Who’s running for Boise’s Legislative District 16? Hear from the candidates

Democratic voters in Garden City and Boise may have some tough choices in the coming May primary election — including whether to send two incumbents, a tenant advocate and public policy instructor, back to the Capitol for the next two years or choose to go in a different direction.

Two incumbents are facing challengers for the Democratic nomination in the primary in District 16, which covers all of Garden City and portions of Boise. The district includes Boise areas east of Pierce Park Lane, south of Hill Road, west of 28th Street and north of Interstate 184. The western edge of the district is formed by Maple Grove Road, Fairview Avenue and Cole Road.

Incumbent Sen. Ali Rabe, the executive director of Jesse Tree — a Boise nonprofit that provides housing support — is facing challenger Justin “Justice” Mitson, a business consultant, children’s book author and firearm salesman in the Democratic primary. Both live in Garden City. Mitson is running on a campaign to “imprison corrupt politicians,” while Rabe is focused on addressing homelessness and the lack of housing in the Treasure Valley.

Rabe was elected to District 17 in 2020 but vacated her Senate seat in November 2021 after buying a house within the boundaries of District 16. Voters in that district chose to send her back to the Senate in 2022. Rabe has been known to sponsor bills around housing policy, and last year sponsored legislation to shield youth and crisis centers from criminal charges for sheltering runaway youth and block the public release of eviction records if the entire eviction case has been dismissed.

The Democratic primary winner will move on to face Republican challenger LeeJoy Lay in the November general election.

Four Boise Democrats will be competing for their party’s nomination for the House position B seat: retired Dr. Jon Chu, autobody technician Wayne Richey, advertising creative director Nikson Mathews and incumbent Rep. Todd Achilles, who teaches public policy. Achilles was selected to replace former Rep. Colin Nash in February after Nash vacated his seat to focus on his role as a Boise City Council member. Jackie Davidson is running for the seat in the Republican primary.

Rep. Sonia Galaviz, D-Boise, is also running unopposed in the primary for her position A House seat. She will face Republican challenger Chandler Stewart Hadraba in November.

In Idaho, only registered Republicans can vote in the Republican primary, while registered Democrats, Republicans or independents can vote in the Democratic primary. Voters can only vote in one party primary per year, with elected senators and representatives serving two-year terms in the Idaho Capitol.

The Idaho Statesman sent questionnaires to each candidate in a contested race. Their responses are below.

Voters can still register to vote at the polls and vote early through May 17. Learn more about this race and other local elections in the Statesman’s Voter Guide. (Find the legislative district you live in here, and find your polling place here.)

Read all of the candidates’ responses below. Use the horizontal scroll bar underneath each candidate to read the full Q&A. You also can click on the chart and drag horizontally.