Mark is a 5th generation Idahoan born in Montpelier Idaho. His wife Cheryl and he has four boys that live on an operate a family cattle ranch south of Soda Springs in Bear Lake County. He is a partner in this ranching operation with his brothers as well as a farm in Cassia County. They raise beef cattle and hay.
Upon returning from a two-year mission for his church in Cordoba, Argentina, Mark attended and graduated from Utah State University with a BA in Political Science.
Mark has served as a director on the state board of directors for the Idaho Cattle Association where he served on the Wildlife committee. He also served as a director on the Idaho Farm Bureau state board. Previously, Mark served two years as the State Young Farmers and Ranchers chairman for Farm Bureau and served on various state committees as well.
Mark has served on the Bear Lake Planning and Zoning Committee and currently serves as a trustee on the board of the Bear Lake Memorial Hospital.
He has been very involved with the Bear Lake County GOP as well as the state GOP where he was the Bear Lake County Young Republican Chair as well as a Legislative District Vice Chair, Legislative District Chair, Region Vice Chair and Region Chair.
Mark was appointed by Governor Butch Otter to the Idaho State Senate in the summer of 2015 to finish the term of Senator John Tippetts. Since then, he ran and won three elections and is currently serving his 4th term. Mark has served on the Senate Agriculture Affairs Committee, the Senate Transportation Committee and is serving on the Senate Health and Welfare and Senate State Affairs Committees. He is also the Co-chair of the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee (JLOC) and was elected by his Senate peers to serve as the Majority Caucus Chair.