Idaho
Here’s what to know about the May 23 Idaho Democratic presidential caucus • Idaho Capital Sun
Idaho Democrats will hold their presidential nominating caucus from 5-8 p.m. local time on May 23, giving Democrats across the state the chance to vote for their party’s presidential nominee.
The caucus is new this year, and the Democrats are staging their caucus two days after the May 21 primary election. Idaho Republicans already conducted their presidential nominating caucus on March 2.
Although President Joe Biden secured enough delegates to clinch the Democratic Party’s nomination for president back in March, there are six candidates who have qualified to appear on the ballot for the Democratic caucus in the Gem State, said Jared DeLoof, executive director of the Idaho Democratic Party.
Those candidates are
- Biden
- David Olscamp
- Jason Palmer
- Armando Perez-Serrato
- Dean Phillips
- Marianne Williamson
In addition to their choice of presidential candidates, Democrats will also vote on delegates to attend the Idaho Democratic Party’s summer convention, which runs June 22 through June 23 in Moscow, DeLoof said.
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What to expect at the Democratic presidential caucus
The locations of Democratic caucus sites are posted online. There is at least one caucus site in every county and voters must attend a caucus site in the county they are registered to vote in. For counties that feature more than one caucus site, such as Ada and Canyon counties, voters may go to any site they wish in their home county, DeLoof said.
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In order to vote in the Democrats’ caucus, voters must be affiliated with the Democratic Party or be an unaffiliated voter, DeLoof said. People can register to vote or change their party affiliation to the Democrats at the caucus site. But voters cannot participate in the Democrats’ caucus if they already participated in the Republican’s presidential caucus or any other presidential caucus this year, DeLoof said. Additionally, interested voters who are only 17 years old when the Democratic caucus takes place will be allowed to register to vote and participate in the caucus if they turn 18 before the Nov. 5 general election. Voters are also allowed to bring their younger children to accompany them and observe the caucus.
The caucus will begin at 5 p.m. local time and will end at 8 p.m. DeLoof said anyone who is in line for a Democratic caucus at 8 p.m. will still be allowed to vote.
Once voters are checked in at their caucus site on May 23, they will be given a ballot to fill out and hand in, and then may leave if they wish. DeLoof said there will only be one round of voting, and the goal is for the entire process to take less than 10 minutes.
“The thing we have prioritized more than anything else is voters participating in ways that will be familiar to them and with the least amount of obstacles as possible,” DeLoof said in a telephone interview.
Democrats would have preferred a presidential primary election, not a caucus
The presidential caucus is new for Idaho voters this year because last year the Idaho Legislature seemingly unintentionally eliminated the presidential primary elections.
In 2023, the Idaho Legislature passed House BIll 138, which supporters said was designed to move the state’s presidential primary election back from March to take place in May with the other state primary elections. But instead of moving the presidential primary back, House Bill 138 eliminated the presidential primary election altogether. A so-called trailer bill that was designed to correct the issue did not advance out of the House State Affairs Committee at the end of the 2023 legislative session, and legislators could not agree to a special session in late 2023 to reinstate the presidential primary election.
In response, the state’s political parties decided to conduct presidential nominating caucuses in absence of the primary election.
“We did not want this caucus system,” DeLoof said. “We tried to work with Republicans to get this fixed because a caucus, quite frankly, is not a great way for folks to be able to cast a vote. We’re not happy with the system, but we are making the best of it.”
Primary elections and caucuses are different for many reasons. One of the reasons is that caucuses are run entirely by the political parties, not the state or counties. The Republican caucus also required all voters to attend their caucus in person and there was no exception for members of the military stationed out of state, religious missionaries, people who had to work, people who were traveling, people who had accessibility issues or people who lacked transportation.
On the other hand, the Democrats offer absentee ballots to voters who cannot participate in person due to military service, disability or illness, work, child care obligations, school, the inability to travel or other reasons. Voters can request an absentee ballot online, and the deadline to request an absentee ballot is 5 p.m. Mountain Time, May 16.
“We’re trying to make it as accessible as possible and ultimately make the best of a bad situation, and we look forward to seeing everyone at these events,” DeLoof said.
Unlike the Republican caucus, news reporters will be allowed inside the Democratic caucus sites to observe and report on the process as long as they register for a credential with the Democratic Party, DeLoof said. Only registered Republicans and their children were allowed at the Republican’s caucus in March, meaning news reporters and independent observers who were not registered Republicans were not allowed to observe the GOP caucus.
Idaho
Idaho is in for a streak of clear skies next week
After a round of showers came through this week, the Gem State is staying dry and clear for next week.
Temperatures finally started to feel winter-like as we take a tumble this weekend. Consistent 40’s the highs, and 20’s the lows.
Conditions on the valley floors are not expected to get past the mid 40’s. Showers appear to be nonexistent for the next 7 to 10 days.
We will also see some air stagnation in our area, meaning that as a high-pressure ridge moves in, not too much change is expected in the air. So, air quality may take a bit of a fall.
Not much more than cold and dry air is on the way for Idaho, but at least the sun will shine for most of the forecast.
Have a great weekend and stay warm!
Idaho
Interstate 84 near Mountain Home back open after utility work
MOUNTAIN HOME, Idaho (KMVT/KSVT) — Interstate 84 near Mountain Home is back open after crews closed the freeway due to utility work.
Crews closed westbound and eastbound lanes on Saturday morning from milepost 90 to milepost 95 due to Idaho Power working on power lines in the area, according to the Elmore County Sheriff’s Office. All lanes are now back open in both directions.
The sheriff’s office and the Mountain Home Police Department apologized for the inconvenience, saying they were just informed of the closure on Saturday morning.
More information regarding road closures and traffic conditions can be found at the Idaho Transportation Department’s 511 map.
Copyright 2026 KMVT. All rights reserved.
Idaho
Idaho murder victims’ families file wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University
The families of the four University of Idaho students killed in a brutal 2022 stabbing attack have filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Washington State University (WSU), alleging the school ignored repeated warning signs about Bryan Kohberger.
The civil complaint, filed Jan. 7 in Skagit County Superior Court, was brought by Steve Goncalves, father of Kaylee Goncalves; Karen Laramie, mother of Madison Mogen; Jeffrey Kernodle, father of Xana Kernodle; and Stacy Chapin, mother of Ethan Chapin.
The lawsuit accuses WSU of gross negligence, wrongful death and violations of federal education laws, including Title IX. The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages.
Attorney Robert Clifford, senior partner at Clifford Law Offices, said that the decision to leave damages “unspecified” is a strategic norm in high-stakes litigation because it prevents the focus from shifting towards sensationalism and keeps the decision firmly in the hands of the jury.
“Ultimately, that’s to be determined and answered by the jury,” said Clifford, who is not involved in the lawsuit. “But you have some compelling facts and the liability is going to depend on the strength of what the school knew.”
Despite Kohberger’s guilty plea in the murders, Clifford explained the civil case remains strong because the families face a lower burden of proof – requiring only a preponderance of evidence to establish the university’s liability.
“The mere fact that he pled guilty might not even be admissible in the civil proceeding because he’s not the defendant, right? If he is a defendant in the civil proceeding, then his plea of guilty will be important. And indeed, this school might try to use that to say, ‘See, it wasn’t our fault. He admits that it was his fault.’ But the bar is different for someone in a criminal proceeding than it is in a civil proceeding.”
According to the lawsuit, WSU hired Kohberger as a teaching assistant in its criminal justice and criminology department and provided him with a salary, tuition benefits, health insurance and on-campus housing.
The victims’ families allege the university had extensive authority over Kohberger’s conduct but failed to act despite mounting concerns.
Here’s the latest coverage on Bryan Kohberger:
The complaint says WSU received at least 13 formal reports accusing Kohberger of threatening, stalking, harassing or predatory behavior toward female students and staff during the fall 2022 semester. The families argue university officials did not meaningfully investigate those complaints or remove Kohberger from campus before the murders – even though they had the authority to do so.
The lawsuit also alleges that the university failed to use its own threat-assessment systems designed to identify individuals who pose a risk of violence, even as concerns about Kohberger escalated. Instead, the families claim, the university continued to employ him, house him and give him access to students.
“The murders were foreseeable and preventable,” the complaint states, alleging WSU prioritized avoiding legal and reputational risk over student safety.
The lawsuit also alleges broad failures within the public university, including alleged dysfunction within campus police and compliance officers who are responsible for handling accusations of misconduct, including sexual harassment and stalking.
Kohberger pleaded guilty in July 2025 to four counts of first-degree murder and burglary. He was sentenced to four consecutive life terms without the possibility of parole.
Prosecutors said Kohberger stabbed the four students in the early morning hours of Nov. 13, 2022, inside an off-campus rental home in Moscow, Idaho, just miles from the WSU campus in Pullman, Washington.
Kohberger was arrested in Pennsylvania in December 2022 following a multi-state investigation.
Authorities linked him to the crime through DNA evidence, surveillance video and cellphone data showing repeated late-night trips near the victims’ home.
WSU has not yet filed a response to the lawsuit. Fox News Digital has reached out to WSU for comment.
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