Incumbent District 32 Rep. Wendy Horman being challenged by Democrat Cecile Perez

IDAHO FALLS – Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls, is facing a Democratic opponent in her re-election bid for District 32, seat B. Her challenger is Cecile Perez.

The seat is a two-year term. District 32 encompasses the rural part of western Bonneville County.

Horman was first elected in 2012. Details about her campaign are available here.

Click here to learn more about Perez’s campaign.

EastIdahoNews.com sent the same eight questions to each candidate. Their responses, listed below, were required to be 250 words or less. EastIdahoNews.com is publishing the answers in their entirety, and without any grammatical or style editing.

The general election is Nov. 5.

CANDIDATE QUESTIONS AND RESPONSES

Tell us about yourself — include information about your family, career, education, volunteer work, and any prior experience in public office.

Horman: I am a mother of 5, grandmother of 8. I’m married to Briggs and together we own Peak Performance Therapy Services in Ammon.

I currently serve as Chair of the House Appropriations Committee, Co-Chair of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, a member of the Federalism Committee, House Energy, Environment and Technology Committee, and as a member of the executive Legislative Council.

I served on the Bonneville School Board from 2002-2013 and was President of the Idaho School Boards Association in 2007. I am Chairman of the Idaho School Safety and Security Advisory Board. I started the Fine Arts Mini Experience (FAME) program in the Bonneville School District as a parent volunteer.

I was formerly Vice Chair of Education Commission of the States. I have also served as a Commissioner for Idaho on the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education. I serve on the board of the McClure Center for Public Policy Research.

I was named an Idaho Business Review Woman of the Year for 2017.

Boys and Girls Club of Idaho named me their 2023 Champion for Children.

I received the Elevate Award from Mountain States Policy Center in 2024 for my commitment to free markets and education reform.

I am the founder and chair of the Idaho Energy and Technology Caucus and am a Commissioner on Governor Brad Little’s LINE Commission (Leadership in Nuclear Energy).

I have a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science from Brigham Young University-Idaho.

Perez: I am a mental health professional and advocate, human parent, cat parent, and active member of my community as an activist and organizer. I love the outdoors, and I enjoy camping, hiking, and swimming in this great state of abundant natural beauty. I stay involved in my community in District 32 because I care about the people. I want everyone to thrive and have a chance at upward mobility. I have lived in rural, suburban, and urban areas throughout my life. I have drawn from those experiences to better serve people. I am a third-generation Chicane and queer person.

Why are you seeking political office? Briefly explain your political platform.

Perez: I am running for office because I am driven to serve my community. I care about people and the planet. I believe being a leader is about serving, not to be self-important or to gain recognition. No personal gain should be made at the expense of equity, justice, and democracy. The way forward is for all of us.

Horman: I first ran for office because I want every child to have the opportunity for an excellent
education.

I have been a budget writer for public education for 10 years and sponsored legislation for historic increases in public school funding during that time, including increases in teacher salaries, school employees’ health insurance and school facilities. I co-sponsored H521 this session which will reduce reliance on local property taxes for school buildings and reduced Idaho’s income tax rate. I have also sponsored major legislation supporting charter schools and bills that support parents choosing the learning environment that works best for their child.

I have been a champion for school safety, authoring the Idaho School Safety and Security Act in 2015 and serving as Chairman of the Idaho School Safety and Security Advisory Board.

I have 100% pro-life voting record over 12 years and am endorsed by Idaho Chooses Life.

I have an A rating with the NRA (National Rifle Association). I own a gun and am an NRA member. I will continue to defend the Second Amendment.

I am a Farm Bureau “Friend of Agriculture” for the 2023-24 legislative sessions. I received the Ag All Star Award from the Idaho Food Producers. I have been deeply involved with farmers and businesses this summer to protect our water!

I believe in limited government and have sponsored legislation that created greater fiscal transparency, including a new budget process that improves transparency and will hold state agencies accountable for using your taxpayer dollars effectively.

What are the greatest challenges facing people and communities in your district? What is your plan to meet those challenges?

Horman: Too many Idaho families are struggling to put food on the table and gas in the car. Inflation
continues to hit home for Idahoans. I will continue to work to reign in government spending, eliminate wasteful spending and reduce tax rates, while still supporting funding for education, public safety and improved roads.

I will continue to improve the new accountable and transparent budget process. Idahoans deserve a government that lives within its means and is accountable to taxpayers. Citizens are also deeply concerned about the outrageous spending at the federal level and the growing federal deficit.

Perez: We need to address hunger and poverty in this district. 36% of households in my district are under the ALICE threshold. ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. It indicates, “families who are unable to afford the basics of housing, child care, food, transportation, health care, and technology.” (United for
ALICE, 2024) We need to accommodate for growth and prepare for future problems caused by climate change. I will focus on affordable housing, supporting small business, investing in agriculture, and investing in clean energy. I also think we need a more empowered workforce through fair wages, access to higher education, and defending the right to unionize.

Have you seen any mistakes made by the Idaho Legislature in recent years? How would you work to correct these errors?

Perez: It has not properly funded education. I would not support school voucher programs because they are a dangerous step towards privatizing education, access to quality public education empowers children, and public education is a great equalizing force in society. Private schools also do not provide adequate support for disabled kids.

The attacks on LGBT+ people are unjust. Why attack a small and marginalized group when we could focus on solving other problems? I support adding the words to give LGBT+ people access to equal rights. Gender affirming care saves youth lives. I would support that.

I support reproductive justice and would reverse the abortion bans. Whether you agree with abortion or not, our extremely restrictive laws have resulted in 1 in 5 OBGYNs leaving Idaho and 1 in 2 high-risk obstetricians leaving Idaho. Maternity wards are also closing. These laws put everyone who gets pregnant and their babies at risk, and it has a disastrous effect on the mental health of those affected.

The library bill restricting minors’ access to “adult” content in libraries is bad for libraries and librarians. An unwritten purpose of this bill was to deem any LGBT+ materials (this could be as simple as having a character in a book who is LGBT+) “pornographic” in nature so that minors could not read those books. The medical consent for minors bill is a bane for parents, medical practitioners, school staff, and children whose care will potentially be delayed. I would do away with these bills.

Horman: Yes. For example, we failed to put some language in an appropriation bill once that would
trigger the release of funds. We fixed it the next session. But the answer to that question is different for every citizen and every legislator. The same bill will cause some people that feel it is a huge mistake and others who think it our greatest accomplishment. This is the beauty of our representative form of government. The people can speak out and we, as their representatives, can respond to concerns in future sessions. There is always the opportunity to refine and improve the laws we pass.

What parts of the state budget could use more funding? Are there places in the budget where cuts could be made?

Horman: A Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, this is exactly the work I do each year – evaluate
this question! The answer is that it’s different every year. We have consistently made huge investments in public schools, especially to teacher salaries during my 10 years on the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee (JFAC). The average teacher salary in Idaho is now over $61,000.

Because of Medicaid Expansion, the Health and Welfare budget is now the largest overall budget in Idaho and growing at an unsustainable pace. Beyond that, some years transportation needs more funding to repair our roads. Other years, law enforcement and first responders have needs that receive priority funding. The state constantly invests in water storage projects, as well as water infrastructure for cities and counties. During years of surplus, we eliminated all state debt that could be paid off. We have also made huge investment in broadband infrastructure.

This is exactly the job of JFAC and the Legislature – to pass budgets that respond to where increases or decreases are warranted.

Perez: Education is the top contender for more funding. Medicare is a big concern. We have a burgeoning aging population with fewer and fewer young people being born, and we will need to adequately care for them. We should cut property taxes. We need to cut tax breaks for the very wealthy, not give them tax breaks.

What is your position on Idaho’s Proposition 1 ballot initiative that would end closed-party primary elections and create ranked-choice voting?

Perez: I support it. The myth that Prop 1 creates multiple votes per person is just that, a myth. It creates an automatic runoff election. Upper courts have withheld that it counts for one person, one vote. It increases voter turnout and youth voter turnout. It prioritizes people over parties. It’s a major move for voter empowerment.

Horman: I oppose Proposition 1. I believe strongly in One Person, One Vote.

Here are three reasons:

1. The inaccuracy of the fiscal statement. Reclaim Idaho claims that the cost to implement Ranked Choice Voting would be $300,000-600,000. The Idaho Secretary of State issued a letter on July 3, 2024, saying it could cost $25-40 MILLION. I know who I believe. It is the job of the Secretary of State to oversee fair and secure elections in Idaho and I trust him over an activist organization that failed to disclose to voters how much Medicaid Expansion would really cost. That money doesn’t grow on trees. It will come from your pocketbook. If our elections in Idaho were broken, that would be a worthwhile investment. But they aren’t. After Medicaid Expansion passed, I ran legislation to ensure that no ballot initiative would ever pass again in Idaho without a fiscal statement. Yet this one is wrong according to the Secretary of State. It may have been part of a strategy to get enough signatures to put it on the ballot, by saying the cost would be small.

2. The evidence I have studied indicates it won’t eliminate the problem of political polarization can reward extremism. See this study from American Enterprise Institute and this opinionpiece from The Hill.

3. The inaccuracy of the ballot title which claims it is only about Open Primaries when it is also about Ranked Choice Voting.

What is your position on Gov. Brad Little using Idaho State Police resources to bolster security at the United States southern border? How does illegal immigration impact the constituents in your district?

Horman: Under the Biden-Harris open border policies, every state is now a border state. Idahoans are
deeply worried about it. Gov. Little was right to request extra funding for the problems an open border has created. It is contributing to our housing shortage and affordability problems, an increase in human trafficking, and increases in deaths due to fentanyl overdoses. I voted for extra funding for the Idaho State Police to go to the border, receive training, and assist other states in stopping the flow of illegal immigrants and drugs. Law Enforcement needs extra resources to combat this problem which will continue to grow until we close the border to illegal immigrants and strengthen our legal immigration policies. This year I also voted for a bill with strong punishments for trafficking fentanyl, which is coming across our open borders at unprecedented levels.

Perez: I think it is a waste of time, money, and resources. As a Chicane person, this is a personal subject. There are a lot of myths afoot about immigrants from the southern border. Undocumented immigrants cannot access social welfare programs – only people who are lawfully entering the country can access those. Not only that, immigrants use significantly less social welfare programs than native-born people in the US do. And, undocumented immigrants pay taxes when they work, but, again, they do NOT access any social welfare programs.

80.2% of the fentanyl seized at ports of entry to the US comes in with US citizens. According to a report by the CATO institute, immigrants (including illegal immigrants where applicable), are less likely to be incarcerated in prisons,
convicted of crimes, or arrested than native-born Americans.

While it’s unfortunate that undocumented immigration happens the way it does, undocumented immigrants are NOT bringing in drugs, crime, or becoming a drain on society.

A battle over the Eastern Snake Plain Aquifer recharge led to a temporary water curtailment for thousands of acres of farmland in 2024. How should the legislature respond to this issue?

Perez: Make no mistake, the curtailment issue for farmers has been a serious issue. But, there’s only so much I think the legislature should do to help. It is our responsibility to allow experts who have been invested in understanding and solving water management issues for decades in Idaho to speak. I think we should serve as a mediator and find a balance between that and decision-making. Idaho’s farmers deserve better and the water issue in Idaho has complicated moving parts. Both things can be true at the same time; let’s find a solution that really works.

Horman: Decisively. We shouldn’t need a law to prevent the government from shutting off water to our farms while crops are already in the ground, especially when there are other viable solutions for delivering water to senior water right holders. But this summer proved we do need a law preventing such outrageous government overreach. I am working on that legislation now with farmers and businesses to ensure that what happened this summer never happens again. When a single bureaucrat can shut down the economy by shutting off the water in a good water year, devaluing hundreds of thousands of acres of agricultural land, destroying generational family farms, and thereby shuttering banks and businesses and decimating city and county budgets, that is too much power. It is time for the legislature to step in and ensure a measured, thoughtful process for when delivery calls are made on ground water, something the temporary settlement agreements of the past have failed to do. It was Eastern Idaho that was red-tagged this summer, but it will be someone else somewhere else next time. It is the government that needs curtailed in this case, not the water. We must pass legislation that protects water users statewide and prevents such extreme government overreach in the future.