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United States Senate election in Idaho, 2026 (May 19 Democratic primary)

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2022
U.S. Senate, Idaho
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: February 27, 2026
Primary: May 19, 2026
General: November 3, 2026
How to vote
Poll times:

8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Idaho

Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Solid Republican
DDHQ and The Hill: Pending
Inside Elections: Solid Republican
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Safe Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2026
See also
U.S. Senate, Idaho
U.S. Senate1st2nd
Idaho elections, 2026
U.S. Congress elections, 2026
U.S. Senate elections, 2026
U.S. House elections, 2026

A Democratic Party primary takes place on May 19, 2026, in Idaho to determine which Democratic candidate will run in the state's general election on November 3, 2026.

Candidate filing deadline Primary election General election
February 27, 2026
May 19, 2026
November 3, 2026


Heading into the election, the incumbent is Jim Risch (Republican), who was first elected in 2008.

A primary election is an election in which registered voters select a candidate that they believe should be a political party's candidate for elected office to run in the general election. They are also used to choose convention delegates and party leaders. Primaries are state-level and local-level elections that take place prior to a general election. In Idaho, parties decide who may vote in their primaries.[1] As of October 2025, the Democratic Party allows unaffiliated voters to vote in its primary, while the Republican Party only allows voters registered with its party to vote in its primary. Unaffiliated voters can choose to affiliate with a party on Election Day.[2][3]

For information about which offices are nominated via primary election, see this article.

Thirty-three of the 100 U.S. Senate seats are up for election, and another two seats are up for special election. Democrats hold 13 of the seats up for election, and Republicans hold 22. As of January 2026, nine members of the U.S. Senate announced they are not running for re-election. To read more about the U.S. Senate elections taking place this year, click here.

This page focuses on Idaho's United States Senate Democratic primary. For more in-depth information on the state's Republican primary and the general election, see the following pages:

Candidates and election results

Note: The following list includes official candidates only. Ballotpedia defines official candidates as people who:

  • Register with a federal or state campaign finance agency before the candidate filing deadline
  • Appear on candidate lists released by government election agencies

Democratic primary

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Idaho

David Roth (D) is running in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Idaho on May 19, 2026.

Candidate
Image of David Roth
David Roth

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Candidate profiles

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Voting information

See also: Voting in Idaho

Election information in Idaho: May 19, 2026, election.

What is the voter registration deadline?

  • In-person: May 19, 2026
  • By mail: Received by May 8, 2026
  • Online: May 8, 2026

Is absentee/mail-in voting available to all voters?

Yes

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot request deadline?

  • In-person: May 8, 2026
  • By mail: Received by May 8, 2026
  • Online: May 8, 2026

What is the absentee/mail-in ballot return deadline?

  • In-person: May 19, 2026
  • By mail: Received by May 19, 2026

Is early voting available to all voters?

Yes

What are the early voting start and end dates?

April 27, 2026 to May 15, 2026

Are all voters required to present ID at the polls? If so, is a photo or non-photo ID required?

N/A

When are polls open on Election Day?

8:00 a.m. - 8:00 p.m. (MT/PT)

Campaign finance

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
David Roth Democratic Party $5,127 $5,831 $-109 As of December 31, 2025

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2026. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.

Ballot access

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Idaho in the 2026 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Idaho, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2026
State Office Party Signatures required Filing fee Filing deadline Source
Idaho U.S. Senate Ballot-qualified party 1,000 $500.00 2/27/2026 Source
Idaho U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 1,000 $500.00 8/28/2026 Source

See also

External links

Footnotes


Senators
Representatives
District 1
District 2
Republican Party (4)