevue Mayor Chris Johnson both held onto their seats, as did Lara Stone, the incumbent for Blaine County School District Trustee Zone 5. Stone was being challenged by Bailey Brooks. Put together, their fundraising efforts totaled $20,000.

Mike Masterson has conceded the Boise mayoral race. As of 10:56 p.m., Masterson had 41.90% of the vote.

Murphy Woodhouse

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Boise State Public Radio

Incumbent Mayor Lauren McLean currently has 57.04% of the vote, with 70.1% of precincts reporting.

Earlier in the evening, Masterson said “Win, win or lose. Thank you for for coming here. And thank you for your support. It's been a great eight and a half months. I got to meet so many wonderful people that I normally would have not met had I not run for office.”

According to unofficial election results, Grayson Stone, Cherie Vollmer and Ruth Pierce have won seats on the Twin Falls City Council.

Ruth Pierce is the mayor of Twin Falls and her council seat was up for re-election. Voters in the city don't elect the mayor directly because the city is run primarily by an appointed city manager. To keep her position as mayor, Pierce would need to win the support of her colleagues during a city meeting in January.

In the city of Hansen, with about 1,000 people, Todd Stimpson won his bid for mayor.

At 10:02 p.m., the Boise mayoral race is currently at the following votes:

• Lauren McLean, 21,044 votes, 57.40%
• Mike Masterson, 15, 233 votes, 41.55%
• Joe Evans, 298 votes, 0.81%
• Aaron Reis, 84 votes, 0.23%

To win the seat, one candidate must receive at least 50% of the vote. If that is not hit, there will be a run-off election in December.
The Ada County Jail Bond is currently at 67.49% (38,836 votes) in favor of issuing the bond and 32.51% (18,711 votes) against. IN order to pass, the bond must get at least 66.7% in favor votes.

As of 6 p.m., Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane (R) said Ada County issued 753 absentee ballots that have not made it to their destination.

That’s despite state lawmakers moving up the deadline to request an absentee ballot to allow additional time for the U.S. Postal Service to deliver them.

“The issue has been with USPS and they’ve seen a larger lag in delivery time this election and I can say that’s a known issue nationally,” McGrane said Tuesday night.

“I’m sure there are some voters who got their ballots today, but what good is an absentee ballot if you get it today on Election Day?” said McGrane.

Across the state, county clerks issued 46,601 absentee ballots, with 77% having been returned according to state officials.

Polls are officially closed in the majority of Idaho, but polling stations will be open for another in the panhandle in the Pacific Time Zone.

In Ada County, Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane said there was a 35% turnout at 8 p.m., with 104,936 ballots returned. McGrane said this high turnout is likely due to the mayoral races in Boise and Eagle.

At 7:30 p.m., Bonneville County had 20% turnout at 7:30p and Teton County had 15%.

Election results will start to come in shortly after polls close at 8 p.m.

In Ada County, you can find election results on the Ada County Elections website or the embed below.

You can also watch poll workers count votes on a variety of different cameras provided by Ada County Elections.

In Canyon County, unofficial election results will be posted here after the polls close, but not before 8 p.m. Canyon County also has a livestream up of workers opening absentee ballots.

Election Day is tomorrow and if you still have your absentee ballot, it is too late to mail it in. But don't fret, you can still get it in or vote at the polls.

If you want to turn in your absentee ballot, drop it off at your local elections office or ballot drop box. In Ada County, those are located here:

• Ada County Elections
• Eagle City Hall
• Meridian City Hall
• Kuna City Hall
• Boise City Hall
• Star City Hall

The drop boxes are available 24/7 and are monitored by a camera.
If you want to vote at the polls, tell an election worker you were issued an absentee ballot, and they will work to get you a new one to fill out in-person. Polls are open on Tuesday, Nov. 7 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can check your polling location here.

For Lauren McLean, she fell in love with Boise not unlike most people … as a citizen. Then, she became an advocate, specifically for the Boise Foothills. Then, she was appointed to the Boise City Council, and ultimately she became the city’s 56^th mayor, the first woman elected to that position in the city’s 150-year-plus history.

“It has been the honor of my life the last four years to serve alongside an incredible team of employees,” said McLean. “[Working with] great partners and leaders in the city. and importantly, the residents of Boise…as we tackle the needs of our city with an eye towards the future.”

With just a few days before Election Day, McLean visits with Morning Edition host George Prentice to talk about the intersection of her personal and professional passions, the city’s new zoning code, change at the Boise Police Department, and much more.

Listen to the full interview here.

“Life was good,” said Mike Masterson, referring to his eight-and-a-half years after he retired from being Boise Police Chief. But after writing a couple of op-eds in the Idaho Statesman, pushing back against Mayor Lauren McLean, Masterson said he started hearing from “all types of contacts.”

“They would all ask, ‘Hey why don’t you run for mayor? You’d be a good mayor,’” said Masterson.

But he had the get the ultimate “yea” or “nay” from his wife. So, after a long conversation, primarily about their kids’ and grandkids’ future, Masterson indeed launched a campaign.

With just a few days before Election Day, Masterson visited with Morning Edition host George Prentice to talk about a myriad of topics, beginning with that decision to run. Listen to the full interview here.

There are three city council seats in Burley and 13 more across the cities in Twin Falls County that are up for grabs.

Of the three contested council races in the city of Twin Falls, only one features an incumbent candidate, Ruth Pierce, who is also the current mayor.

Twin Falls operates under a system where the mayor is not directly elected by voters; insead, the city is governed by an appointed city manager. Therefore, for Ruth Pierce to retain her position as mayor, she must first secure her council seat in this election and then earn the support of her fellow council members in January.

Voters in the Magic Valley will also decide on several ballot measures next week, including supplemental school levies in Minidoka and Filer. Some Jerome County voters will weigh a $10.8 million bond to build a new recreation and senior center for rural Hazleton and Eden.

Rob Grant, the director of the Valley Recreation District, pointed out the significant growth in recreational offerings, such as sports like soccer and football, over the past two decades. However, these activities currently depend on schools and churches for space, and the arrangements lack the capacity to accommodate additional sports, particularly for older teenagers.

The proposed new building, which would be constructed on one of two parcels that would be donated, will house the local senior center. Currently, the senior center serves about 60 meals per week, but it has a limited number of tables inside, so it relies heavily on curbside meal distribution.

The recreation district held an open house to answer questions about the bond Wednesday night at the Eden Senior Center.

The Ada County Jail cannot keep up with the demand to supply beds and meals to over 1,000 inmates. A bond is set to hit the ballots in November, calling for a $49 million expansion to the Ada County Jail. The bond requires a supermajority to pass, meaning two-thirds of voters must be in favor.

The county has exhausted the last bond from 1993, which contributed to the 1995 expansion. However, with a large population increase, the jail finds itself requesting another necessary bond to carry themselves to the targeted year of 2040.

The jail currently has 1,116 beds, totaling from general population, medium custody and max security, amongst other holding areas. That doesn’t include the 34 “boats,” or beds placed on the floor to accommodate the overflow of inmates.

The expansion, if passed by voters, would add 61,000 square feet, about a 45 % increase to the existing building and includes updating booking, kitchen, laundry, housing and transport areas.

If passed, the average Ada County homeowner would pay $3.60 per $100,000 of taxable assessed value.

Ada County is getting ready for election day on Tuesday, Nov. 7. Officials say they are taking steps to make sure the voting process is secure.

Elections Director Saul Seyler said they want the public to trust the election process on Election Day.

“We have 13 cameras that are live streamed at all times throughout the warehouse, so any citizen can go on and watch what we're doing as we work through the process,” he said.

Seyler said they wanted to increase security as the ballots traveled to the precincts and back to headquarters. So for the first time this year, they are using locked cages on wheels to transport ballots and equipment to each voting location.

“We have the slots on the top for ballot boxes, which is where the ballot stock is. All of our signage can fit in here. There's actually a location on the back where our voting booths can go. So literally it's a precinct that's self-contained in a cage,” he said.

This way, Seyler added, the voting equipment is secure from the time it leaves the office until it is unlocked to count the ballots on Election Day.

Affordable housing, for many, is the number one topic of discussion in the race for who should be Boise Mayor. For Joseph Evans, candidate for the job, it isn’t a topic. It’s his day-to-day dilemma.

“My current housing situation is … a minivan. You're actually listening to me from campaign headquarters right now, [parked] outside of a laundromat,” said Evans. “I am homeless; I'm working homeless.”

Boise State Public Radio will be speaking with all four Boise mayoral candidates this week ahead of election day on Tuesday, Nov. 7.

Listen to the full interview here.

Idaho’s largest cities are using more permanent city council district maps for the first time this election season. Republican lawmakers required cities with over 100,000 people to divvy up city council representation by districts back in 2020.

The City of Boise pushed back against the move, asking for more time to come up with its own solution to increase geographical representation among council members.

Currently, Boise, Meridian and Nampa have to follow the law. These cities adopted their latest district maps last year, which will remain in place until the 2030 census.

You can find interactive maps for each of these three cities here, which will help you locate your district.

• Boise
• Meridian
• Nampa

Read more about the changes here.

Sample ballots for Blaine County. 

In Hailey, Mayor Martha Burke is seeking re-election for a second term and faces two challengers. Bellevue Mayor Chris Johnson is running to keep his seat. He was sworn in just this August after former mayor Kathryn Goldman resigned.

Ketchum voters will choose two out of five city council candidates. Among them are two unsuccessful mayoral contenders from 2021 and incumbent Michael David.

Affordable housing challenges are a campaign issue across Blaine County. During a recent Idaho Mountain Express candidate forum, candidates were asked to rate Ketchum’s Housing Action Plan, and gave it anywhere from a “C” to an “A.”

One candidate in particular, Perry Boyle, who ran for mayor in 2021, said he believes Ketchum’s strategy is making things worse. He thinks the city needs to focus on maximizing housing specifically for those who are contributing to the local workforce.

Another top point of discussion is a push to consolidate all local fire and ambulance agencies or to collaborate under a joint powers agreement.

In the Blaine County School District, two candidates are vying for one of the board seats. Together they’ve garnered more than $19,000 in contributions. Bailey Brooks received funds from Push Back Idaho, a parental rights political action committee formed during the pandemic. She’s challenging incumbent Lara Stone.

Aaron Reis, a candidate for Boise Mayor, spoke with Morning Edition host George Prentice about his candidacy and that he doesn't want you to vote for him.

He says for him, it's not about an election contest, but rather our friends and "the kindness of the human spirit, withering in and under the hardship of the economic patriarchal tyranny that is an economy run on violence and exploitation of human labor.”

You can listen to George's full interview with Reis here. Boise State Public Radio will be speaking with all of Boise's mayoral candidates throughout the week.