House Republican to run for Senate in reconfigured district

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A first-term Republican representative is the only elected official from the Legislature in a reconfigured district in southwestern Idaho, and has announced he’ll run for a now open Senate seat.

Rep. Ben Adams of Nampa made the announcement on social media on Sunday.

Adams is currently in District 13. But the legislative map approved last week by the six-person, bipartisan Idaho Commission for Reapportionment puts him in District 12 for the next election.

Adams is among the more conservative lawmakers in the House, and if elected to the Senate would likely tilt the chamber to the right.

The current District 12 Senate seat is held by Republican Sen. Todd Lakey, who is in his fifth term.

Lakey, who has been active in getting legislation through the Senate on everything from gun rights to a law shielding Idaho businesses, schools and government entities from lawsuits if someone catches COVID-19, didn’t immediately return a call from The Associated Press on Monday.