Another candidate announces run for Idaho governor. Canyon County voters may recognize the name.

Melissa Sue Robinson announced the intent to seek the 2022 Democratic nomination for Idaho governor on Friday. (Courtesy )
By Jacob Scholl Idaho Statesman

Another candidate has announced a run for the governor’s office in Idaho, and the face will be familiar to some.

Melissa Sue Robinson, a transgender woman and advocate, announced in a news release that she intends to run for the Democratic nomination for Idaho governor in 2022.

Robinson is a frequent candidate in Canyon County, running for mayor of Nampa in 2009, 2013 and 2017. Most recently Robinson ran for an Idaho Senate seat in District 13, which covers parts of Canyon County.

Robinson is the first – and so far only – Democratic candidate to formally register for the governor’s race, according to campaign filings through the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office.

Robinson’s campaign said she’s running to “help stop the extreme right-wing section of the Idaho Republican Party from totally destroying our educational system” in Idaho.

Robinson said she is running to “maintain freedom of speech and stopping anything that resembles fascism or an authoritarian government in the state,” specifically mentioning some Idaho political figures like Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin. Robinson also said the decision to run was triggered by recent laws that discriminate against transgender people, as well as the Idaho Legislature’s decision to take away some funding from Boise State University.

“A vote for Robinson will be a vote for democracy, equality, diversity, and the U.S. Constitution,” the announcement said.

McGeachin announced earlier this month that she would seek to unseat current Republican Gov. Brad Little. He has yet to formally announce that he will seek re-election. Ammon Bundy, a far-right activist known for his participation in the 2016 armed occupation of the Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Oregon, filed his intent to run for governor on the Republican ticket last week.

Other candidates for the Republican gubernatorial nomination include Ed Humphreys, Cody Usabel, Lisa Marie and Jeff Cotton. John Dionne is running for governor as an unaffiliated candidate.

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