Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden, a Republican, has won re-election multiple times in a state where the GOP dominates politically and, in his telling, has “a 20-year track record of calling balls and strikes fairly and squarely.”
That may not be enough for him to survive a GOP primary challenge and keep his seat. Wasden was one of seven Republican attorneys general to opt against joining an ill-fated challenge of the 2020 presidential election results in other states. And last fall, he declined to join other GOP attorneys general in a letter to President Joe Biden complaining about vaccine mandates, although he ended up joining lawsuits against several of them.
His more moderate positions have put him at odds with a growing share of Republicans who chafe at COVID-19 restrictions and repeat the false claim that widespread fraud cost former President Donald Trump re-election. Wasden is facing two challengers who are to his right in the Republican primary as he seeks a sixth term as the state’s top government lawyer.
One of the challengers, Arthur McComber, said a key function of the attorney general’s role is to act as a watchdog against federal power — something he said Wasden hasn’t done enough.
“It’s basically a misunderstanding of the attorney general position,” said McComber, a real estate lawyer.
The challenge to Wasden from within his own party is emblematic of the broader far-right shift within the GOP. Similar dynamics are permeating races for attorney...
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