Sponsor seeks to move candidate withdrawal deadline to 50 days before election; committee introduces RS 31949C1

Representative Brandon Mitchell (District 6) introduced RS 31949C1, a proposal to change Idaho’s candidate withdrawal and replacement deadlines so that party substitutions and voluntary withdrawals would be limited to at least 50 days before the election.

Mitchell said the change responds to cases where placeholder or unserious candidates were substituted close to an election under older law, which he said was drafted before widespread early and absentee voting. “Idaho's current law is totally outdated since it allows candidates to be placed, or to be replaced on the ballot as close to 10 days to the election,” Mitchell said, and argued the 50-day deadline aligns with absentee mailing schedules: “We chose 50 days because this is 5 days before the absentee ballots must be mailed out to everyone who has requested [one] up to that point.”

Under the RS as presented, candidate withdrawals would be limited to the 50-day window prior to the primary. If a withdrawing candidate is their party's only candidate for an office before that deadline, the party may replace them on the ballot. After the 50-day deadline, a name could be removed only for death or disqualification (for example, felony conviction or revoked registration), Mitchell said.

Representative Alfieri (spelled in transcript as Alfieri/Balfieri) asked whether five days was sufficient for absentee ballot changes; Mitchell said he had consulted county clerks and believed the timeline workable. The committee voted by voice to introduce RS 31949C1; the transcript records the motion carried with no roll-call tally.

Ending: RS 31949C1 was introduced and will proceed through committee consideration. The sponsor said the change is intended to modernize Idaho’s statutes to reflect current absentee-ballot practices and to reduce late-stage ballot substitutions.