Idaho Legislature: Ask Legislators to VOTE NO on H0359 - Party affiliation, disclosure (posted 03/07/25)

• Bill: legislature.idaho.gov/s…

• Contact Legislators: emailidaho.com

(Check the linked page or use My Bill Tracker for the bill’s current status.)

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H0359 would require election communications from political candidates or those supporting them to prominently display the candidate's political affiliation. H0359 claims to reduce voter confusion, increase transparency, and help voters make more informed decisions by clearly identifying a candidate's political party. It will do none of that.

Government should not restrict or micromanage free speech, especially when it involves politics or political campaigns. This bill is government overreach, imposes unnecessary limits on free speech, and it won’t work anyway. The best approach is for voters to meet and evaluate candidates, regardless of party affiliation. Principles before party would bring the best candidates into office and get the best results.

We’ve seen many cases of so-called “Republicans” behaving and voting more like Democrats once elected; having their campaign communications marked a “Republican” wouldn’t change anything.

Why we oppose this bill:

• Voters can find out a candidate’s political affiliation at Vote Idaho . gov (tinyurl.com/4fbfp79u)

• Party affiliation is meaningless in a state in which one party predominates.

• Candidates simply affiliate with whatever political party they believe will help them win.

• Voters who rely on campaign literature to choose a candidate are making foolish choices. Most politicians shade the truth (aka, lie or exaggerate), especially in their advertising. That won’t change by requiring party affiliation displayed in candidate communications.

• Forcing all election communication to specify party affiliation puts onerous restrictions on both the candidates sending and the voters receiving the information. For example, a Republican voter who might otherwise find value in a campaign pamphlet marked as “Democrat” might be turned off and not even consider that candidate. (And the inverse, of course, is true.)

• For true transparency, ALL elections should be partisan elections (including mayors and judges).

Bill Details:

• Candidates in partisan elections must disclose their political party affiliation – Republican, Democrat, Constitution, Libertarian, or Independent if they have no party affiliation -- in all election communications.

• Applies to various forms of communication including advertisements, mailings, and online content.

• Exceptions include: Editorial endorsements, small internet links, clothing, unpaid social media posts, and communications where prominently displaying party affiliation is impractical due to size or format limitations.