As a third-generation Idahoan raising the fourth, I’ve always known Idaho to be a place where neighbors take care of each other. We see each other, listen, and act out of kindness and community. But lately, I’ve felt a disconnect between these values and the laws being passed by those in power. What I’m hearing is frustration — people are fed up with extreme policies that don’t represent us, yet we keep electing the same politicians responsible for them.
Polling tells us what I see every day: Idahoans don’t support the extreme abortion and LGBTQ+ bans pushed through the Legislature. A 2024 Boise State University poll found 65% of Idahoans disapprove of the near-total abortion ban, which has devastated health care access .
Yet, we’re living under laws that force doctors out of the stat e and put patients in life-threatening situations . Doctors have told me about agonizing decisions under their oath to do no harm — fearing license loss for providing essential care but knowing their patients could die if they don’t act.