State Representative, Seat A
Election Results
| Candidate | Votes | Pct |
|---|---|---|
| Ron Mendive (R) | 7,580 | 70.30% |
| Michelle Lippert (D) | 3,202 | 29.70% |
* Race percentages are calculated with data from the Secretary of State's Office, which omits write-in votes from its calculations when there are too few to affect the outcome. The Spokane County Auditor's Office may have slightly different percentages than are reflected here because its figures include any write-in votes.
About the Race
First-term GOP Rep. Ron Mendive is being challenged by Democrat Michelle Lippert of Post Falls.
The Candidates
Ron Mendive
- Party:
- Republican
- City:
- Post Falls, Idaho
Education: Graduated from Kellogg High School in 1969. Attended North Idaho College.
Work experience: Retired. Worked for 20 years as a self-employed contractor in house construction.
Political Experience: Has held is his District 3 state House seat since winning election in 2012.
Family: Married to Sherlene Mendive. Has three children.
Michelle Lippert
- Party:
- Democratic
- City:
- Post Falls, Idaho
- Occupation:
- Philosophy instructor
Philosophy instructor at North Idaho College. Lippert is the former chair of the faculty assembly and has been an elected school board member in Post Falls for the past 17 years. She became a candidate after a conversation with Mendive about a guns-on-campus bill that he supported, but that the state’s public colleges opposed; it passed.
Complete Coverage
In latest example of GOP split, Idaho governor backs challengers to five incumbents
BOISE – Republican legislators rejecting their party’s incumbent governor for Tuesday’s primary election now face a powerful obstacle in their re-election bids. Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has endorsed candidates in 22 legislative primary races – including five challengers to current GOP incumbents, four of them from North Idaho.
Panel recommends pay hikes for Idaho workers
BOISE – Idaho lawmakers on a special legislative committee voted unanimously Friday to give state workers pay boosts averaging 2 percent next year, despite Gov. Butch Otter’s recommendation for no funding for raises. A joint legislative committee recommended 1 percent for one-time bonuses and 1 percent for permanent boosts. The pay would be distributed by agency directors based on merit and other factors, and agencies also would be encouraged to tap salary savings to give additional merit boosts.
Idaho debates worker raises
BOISE – Idaho has funded only one raise for state employees in the past five years, and lawmakers are balking at Gov. Butch Otter’s proposal to skip raises again next year. Despite a state law that requires legislators to keep state worker pay and benefits competitive, pay levels have fallen far behind market rates. Some 20 percent of Idaho’s 25,000 employees make less than $20,000 a year, and 56 percent make less than $40,000. Overall pay is now 19 percent below market rates, according to the latest state report.