Sandpoint fears Redoubt takeover

Candidates and current members of a North Idaho school board say they’re trying to block a slate of far-right ideologues from winning a majority in this month’s elections.

But those conservative candidates insist they aren’t members of the “alt-right” or the “Redoubt” movement that has taken root in Idaho and neighboring states .

The Lake Pend Oreille School District includes a dozen schools in Sandpoint and neighboring towns. Three of the district’s five trustees will finish terms this summer and are not seeking re-election.

The contentious races follow voters’ approval of a tax levy in March that generates nearly a third of the school district’s revenue. In the run-up to that vote, current trustees said, a group of “fringe” conservatives mounted a campaign to defeat the ballot measure, distributing mailers and writing numerous online comments and newspaper letters. A similar campaign recently targeted Sandpoint Mayor Shelby Rognstad / Chad Sokol , SR. More here.