2024 Idaho legislative races to watch: West Boise’s District 15

The Idaho State Capitol building in Boise on Jan. 23, 2024. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun)

West Boise’s Legislative District 15 is an anomaly in Idaho – a rare swing district that could go to either Republicans or Democrats in the Nov. 5 general election.

Currently, District 15 is represented by both political parties – Democrats hold the district’s seat in the Idaho Senate and one of the two seats in the Idaho House of Representatives, while a Republican holds the other seat in the Idaho House.
For years Republicans and Democrats have fought for control of the district, which could help the Republicans increase their supermajority or help the Democrats begin to rebuild their ranks and work toward establishing more influence or gaining back influential committee seats that Republicans took control of .

In the 2024 general election, all three legislative seats in District 15 are contested.

• District 15 Idaho Senate: incumbent Sen. Rick Just, D-Boise, is running against former Rep. Codi Galloway, R-Boise.
• District 15 House Seat A: incumbent Rep. Steve Berch, D-Boise, is running against Republican Annette Tipton.
• District 15 House Seat B: Democrat Shari Barber is running against incumbent Rep. Dori Healey, R-Boise.

Located entirely within Ada County, District 15 is located in west Boise, generally from Maple Grove Road to Eagle Road, between Interstate 84 and Chinden Boulevard.

The Idaho Capital Sun sent the same six questions to all candidates in the race. Berch, Galloway and Just responded, while the Sun did not receive responses from Barber, Healey or Tipton.

Idaho Legislative District 15-Senate

1. What are your top three state budget priorities?

Galloway: “Education, roads, and public safety.”

Just: “ Better public school funding. Better support for childcare. Better support for the disabled.”

2. Do you support public dollars being used for private education, including through tax credits or education savings accounts available to parents, or any other means? Why, or why or not?

Galloway: “ As a mother of four and a former public school teacher, I know every kid is different.  There is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to education. I support looking at all options to enhance education in Idaho. I trust parents to make good decisions for their kids.”

Just: “ No. First, it’s unconstitutional. Second, it would take funding away from public schools and other state services.

3. Unlike some of its cities, counties and businesses, the state of Idaho does not have a climate plan or climate goals. How does climate change pose a threat to Idaho? How would you address the threats that climate change poses — such as water management, wildfires and energy production — to Idaho?

Galloway: “ Idahoans love the pristine beauty we enjoy in this great state. Our land, water, and energy are critical to the future of Idaho. Individually, we all have a responsibility to preserve and protect our state. As a former teacher, I know that real change happens best with education and encouragement rather than heavy regulation and rules.”

Just: “The Legislature will not address climate change as such for many years to come because of a reluctance to recognize that it is happening. We can still address impacts related to climate change that Legislators are willing to acknowledge, i.e., drought, increasing fire severity, changes in temperature, and the need for alternative energy sources. I will introduce and support related legislation and encourage agencies to solarize their operations and begin transitioning to hybrid and electric automobiles.”

4. What is your position on the Proposition 1 ballot initiative that would end closed party primary elections and create ranked-choice voting? If voters pass the ballot initiative in November and you are elected, would you work to implement the ballot initiative or repeal it?

Galloway: “ I oppose ranked-choice voting — it creates a situation where the person who gets the most votes can lose the election. I can’t intelligently answer the “What if it passes?” question until I know what the advertising looks like, how much it passes by, how my district voted, and what the final implications will be.”

Just: “I support Proposition 1 and would work to implement it.”

5. In May 2023, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on state governors to help with border security efforts. This year, Idaho spent nearly $206,000 to send 10 Idaho State Police troopers to the southern border for training. Do you support using Idaho taxpayer dollars to address issues at the southern border? Why, or why not?

Galloway: “ Illegal immigration at the southern border is overwhelming public services, increasing crime, and straining budgets. It must stop! While the responsibility for border security lies firmly in the domain of the Biden Administration, because they fail to act, I would support Gov. Little’s efforts to lend a hand.”

Just: “If there is a legitimate reason to send them to the border for training that they could not otherwise get in-state, I would support it. Immigration, however, is a national issue that can only be solved by Congress.”

6. Idaho’s abortion ban is one of the strictest in the nation. Many doctors and hospital administrators have said Idaho’s law is vague, making it difficult to practice medicine, resulting in more airlifted patients to other states and difficulty recruiting maternal medical professionals. Do you support adding health exceptions for pregnant patients to Idaho’s abortion law? Why, or why not?

Galloway: “ When a doctor finds in “his good-faith medical judgment” that a mom is in danger or could be in danger in the future, the doctor should be able to perform an abortion legally. I want to protect babies, moms, and doctors.”

Just: “Yes. Doctors need certainty about what is allowed under Idaho state law and what is not.”

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Idaho Legislative District 15-House Seat A

The Idaho Capital Sun did not receive a response from Tipton.

1. What are your top three state budget priorities?

Berch: “ Education, Transportation and Health & Welfare – and lowering property taxes. The way to fund these priorities is to review the exclusion of over $5.2 billion from state budgets in the form of sales tax exemptions each year that are never reviewed and never expire. Idaho is one of a minority of states that has no review process for tax breaks. If a review process resulted in retiring only 10% of them, that would flow over half a billion dollars into the general fund each year. We’d have the on-going funds for top budget priorities such as education (thus lowering property taxes by eliminating the need for most school bonds and levies), transportation (to meet the needs of one of the fastest growing state in the nation), and health and welfare (to fund the state’s well-documented failure to adequately provide a wide variety vital services people depend on and for which state government is responsible). The first step in addressing this is for the legislature to take action on the OPE report that outlined a path forward (Designing a Review of Tax Preferences).”

2. Do you support public dollars being used for private education, including through tax credits or education savings accounts available to parents, or any other means? Why, or why or not?

Berch: “ No. I support the wide variety of education choices that Idaho already allows. This issue is not about school choice or parental choice, but rather having you pay for your neighbor’s choice for their kids. Every voucher-type scheme siphons your public tax dollars away from your public schools. This will inevitably increase property taxes by requiring more school bonds and levies to close the funding gap. A for-profit private and religious school doesn’t provide the protections that public schools do. The private sector is not required to provide accountability. You may choose a private school for your child, but they don’t have to choose you. Your child can be expelled at any time for any reason without recourse. And tuition costs can be raised at any time, especially when they know you’re getting money from the state. Out-of-state forces have spent millions of dollars to create a voucher-friendly legislature in Idaho. They don’t spend that amount of money unless they expect a return on their investment. Private schools have every right to seek your business, but your public school tax dollars should not be used to enrich their bottom-line profits.”

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3. Unlike some of its cities, counties and businesses, the state of Idaho does not have a climate plan or climate goals. How does climate change pose a threat to Idaho? How would you address the threats that climate change poses — such as water management, wildfires and energy production — to Idaho?

Berch: “ Several of my legislative colleagues from agricultural areas of the state have noted significant changes in traditional growing seasons. Snow packs in the mountains, aquifers and dependable water supplies are a growing concern in many parts of the state. Reliable access to drinking water is a very real problem for my constituents whose domestic wells are running dry. The poor air quality caused by Idaho’s wildfires each year are particularly disturbing. These threats require a scientific understanding of their causality and ways to reduce or mitigate them. This presents an opportunity for Idaho’s colleges and universities to take a leading role in addressing and quantifying the impact climate change is having on Idaho’s citizens and its economy. Understanding the cost of climate change in both human and economic terms is an important first step in identifying and justifying the investments necessary to address them.”

4. What is your position on the Proposition 1 ballot initiative that would end closed party primary elections and create ranked-choice voting? If voters pass the ballot initiative in November and you are elected, would you work to implement the ballot initiative or repeal it?

Berch: “ The percentage of legislative seats held by the Idaho Republican Party before and after they closed their primary in 2012 has remained roughly the same. Closing their primary helped extremists take over the leadership of a party that now controls over 81% of the legislature – and they succeeded. This was done by preventing voters who didn’t want to publicly reveal their personal political party preference from having a voice. I support returning to the previous open primary system and giving everyone a chance to be heard. I understand the academic arguments in favor of ranked choice voting, but I also appreciate how some voters may find it complicated and confusing. I will support whatever decision Idahoans make when voting on this issue in November.”

5. In May 2023, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on state governors to help with border security efforts. This year, Idaho spent nearly $206,000 to send 10 Idaho State Police troopers to the southern border for training. Do you support using Idaho taxpayer dollars to address issues at the southern border? Why, or why not?

Berch: “ No. Sending 10 Idaho State Police troopers to the southern border didn’t do anything real or lasting to fix that situation. We’d be better off using public tax dollars to hire more teachers, fix the state’s crumbling infrastructure and help eliminate the grocery tax.”

6. Idaho’s abortion ban is one of the strictest in the nation. Many doctors and hospital administrators have said Idaho’s law is vague, making it difficult to practice medicine, resulting in more airlifted patients to other states and difficulty recruiting maternal medical professionals. Do you support adding health exceptions for pregnant patients to Idaho’s abortion law? Why, or why not?

Berch: “ Yes. I appreciate the sincere and genuine concerns that many people have about protecting the lives of the unborn. However, Idaho’s current law has gone far beyond that. It not only puts the health of the mother at risk, it doesn’t actually allow the doctor to safely prevent the death of the mother either – despite what the law says. Doctors don’t know how close a woman must be to death’s doorstep before they can terminate a pregnancy without being prosecuted – or be sued by the family if action isn’t taken. This is why doctors are leaving the state and new ones hesitate coming to Idaho. The result is women unable to find a new medical provider, or having to wait many months to schedule an appointment if they do. Extremists in control of the legislature have given Idaho the nationwide reputation of being hostile to the medical profession. This is not good for Idaho nor its citizens.”

Idaho Legislative District 15-House Seat B

The Idaho Capital Sun did not receive responses from either Barber or Healey.

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