BOISE – Now that Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden has handily defeated GOP primary challenger C.T. “Chris” Troupis, the Democratic candidate for attorney general, Boise attorney Bruce Bistline, says he no longer plans to campaign for the post. “I filed on the last day,” Bistline told Eye on Boise. “I detest the fact that that kind of a decision, between Troupis and Wasden, could be made during the Republican primary with no alternative for the voters who are not part of the closed Republican primary. And while I would probably never have bothered to run against Wasden, because my differences with him are fairly nominal, my differences with Troupis are legion. I saw no alternative but to file to provide a choice in the general election, in the event that Troupis won the primary.”

Even as a push from the right to take over the Idaho Republican Party was falling short at the state level, it was succeeding beyond expectations in North Idaho, where two longtime state lawmakers were dumped in Tuesday’s GOP primary. A third incumbent was turned out after just one term, and four arch-conservative incumbents whose challengers were endorsed by GOP Gov. Butch Otter cruised to victory in a low-turnout election that saw one in four registered state voters cast a ballot.

In a primary election that highlighted a big rift in Idaho’s Republican Party, voters on Tuesday appeared to be backing two-term Gov. Butch Otter over a stiff challenge from tea party Republicans disillusioned with his leadership.

Beware the last-minute campaign message. On the eve of the Idaho primary that will determine many of the state’s top officeholders, the divisions in the Republican Party have led to recriminations of dirty tricks and deception.

GOP candidate for governor Russ Fulcher is decrying last week’s gubernatorial debate, saying incumbent Gov. Butch Otter’s insistence on including two marginal candidates created a “circus atmosphere.” The antics of Harley Brown and Walt Bayes drew national attention, and the debate footage went viral on social media.

BOISE – Both Idaho Gov. Butch Otter and his Republican challenger, state Sen. Russ Fulcher, have launched new TV commercials in the final days leading up to Tuesday’s primary election, but Fulcher’s contains two false claims and an exaggeration. Fulcher’s ad, titled “It’s Time,” recites a litany of criticisms of Otter’s record in two terms as governor, as various claims flash on the screen, including “105,000 Idahoans lost insurance” and “Government dependence up 82 percent.” Neither of those claims is true.

BOISE – Republican legislators rejecting their party’s incumbent governor for Tuesday’s primary election now face a powerful obstacle in their re-election bids. Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has endorsed candidates in 22 legislative primary races – including five challengers to current GOP incumbents, four of them from North Idaho.