BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter squeaked by his challenger to win the GOP gubernatorial nomination Tuesday, but he didn’t stick around to see it. The two-term governor left the Idaho Republican celebration party at a Boise hotel before the race was called Tuesday night, declining to make a public statement.
Otter will face Democrat A.J. Balukoff in November as he bids for a third term in office.
The GOP gubernatorial race was tight, with tea party favorite Sen. Russ Fulcher lagging by only about 13,000 votes with 92 percent of precincts reporting early Wednesday morning.
In the U.S. congressional primary, all Idaho incumbents hung on to their seats with U.S. Sen. Jim Risch and Rep. Raul Labrador easily defeating challengers. Rep. Mike Simpson also prevailed in the 2nd Congressional District, fending off conservative challenger Bryan Smith, who drew early support from anti-tax advocates.
Most statewide races highlighted the deep divide in the Idaho Republican Party.
Challengers supported by tea party factions made runs at several statewide seats, but most of the incumbents in the statewide races managed to hold the lead.
Lt. Gov. Brad Little handily defeated tea party challenger Jim Chmelik, winning about 70 percent of the vote in early returns.
Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden also defeated his challenger, Boise attorney Chris Troupis, but by a narrower margin - about 60 percent of the votes.
State Controller Brandon Woolf’s race against challenger Todd Hatfield was too close to call, with Woolf leading with about 52 percent of the roughly 124,000 votes counted by early Wednesday morning.
Two races had a crowded field in the GOP primary. Former Speaker of the House Lawerence Denney won the Republican nomination in the secretary of state race. He beat second-place finisher Phil McGrane and two other candidates in the GOP primary.
The race for the GOP superintendent of public schools nomination was still too close to call early Wednesday morning, with Sherri Ybarra holding a slight lead against three opponents: Randy Jensen, John Eynon and Andy Grover.
Idaho’s Republican Party has grown increasingly fractured in recent years. Far-right ideologists successfully sued to close the Republican primary so that only registered party members could participate two years ago, and Tuesday’s election was the first gubernatorial race under the new system.
The GOP primary is often considered the most competitive leg of the election because Republican candidates rarely face a strong Democratic challenger in November.
Deborah Silver won the Democratic nomination for state treasurer. She will face incumbent Republican Ron Crane in the general election.
Justice Joel Horton defeated Boise attorney William “Breck” Seiniger to retain his seat on the high court bench.
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