FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
October 3, 2022
Boise, ID —
A growing list of defeated Idaho Republicans are making headlines by endorsing Democrat candidates for Idaho public office, and the pattern has drawn the attention of the Legacy Media, who have frequently asked me to comment on these endorsements.
After ten-years of middling service in the State Senate, Fred Martin was defeated in this year’s primary. Now he has decided to publicly confirm what many of his own voters have long suspected by endorsing a Democrat for his former seat. Never mind that the Democrat was once his opponent. Never mind that the Democrat believes in abortion on demand after Martin has long claimed to be pro-life. Never mind that the Democrat is a member of the party seeking to sexualize Idaho’s children, after Martin has long claimed to be pro-family.
Former Idaho Supreme Court Justice Jim Jones, a self-described expert on critical race theory, has been showing his true colors, too. More than merely endorsing a Democrat, Jones is serving as campaign treasurer for a Democrat running for Idaho Attorney General. It’s just the latest in his long drift leftward. Jones has regularly harangued Idahoans about their support for legislation that enhances personal liberty. He has been an outspoken advocate for big government and rule by credentialed experts. He’s frequently published in Legacy Media where he has been known to criticize Republicans and comment on political races without disclosing his personal involvement in them.
Ben Ysursa is another former Republican office holder making a name for himself by endorsing Democrats. Ysursa was formerly Idaho’s Secretary of State and widely known as one of the most liberal secretaries of state in the country, Democrat or Republican. Ysursa opposed efforts to close the Republican primary – hoping to preserve the ability of liberal Democrats to meddle in the GOP’s primaries. Not one to let go of a bad idea, Ysursa is now one of the leading advocates for the effort—backed by Eric Holder and George Soros—to spread ranked-choice voting. Ysursa, like Jones, is now serving as a “commentator” for a liberal Legacy Media outlet.
Political gadfly Tommy Ahlquist has made headlines by donating to Democrat Mayor of Boise Lauren McLean—just days after McLean’s kids’ drag show debacle. After previously campaigning for office as a “conservative,” Alquist finished last in a Republican primary, then dropped the mask and revealed his liberal political leanings on social media platforms. Ahlquist published an op-ed earlier this year calling several statewide candidates “Republicans in Name Only.” Perhaps because they had failed to join him in financially backing radical Democrats?
The Idaho Republican Party is a sweeping coalition with room for many. Our Unity doesn’t come through vanity or personal ambition, but in defending our party’s principles and adhering to our party’s platform. When yesterday’s Republicans become tomorrow’s Democrats, it is fair to question whether they were ever able to set aside personal gain for party good.
Dorothy Moon,
Chairwoman of the Idaho Republican Party
