Ehardt and Marquit go head-to-head in Legislative debate

IDAHO FALLS — Two long-time governmental rivals battled it retired arsenic Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, and three-time Democratic challenger Miranda Marquit faced disconnected successful an 85-minute statement Thursday evening astatine nan Snake River Event Center astatine nan Shilo Inn.

“My force and I are perfectly diametrically opposed 1 to another,” Ehardt said.

The matchup for District 33 House Seat A promises to beryllium Bonneville County’s astir competitory legislative title successful November’s election.

“In 2022, 36% of nan eligible voters successful District 33 decided this race,” Marquit said.

Two years ago, Marquit received 5,200 votes (40%) to Ehardt’s 7,816 (60%).

Marquit said she is moving to “address nan affordable lodging situation present successful Idaho, … reside our nationalist acquisition … protect Medicaid description and … proceed to support our system pinch bully paying jobs done workforce improvement and nan description of nan Launch program.”

She would for illustration nan Legislature to prioritize “real issues and applicable solutions alternatively than this weird civilization warfare delirium and endless grandstanding.”

“I’m tired of room bounty bills,” Marquit said. “I’m tired complete nan yearly conflict complete Medicaid description , and I americium tired of articulator work to family values while refusing to return steps that support our communities and our families.”

Ehardt highlighted freedom, inflation, nan separator situation and forbidden migration successful her opening remarks.

“Inflation 4 years agone … was 1.9%, … and remember, ostentation is that silent taxation killer. … Now it’s astatine a blimpish 17%,” Ehardt said. “Gas prices (were) $2.71, now $3.96. The mean rent (was) conscionable complete $1,000. Now nan mean rent (is) $2,400. Looking astatine market prices, you’re looking astatine a 25% increase. Electricity (is) up 21%. Real hourly mean net (are) down almost 4%. These are nan things that impact us.”

She emphasized nan request for unafraid borders.

“Because of what’s happened pinch our Biden-Harris administration, we are being inundated pinch forbidden immigrants passim this full nation, and that’s created crime and chaos and confusion, and we are being deed pinch it present successful Idaho too,” Ehardt said.

The 2 candidates fought passionately complete Proposition 1 (ranked-choice voting/open primaries), Proposition 2 (non-citizens voting successful elections), spot taxes, Title IX, Medicaid description , nan room bill, h2o rights, acquisition and more.

Each campaigner answered 10 questions prepared independently by Daniel Barker, Chairman of nan Bonneville County Democrats, and Michael Colson, Chairman of nan Bonneville County Republicans.

Proposition 1 — Ranked-choice voting

On nan Nov. 5 ballot, voters will beryllium capable to determine whether to “replace elector action of statement nominees pinch a top-four primary; (2) require a ranked-choice voting strategy for wide elections,” according to voteidaho.gov.

Ehardt opposes nan measure, while Marquit supports it.

“I was terribly disappointed to find retired that someway ranked-choice voting had made its measurement to Idaho aft we saw nan debacle that had happened successful Alaska,” Ehardt said. “… Ranked-choice voting, to me, is simply a Marxist ploy. We are astir 1 person, 1 vote.”

She cited efforts successful Alaska to repeal their ranked-choice voting system.

However, Marquit said courts person ruled ranked-choice voting is 1 personification 1 vote, and that nan strategy increases elector turnout and participation.

“Ranked prime voting is simply an instant runoff,” Marquit said. “Why should taxpayers successful this authorities salary for a closed superior that they cannot participate in? We want group complete parties, and I americium perfectly okay pinch that.”

Proposition 2 — Non-citizen voting initiative

Idahoans will besides beryllium deciding whether to amend nan authorities constitution to forestall “non-citizens from voting successful elections.”

“I deliberation it’s 1 of those grandstanding things that’s a discarded of time, because we don’t person elector fraud,” Marquit said.

She cited studies by nan Brennan Center for Justice that elector fraud only occurs successful “0.003% to 0.0025% of ballots cast.”

The halfway has verified that nan Heritage Foundation’s Database of Voter Fraud contains a full of 41 confirmed cases of non-citizens registering to ballot complete nan past respective decades.

Ehardt encouraged voters to support nan measure.

“We already person examples of elector fraud retired location having to do pinch forbidden aliens who person crossed nan border,” Ehardt said. “Americans are nan only ones who should beryllium voting. … Join pinch america and and ballot yes connected prop two, because we don’t want illegals voting successful our elections.”

Affordable housing

Marquit supports eliminating nan headdress connected nan homeowner’s exemption truthful it correlates pinch location values and inflation.

“In 2016, nan authorities legislature put a headdress connected nan homeowner’s exemption,” she said. “So arsenic location values spell up, nan exemption stays nan same, and truthful that intends you salary much successful spot taxes.”

Additionally, she recommends offering taxation breaks to seniors, “capping excessive rental fees, and expanding nan state’s affordable lodging fund” utilizing money from fund surpluses.

“70% of nan spot taxation load successful this authorities is connected residential homeowners pinch 30% connected commercial,” Marquit said. “ … Commercial is getting a free thrust connected nan backs of residential homeowners.”

Ehardt emphasized nan Legislature’s advancement successful reducing homeowners’ spot taxation burden.

“What we’ve been doing is making judge that you tin support and spend your lodging because of spot taxes,” she said. “… Over nan past mates years, we person made tremendous advancement and tremendous finance — including pinch that surplus money — into reducing spot taxes, including that $1.5 cardinal that’s going to nan accommodation money for schools.”

“As acold arsenic these typical one-ups for people, that’s not adjacent because it’s connected nan backs of personification else,” she said.”… What we conscionable did for each of you complete nan past mates years, you’ll find acold much beneficial.”

Title IX

Ehardt has been a leader successful fighting against nan Biden-Harris administration’s revision of Title IX “prohibiting favoritism based connected activity stereotypes, intersexual orientation, gender personality and activity characteristics,” which allows transgender athletes to participate successful women’s sports.

“Now it’s acold beyond sports. It’s acold beyond education,” Ehardt said. “It is fundamentally 1500 pages of punishment.”

Under nan caller rules, she said a mother taking a six-year-old girl to nan restroom astatine an simple school, could beryllium charged pinch intersexual harassment for questioning a 40-year-old transgender antheral who decided to usage nan aforesaid facility.

On Aug. 28, Gov. Brad Little Brad signed an executive bid to “guarantee each female student successful Idaho beryllium provided adjacent opportunity successful sports and schoolhouse to nan fullest extent,” arsenic required by nan original Title IX statute.

Marquit cited a UCLA Law School study that “less than 1% of adults place arsenic trans, 1.4% of children 13 to 17 place arsenic trans, and successful each nationalist schools, location are nary much than 100 trans athletes.”

“It is weird that we’re stepping astir looking astatine people’s backstage parts and trying to fig out, you know, what their privates are,” Marquit said. “We’ve sewage rules astatine nan precocious schoolhouse level, astatine nan NCAA level, we person rules to govern this stuff. So I’m not judge why we request nan authorities legislature getting involved. I’m not judge why we request nan politician getting involved. I’m not judge why we request a authorities mini capable to rotation into my child’s locker room.”

Medicaid description and sustainability

Marquit powerfully supports Medicaid description , which was passed by voters successful 2020.

“We needed a valid inaugural to make it happen,” she said. “And past each twelvemonth since we’ve done this, they person tried to return it distant from america by calling it guardrails. … If we’d expanded it sooner, we’d person much thief successful backing from nan national government. The only logic we expanded Medicaid is because we, nan people, nan citizens, begged our authorities legislature to do it, and they would not.”

She said that 46% of Bonneville County residents suffice arsenic Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed (ALICE).

“We support having these surpluses of anyplace betwixt $500 cardinal and $2 billion,” Marquit said. “What are we investing it in? We should beryllium investing it successful our people.”

Ehardt said that nan authorities has made a conscious effort to region individuals who nary longer suffice for nan programme from its rolls, to thief reign successful costs and guarantee that Medicaid tin service its intended recipients.

“Quite frankly, we’re having a difficult clip backing it,” Ehardt said. “It was primitively meant for nan handicapped, young kids and pregnant mothers, but we’re astatine nan consequence of these group not getting it, group for illustration my niece, not being capable to person that because of each nan different group who are applying to get connected there, who are capable bodied people.”

Catch nan afloat debate

To watch nan remainder of nan debate, you tin sojourn nan Bonneville Democrats Facebook page aliases Stand Up for Idaho’s streaming connected Rumble.

Ehardt based on that overall, Idaho is beardown and headed successful nan correct direction.

“We’re nan slightest regulated state. We’re nan number 1 authorities for median family income growth,” she said. “We’re nan number 1 authorities for in installments worthiness. We’re nan number 3 champion tally state. We’re nan 5th champion state, according to U.S. News and World Report. We’re nan number 1 authorities twelvemonth complete twelvemonth successful growth. We’re nan number 1 authorities for nan economy. We’re nan 4th champion authorities to unrecorded in.”

“These are existent attributes and reasons why we should want to support Idaho strong,” Ehardt said. “Why would we want to alteration that direction? This is going great.”

The candidates work together voters person a clear determination to make for their legislative typical successful District 33.

“There are very stark differences successful this race,” Marquit said. “I americium successful favour of a move toward greater populist done unfastened primaries and returning early successful absentee voting. … I americium afloat supportive of nationalist education. Representative Ehardt has expressed support for nan voucher boondoggle. … And of course, … she believes that libraries are rife pinch porn, and wants to proceed to modulate them and make them harder to use. … I support women’s health, and I support our expertise to make our ain wellness decisions.”

“I want you to subordinate maine arsenic we commencement moving guardant to make existent affirmative alteration present successful Idaho,” she concluded.

Bonneville County Democrats Chairman Dan Barker and Bonneville County Republicans Chairman Mike Colson co-hosted and moderated nan debate.