St. Anthony man will fill Fremont County Commissioner vacancy
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ST. ANTHONY — Mark Chandler will fill the Fremont County Commission seat formerly occupied by L. Scott Kamachi.
Idaho Gov. Brad Little appointed the 67-year-old St. Anthony man for the position on Monday. He was one of three candidates the Fremont County GOP interviewed and recommended to the governor.
As Chandler takes over the role, he speaks highly of his predecessor, who passed away on March 12 after an 18-month battle with esophageal cancer.
“About a year and a half ago, people in the community asked a few of us if we’d be willing to throw our hat in the ring if Scott went down. I didn’t think he would, but I told them, ‘Yeah sure. Scott’s a good man. He needs all the support we can give him,” Chandler tells EastIdahoNews.com.
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Although Chandler loves his county and is glad to serve, he says he can never replace Kamachi.
Chandler comes from a politically active family, but other than a small role with Urban Renewal in Ashton years ago, this is his first time in public office.
He faces this new responsibility with reluctance.
“My brother died of cancer two years ago. He retired and was getting ready to run for county commissioner. He would’ve been the best fit for this position,” Chandler says.
Kamachi was in the third year of his second term at the time of his passing. Chandler will fill the remainder of Kamachi’s term, which is up for re-election in November 2026.
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Chandler’s only goal in the next 18 months is to “maintain what we love here in Fremont County.”
“I’ve got quite a learning curve to go through,” he says. “I want to have a sound, wise, multiple use of our resources. We’ve got a lot of challenges with the St. Anthony Sand Dunes being such a draw for tourism.”
Chandler also notes the “massive wave of suburbia” in recent years. He wants to rein that in a bit to avoid “gridlock” in the future.
He’s particularly knowledgeable about water issues because he’s spent 29 years in the hydroelectric industry.
He stepped down in 2023 from a seven-year career at Fall River Electric. Before that, he worked at IDA-West Energy for 21 years.
His wife, Tammy, is a retired educator. She taught early childhood special education in Fremont County for 29 years.
Chandler isn’t sure yet whether he’ll seek re-election in 2026. He wants to give it a “test drive” and see how it goes.
He hopes he can live up to his predecessor’s efforts in this role.
“I cannot replace Scott. He was a diehard politician. He loved it and was extremely intelligent. I just hope I can do a fair job,” says Chandler.
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