Idaho makes English official language, adopts iconic state gun, defeats pro-abortion ballot measure

The state’s congressional districts managed to stay solid red, with Reps. Russ Fulcher and Mike Simpson each winning by double digits. Republican Jim Risch secured his fourth term in the US Senate, defeating challenger Todd Achilles by roughly 23 points, data shows.

Idaho Gov. Brad Little sailed to victory, earning his third term by 25 points over Democrat opponent Terri Pickens. Also at the state level, Attorney General Raul Labrador, Secretary of State Phil McGrane, and Lt. Gov. Scott Bedke won their seats against their democratic rivals, according to the results.

The potato state, surrounded by deep blue Washington and Oregon, held the line in a cycle in which Republicans lost statewide elections in traditionally reliable states such as Texas, Iowa, Kansas, South Carolina, and Ohio.

Idaho voters also passed several conservative ballot measures.

The Winchester Model 1873 has been made the state’s official gun. This classic, old-school firearm is nicknamed “the gun that won the west.”

Voters codified English as the state’s official language in the Idaho Constitution. Although it mandates that government documents be written in English, it provides some exceptions for “public health and safety needs,” such as law enforcement purposes.

Theo Wold, former Idaho Solicitor General and Deputy Assistant to President Trump who helped with the initiative, described its passing as “a great victory in defense for our culture.”

Additionally, Idaho rejected an initiative that would have loosened abortion restrictions. Idaho moved to immediately ban nearly all abortions following the Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs decision, which allowed states to decide abortion laws. The state’s “Defense of Life Act” prohibits abortion from the moment of conception, with exceptions only for rape, incest, and the life of the mother.

The ballot measure had been backed by the Catholic Church as well as the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints with a combined $1.3 million. Idaho has one of the largest Latter-day Saint populations in the US per capita, which is a group that voted for the GOP the most out of any religious demographic in the midterms.

While conservatives in historically red areas saw their home state turn blue, GOP Idahoans celebrated their wins.