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Clerks, Auditors and Recorders · Module 2

Module 2: Elections and the County Clerk

How Idaho counties run elections, who checks the work, and what a citizen or reporter can verify

Last Updated: October 13, 2026 | Reading Time: 27 minutes | Idaho Code Title 34; Title 18, ch. 23

Who Runs the Election and Who Files

In every Idaho county the clerk runs the election. The statute is two sentences long:

"The county clerk is the chief elections officer of his county and it is his responsibility to obtain and maintain uniformity in the application, operation and interpretation of the election laws. The county clerk shall comply with the lawful directives and instructions given him by the secretary of state."

Idaho Code § 34-305

The clerk in question is the clerk of the district court, who under the Idaho Constitution is also the county's auditor and recorder.1 One elected official keeps the books, the land records and the elections in each of 44 counties.2

The Secretary of State sets the rules

The Secretary of State is the state's chief election officer and answers for keeping the election laws uniform from county to county. Section 34-202 requires the Secretary to send every clerk written directives and sample forms, plus standards for verifying, accepting and rejecting voter signatures. Each clerk "shall comply."3 In October 2026 the office is held by Phil McGrane.

When a clerk does not follow the rules

Anyone who knows of a clerk's failure to follow a lawful directive may notify the county prosecuting attorney, who "shall proceed immediately to investigate." The Secretary can go to district court for a writ of mandamus. Any person adversely affected by a clerk's act or failure to act can appeal to district court. And an official who "wilfully neglects or refuses to perform" an election duty faces up to $1,000, five years in prison, or both, plus removal from office.4

Where the commissioners come in

The board of county commissioners runs no part of the election. It pays for the election and it canvasses the result. The board allows the clerk's necessary election expenses, draws precinct lines by January 15 of a general election year, designates polling places by the fifth Friday before an election, authorizes the ballots and ballot boxes, sets election worker pay at no less than minimum wage, buys voting equipment after consulting the clerk, and sits as the county board of canvassers.5 Telling the clerk how to administer an election is not on the list.

Liberty Perspective: Funding Is Not Control

Section 34-209(2) says the clerk's necessary election expenses "shall be allowed by the board of commissioners and paid out of the county treasury." The word is shall. A board that dislikes how the clerk runs an election cannot lawfully starve the legal version into failure by trimming a poll worker line or a postage line until a precinct cannot be staffed. That is running the election without holding the office.

Honest boards face a real squeeze, because one budget also carries the jail and the roads. The place to settle it is the open budget hearing. And the money must be public: section 34-218 bars election officials from accepting or spending private money in any amount, and private goods worth more than $100, with carve-outs for authorized fees and donated space.6

Candidate filing

Where a candidate files depends on the office. Candidates for county offices, including commissioner, file with the county clerk. Candidates for district, state and federal offices file with the Secretary of State, who certifies the qualified names to the clerks.78 Primaries fall on the third Tuesday in May and generals on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November.

For a partisan county office, the filing window opens at 8:00 a.m. on the twelfth Monday before the primary and closes at 5:00 p.m. on the tenth Friday before it. Candidates must be affiliated with the party at the time of filing, and the clerk must reject a partisan declaration from someone who is not.9 Declarations of candidacy are public on request.

A county commissioner candidate must be 21, a citizen, a resident of the county for one year and of the district for 90 days before the primary. The fee is $40, paid into the county treasury. Five signatures from qualified electors (for a commissioner, from within the district) can stand in for the fee.10 The declaration form carries a sworn statement that the candidate meets the qualifications, and it asks whether the candidate has claimed a homestead exemption and at what address.11

Independents, write-ins and withdrawals

An independent files in the same window, skips the primary, and needs a petition of five signatures for a county office.12 A write-in must file a declaration of intent by the ninth Friday before the primary, or the vote is not counted, and needs at least five write-in votes to advance.13 A candidate may withdraw by notarized statement until 5:00 p.m. on the ninth Friday before the election, without a refund.14

Who checks qualifications

The clerk does, on request. Upon the request of a registered voter, the Secretary of State or a county clerk "shall investigate the legal qualifications of a candidate" and must exclude one who does not qualify. The clerk may set a deadline for such requests, no earlier than 14 days after the filing deadline, and a candidate who is excluded can challenge that in district court.15

Practical Scenario: The Residency Question

Dale Whitcomb files for commissioner in Tamarack County, an invented county, and swears he has lived in the district for 90 days. A neighbor, Renee Oakes, believes he sleeps across the line and asks the clerk in writing to check. The clerk must investigate. Whitcomb's own homestead disclosure on the declaration is the first place to look. If she excludes him, he can go to district court. If she keeps him on, Oakes can still raise residency after the election through the contest statute, on the ground that the incumbent "was not eligible to the office at the time of the election." The process asks the clerk to look, not to be right on the first try.

Registration, ID and the Voter List

A qualified elector is a citizen, 18 or older, who has lived in Idaho and in the county for 30 days before the election and is registered on time.16 Residence is the place a person's "habitation is fixed" and to which he intends to return.

Where and when to register

A voter can register at the clerk's office, online, by mail, at the polling place on election day, or at an early voting station. The clerk's-office deadline is 5:00 p.m. on the eleventh day before the election, but election day registration at the polls and registration at the absent electors' polling place or an early voting station stay open to anyone who brings the required documents.17

To register, an applicant shows one current photo ID: an Idaho driver's license or ID card, a passport or other federal ID, a tribal ID, or a concealed weapons license. The applicant also shows proof of residence that displays name and current Idaho physical address. Section 34-411(4) accepts a photo ID showing the address, insurance papers, a lease, a property tax bill, a utility bill (cellular excluded), a bank statement, a paycheck, assisted-living or school enrollment papers, or a letter from a registered social service agency for a homeless applicant. A post office box alone does not count.18

Keeping the list clean

The clerk reviews new registrations weekly for duplicates in other counties or states and notifies the prior jurisdiction. Under a 2025 law, state agencies send the Secretary of State death, driver's license and corrections data around the 25th of each month. The Secretary must run new registration data against the federal SAVE database no later than 90 days before a statewide election, then sort the results by county. Clerks "shall immediately review" them and start cancellations for people reported deceased or ineligible.19

The clerk also suspends the registration of anyone who appears from the records not to be a citizen, with written notice and reinstatement on proof of citizenship. Registrations are cancelled after four years without voting.20 A registered elector can challenge an entry at the polls, and the clerk follows each challenge up by mail, with a 20-day reply period and a hearing if the challenge is not satisfied.21

Liberty Perspective: The List Is Public, So Read It

Section 34-437 says the clerk, "upon receiving a request," shall supply any individual a current list of registered electors and addresses, grouped by precinct, for the cost of copying. Commercial and fundraising use is barred. Political use is allowed. The physical registration application is confidential, and the database copy is released without the driver's license number and date of birth.22 A citizen who doubts the rolls has a lawful way to check them, and so does a journalist.

The list law has clerks look for "anomalies, such as duplicate registrations, registrations at business addresses, large numbers of registrations at a single address," and requires an annual report to the Legislature. Ask for it. A flagged address is a lead and not a finding, since assisted-living facilities and dormitories legitimately hold many registrants.

Polling Places, Poll Workers and Poll Books

The commissioners designate a polling place for each precinct by the fifth Friday before an election.23 The clerk appoints two or more election judges for each place, one of them chief judge, along with the clerks the place needs. Precinct committeemen recommend people in writing, and each board is to include members of all existing parties if names came in time. Up to two student workers per precinct, 16 or older, may serve under supervision.2425

The chief judge answers for the conduct of the place, and the clerk's office stays open until the polls close, so a chief judge always has someone to call.26

The poll book and the ID rule

The combination election record and poll book is the precinct's alphabetical voter list with residence addresses. When the polls close, the judges count the names of electors who voted, write the number in, certify it and sign. A county may use an electronic poll book if the Secretary of State has certified it.27

Polls open at 8:00 a.m. (7:00 at the clerk's option) and close at 8:00 p.m., and anyone in line votes. Before getting a ballot, every voter gives a name and address, signs the poll book and shows one of four IDs: an Idaho driver's license or ID, a federal photo ID or passport, a tribal photo ID, or a concealed weapons license. A voter without ID can sign an affidavit instead. Since a 2026 amendment (Senate Bill 1322, signed March 31, 2026, effective July 1), the affidavit must give name, address and either a date of birth or an Idaho license or ID number. The judges check it against the registration records before issuing a ballot, and a knowingly false affidavit is a felony.28

Challengers, watchers and the public

Judges break the sealed ballot packages "in the presence of bystanders" and show the ballot boxes empty before locking them.29 Two kinds of authorized observers can be inside the place. In a partisan election each party may name one challenger. Any one person authorized by a candidate, several candidates or a party may serve as a watcher. For a ballot measure the clerk allows one pro and one con. The request must reach the clerk at least 12 days before the election, signed by the county party chair and secretary or by the candidate. Challengers and watchers wear a name tag with their title. A watcher "is entitled to observe any activity conducted at the location," so long as the watcher "does not interfere with the orderly conduct of the election."30

Electioneering is barred inside the polling place and within 250 feet of the main entrance. The first two violations are infractions with a $300 fine each. A third is a misdemeanor.31 Title 34 says nothing about phones or cameras at the polls. That gap belongs to the clerk, so ask for the county's rule in writing.

Liberty Perspective: Watchers Represent Someone

The statute does not create a general right for any citizen to stand in the polling place. It creates a right for a candidate, a party or a ballot-measure side to send one authorized person. A citizen with no sponsor can still attend the logic and accuracy test, the canvass, a recount and an audit, and can request records. Two failures are possible. A clerk can refuse a timely, signed request, which breaks the statute. Or an unauthorized "observer" can demand entry on an online claim, which the statute does not support. The remedy for the first is a call to the Secretary of State's office and, if needed, the prosecutor.

Practical Scenario: The Watcher and the Phone

Marguerite Doyle is chief judge at a precinct in Larch County, an invented county. Tom Hendry, authorized by a candidate, starts photographing poll book pages that list voters' names and addresses. Section 34-304 protects a watcher's view but forbids interference, and Title 34 does not mention photography, so she does not guess. She calls the clerk's office, which is open until the polls close, reads the county's written rule, and applies it evenly to everyone. She notes the call in her log.

Voting Equipment: Testing and Certification

Idaho voters vote on paper. The Secretary of State says so in plain terms: the paper ballot is the official record, not the images or data the equipment stores, and any audit, challenge or recount goes back to the paper.32 The statute is the stronger authority, though, and it says several things worth knowing.

Every voting machine or vote tally system must be certified by the Secretary of State before a county uses it. The Secretary examines each one publicly. A federally accredited testing lab must test it first, and the maker must show it meets Election Assistance Commission guidelines. A direct recording device must produce a voter-verifiable paper audit trail. The Secretary can decertify a system after a public hearing.33

Two further rules apply to every county. No vote tally system may be connected to the internet at any time or send or receive data wirelessly. Electronic poll books are the exception. And no one may tamper with or try to injure a voting machine or tally system, or keep an unauthorized key to one. Since 2026 that tampering is a felony under a new section, 18-2306B.34

The public test

Before election day, each clerk must hold a public logic and accuracy test, with notice at least 10 days ahead on the county's website or posted in the clerk's office. The test has to cover every contest and ballot style, overvotes and undervotes, and write-ins, and begin with a zero report showing no votes counted. It passes only if actual results match expected results exactly. If they differ, the clerk investigates and repeats the test until they match.35

The clerk must also apply at least one anti-fraud measure to the ballots, such as a unique non-sequential identifier on each ballot, watermarked paper, or a hologram. The measures are tested before each election, the county board of canvassers is told which ones are in use, and the clerk keeps documentation of the measures and of the chain of custody of every ballot.36

Liberty Perspective: Go to the Test

The logic and accuracy test is the one point in the cycle where an ordinary resident can watch known ballots go in and see whether known results come out. It costs nothing and takes an afternoon. Ask for the test deck, the expected-results sheet and the zero report, and ask to see the clerk's notice posted ten days ahead. That equipment is never online is the statute's claim and the Secretary's, and a fair one to test by asking the clerk how results leave the tabulator and reach the public website. A clerk who can describe that process step by step has answered the question. One who cannot has given you a records request to file.

Absentee, Early Voting and Ballot Custody

Any registered elector may vote absentee. The application must be signed personally and reach the clerk by 5:00 p.m. on the eleventh day before the election for mail, or by 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before for in-person absentee voting. 37 A returned ballot must reach the issuing officer by 8:00 p.m. on election day to count. The clerk checks the affidavit on the return envelope, including whether the signature matches the one in the voter's registration, stamps the date and hour of receipt, and keeps the envelope unopened until the ballot is counted.38

A rejected envelope stays sealed with the reason written on the back, and the judges certify how many absentee ballots were cast, counted and rejected. The clerk keeps a record of every application and return, and that record "shall be open to public inspection under proper regulations."39

Early voting

A county with the right systems may offer early voting, starting on or after the fourth Monday before the election and ending at 5:00 p.m. on the Friday before. The clerk must submit a ballot security plan to the Secretary of State for approval, no later than the third Friday of January or 30 days before the plan takes effect. At a minimum, early ballot boxes stay locked and sealed with a numbered seal until tabulation. The clerk logs ballots issued by date and seal number, and a deputy sheriff, police officer or bonded security firm guards the location. Counting does not begin before election day, and results do not go public until every voting place in the state has closed.40

Following the ballots

Custody changes hands at set points, and each point leaves a record. The clerk delivers sealed ballot packages to each precinct and the chief judge signs a written receipt. Once the polls close, the judges reconcile ballots in the box, names marked in the poll book, ballot stubs and spoiled ballots. After counting, the ballots are sealed and stored until the recount period passes. The judges seal the poll book, tally books and other supplies and deliver them to the clerk, or to the sheriff if the clerk's office is closed, who must hand them to the clerk no later than the next day.41 Ballot boxes stay in the polling place until every ballot is counted. In a recount or audit, the county sheriff impounds the ballots.

Collecting someone else's ballot is a crime with listed exceptions. Election officials and mail carriers may handle ballots on the job. Relatives to the fifth degree, household members and caregivers may convey ballots, no more than six voted and six unvoted in any election, and never a candidate or campaign or party worker. A violation is a felony if the collector was paid by anyone but the voter, or if ten or more ballots were involved. Otherwise it is a misdemeanor.42

Practical Scenario: The Seal Number That Does Not Match

On the Monday after early voting ends, a deputy clerk in Alder County, another invented county, notices that the numbered seal on early ballot box 3 differs from the number in the clerk's log by one digit. Section 34-1013 requires the seal number and the daily ballot count to be recorded, so the log is the record to compare against. A transposed digit in the log is one explanation. A swapped seal is another. The deputy cannot know which, and should not decide. The steps are to stop, photograph the seal and the log, notify the clerk and the deputy guarding the room, and compare the box's count to the issuance log. If the counts agree, the discrepancy goes in the canvass file as a documented clerical error. If not, the public has a right to hear about it at the canvass.

The Canvass: What the Commissioners Do

After the polls close the judges count, certify and send the results to the clerk. In a county whose races cross Idaho's two time zones, the clerk may not release results until all voting places in the state have closed.43 Then the commissioners sit as the county board of canvassers.

"The county board of commissioners shall be the county board of canvassers and the county clerk shall serve as its secretary for this purpose. The county board of canvassers shall meet within nine (9) days after an election for the purpose of canvassing the election returns of all precincts within the county."

Idaho Code § 34-1205

Nine days from the November 3, 2026 general election is November 12. The Secretary of State's calendar listed May 28 as the county canvass deadline for the May 19, 2026 primary.44

What the statute asks of the board

The board "shall examine and make a statement of the total number of votes cast" for each candidate and question, certify that the statement is true, sign it and deliver it to the clerk. It then has the clerk complete a canvass report in the form the Secretary of State prescribes, which every member signs and which includes overvotes and undervotes by county. The clerk forwards that report to the Secretary for federal, state and district offices. Immediately after the general election canvass, the clerk issues certificates of election to the county candidates with the most votes. A tie is decided by a coin toss within two days of the canvass.45 Statewide, the Secretary of State, state controller and state treasurer form the board of canvassers. It meets within 21 days and certifies from the county reports.46

A ministerial duty

The statute gives the board arithmetic and a signature. It gives the board no stated power to reject returns, order a hand count of its own, or set aside a precinct. The Legislature put the tools for suspected error elsewhere: recounts, election contests in district court, and, where an error in administration may have changed an outcome, a petition for judicial review by the Secretary of State or the clerk. Section 34-2001(6) even lets a court hear a contest for "any error in any board of canvassers in counting votes or in declaring the result of the election, if the error would change the result."

The Idaho Supreme Court has spoken to the nature of the work in two decisions. In Lansdon v. State Board of Canvassers (1910) it said the board's duty of adding up the returns and certifying the result consists of "purely clerical, ministerial and administrative acts" that "involve no judicial discretion." In Tiegs v. Patterson (1957), an irrigation district election, it said that once the votes are tabulated and only the certificate remains, issuing it "would not be an act of discretion, but would be a ministerial duty."47

The limits of that authority matter. Both cases involved a state board or a district, not a board of county commissioners refusing to certify county returns. No Idaho appellate decision located for this page decides that exact question. What the page can responsibly say is that the text of section 34-1205 reads as a duty to canvass and certify, the Supreme Court has used the word ministerial for the neighboring canvass and certificate duties, and a statute on official neglect, section 18-2301, reaches anyone charged with an election duty who "wilfully neglects or refuses to perform it."48 Whether it would reach a particular refusal is for a prosecutor and a judge. Commissioners do have honest questions, and the canvass is the place to ask them in public: why a precinct's ballot count differs from its poll book count, and what the clerk's reconciliation shows. The board's meeting is a public meeting, with notice, an agenda and written minutes.49

Liberty Perspective: Nine Days and a Signature

A commissioner who signs a certificate that the statement of votes is true should have seen the reconciliation behind it. A commissioner who withholds a signature needs a statute, and none has been found. Citizens carry a duty here too. The canvass is one of the few public meetings where the whole election sits on the table at once. Attend, and ask for the statement of votes cast and the reconciliation beforehand.

Recounts, Contests and Audits

Recount

A candidate for county office applies to the attorney general, not the clerk, within 20 days of the commissioners' canvass. Candidates for other offices, such as most districts, apply to the county clerk in the same window. The fee is $100 for each precinct named in the application. The sheriff impounds the ballot boxes, the original judges and clerks do the count within ten days, and "every other person interested may be present." It happens "in plain view."50

The fee comes back, and the county pays for a general recount, if the sample would have changed the outcome had it been projected countywide. For a county office, the candidate must have asked for at least two precincts holding at least 500 votes.51 A separate section pays for the recount outright when the margin is 0.1 percent of the votes cast for the office or five votes, whichever is greater.52 When machines tabulated the ballots, a hand tally of a random sample is compared with the machine count. For most county contests the sample is the greater of 100 ballots or 5 percent. If the tallies differ by less than 1 percent or two votes, whichever is greater, the rest is rerun on the machines. Otherwise the rest is counted by hand.53 A candidate who thinks the law was misapplied has 24 hours after the recount to file a brief in district court.54

Contest

A contest is a lawsuit. A general election contest must be filed within 20 days after the canvass, with a verified complaint and a cost bond. A primary contest is due in five days.55 The grounds include malconduct, fraud or corruption by election judges or canvassers "sufficient to change the result," illegal votes received or legal votes rejected in numbers that would change the result, and a canvass counting error that would change the result. The phrase "sufficient to change the result" carries the weight. In Noble v. Ada County Elections Board (2000), a 51-vote primary contest, the trial court found ten illegal votes but no proof of who they were cast for, and the Idaho Supreme Court affirmed.56 In Hart v. Shepherd (2018) it affirmed summary judgment against a contestant who could not show irregularities that would change the result.57

A third route is narrower. If the Secretary of State or a county clerk sees an administration error after the count that may be enough to change the result, either may petition the district court within 28 days of the election. The court decides only whether the error happened and whether it was big enough. If so, it orders a new election.58

Post-election audits

Idaho has audited ballots by hand since 2022. After the county canvasses, the Secretary of State chooses what to audit: federal races, governor, the narrowest statewide office and ballot question, and one legislative race in the county. Precincts are drawn by lot, without a computer, at an open public meeting. No more than 5 percent of a county's precincts or one precinct, whichever is greater, may be drawn. The audit is a hand count compared with the county's reported results, it is open to news media, and candidates, parties and ballot question committees may appoint observers. The state pays.59

The Secretary's report on the May 19, 2026 primary covered eight counties: Ada, Butte, Canyon, Franklin, Gooding, Lemhi, Owyhee and Power. Ada's audited ballots matched its canvass at 3,136. In Power County the hand count found 1,706 ballots against 1,706 reported, and one vote counted for a candidate was an undervote. A fold crease on an absentee ballot ran through the oval and the scanner read it as a mark. The Secretary recommended testing ballot designs so fold lines miss the ovals.60 An audit exists to find small, fixable things like that, and this one said so in writing.

Records Retention and What Is Public

The clerk keeps election records for set periods counted from the date the record is created or becomes invalid. Five years: poll books with ballot accounting pages, candidate declarations, and lists of absentee voters. Two years: voted ballots, tally books, ballots duplicated before counting, and absentee affidavit envelopes with the signature decision. One year: the notice of election, personal identification affidavits, ballot tracking logs, tabulation logs, the election definition and program, and the count of ballots printed for each polling place. Unused and spoiled ballots may go 60 days after the recount and contest deadlines pass.61

Idaho's public records law starts from a presumption: every person may examine and copy any public record "except as otherwise expressly provided by statute." The agency may require a written request, and no fee applies to the first two hours of labor or the first 100 pages for a resident.62 The physical voter registration application is exempt, though a redacted copy is available, and database information omits the driver's license number and date of birth.63 The clerk must supply a list of registered electors and addresses by precinct on request, with a bar on commercial solicitation.64 The absentee record of applications and returns is open "under proper regulations."39 Candidate declarations are public.9

Election Crimes, the Prosecutor and the Commissioners

Title 18, chapter 23 carries the penalties, and the 2026 Legislature rewrote part of it. House Bill 697 (2026 Session Laws, chapter 63) made illegal voting, interference with an election and tampering with a voting machine each a felony in sections 18-2306, 18-2306A and 18-2306B.65 Senate Bill 1322 (chapter 240) made a knowingly false identification affidavit a felony.66 Ballot tampering or willful delay of ballots is a felony carrying one to five years.67 A catch-all makes any willful violation of the election laws punishable by a fine up to $1,000, up to five years, or both.68

The one that reaches officials is section 18-2301. A person charged with an election duty who "wilfully neglects or refuses to perform it," or who knowingly and fraudulently acts against the election laws, faces up to $1,000, up to five years, or both, and can be removed from office.69 An honest mistake is not wilful.

Roles split like this. The clerk runs the election and may hire staff and buy supplies, with the commissioners paying the necessary expenses.70 The commissioners buy the equipment, canvass the returns and hold the purse. The prosecuting attorney advises the clerk, and when anyone reports that a clerk has ignored a Secretary of State directive, the prosecutor must investigate immediately and direct the clerk how to proceed. If the failure also violates a criminal statute, the prosecutor must prosecute.71 In a recount of other elections, such as district contests, the prosecutor is the final authority on questions that arise.72

Practical Scenario: The Letter to the Prosecutor

A resident of Birch County, an invented county, writes the prosecutor that the clerk skipped the public notice of the logic and accuracy test. Section 34-212 calls for an investigation. If the directive was lawful and ignored, the prosecutor tells the clerk what to do, and the clerk follows. The resident only had to report what happened. The prosecutor may find the notice was posted and the resident missed it, and that finding is the system working too.

Reporting Angles

Records to request

Under Idaho Code 74-102, put the request in writing with a date range and the resident declaration. Ask for: the logic and accuracy test notice, test deck and zero report; the ballot accounting page and poll book for each precinct (34-217); the absentee application and return record (34-1011); the early voting ballot security plan, seal log and sign-in sheets; the canvass statement of votes and the clerk's reconciliation; the voter list by precinct (34-437); and any audit correspondence with the Secretary of State.

Meetings and documents to watch

The canvass meeting and its minutes. The logic and accuracy test. The Secretary of State's drawing of audit precincts. Budget hearings where election staffing and equipment are set.

Numbers to compare

Ballots in the box, names in the poll book and stubs, precinct by precinct. Absentee ballots issued, returned and rejected. Cost per ballot across similar counties.

Questions to ask

Which anti-fraud measures were used, and who tested them? How do results leave the tabulator and reach the website? Who held the key to the early ballot room on each day? What did the audit find in any county nearby?

Liberty Perspective: Ask Before You Assume

Most clerks answer these gladly. Ask the same questions of every county and print what each one says. A clerk who can show the paper has earned that credit in public.

Pictures, Numbers and Infographics

Idaho's 44 county clerks run every state, county and district election on the ground, and the Secretary of State publishes their county-by-county counts. The figures show how many voters the clerks serve, how turnout swings between a presidential general and a primary, and how the new post-election audits pick counties.

Light stone courthouse with tall vertical pilasters, a flagpole and a lawn in front
The Washington County Courthouse in Weiser, photographed by Calvin Beale of the U.S. Department of Agriculture in August 1998. From offices like these the county clerk runs registration, poll books, ballots and the paperwork for the canvass. Credit: Calvin Beale, U.S. Department of Agriculture. Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons.

By the numbers

Idaho turnout, three recent elections Ballots cast as a share of registered voters 57.2% Nov. 2022 general 77.8% Nov. 2024 general 30.1% May 2026 primary
Statewide turnout from the county canvass totals. Sources: 2022 Election Statistics, 2024 county turnout file and 2026 primary canvass report, Idaho Secretary of State.
Registered voters and ballots cast Registered Ballots cast 1,048,263 599,493 Nov. 2022 general 1,178,750 917,469 Nov. 2024 general 1,035,840 312,139 May 2026 primary
Registered voters include election-day registrants. Sources: Idaho Secretary of State, 2022, 2024 and 2026.

Sources & Further Reading

Primary Sources

Agency Guidance

Related Training Modules

Issues and Advocacy Courses

Knowledge Check

Test your understanding of county elections in Idaho. No scores are saved: this is for your own review.

1. Under Idaho Code § 34-305, who is the chief elections officer of a county?

2. Within how many days after an election must the county board of canvassers meet under Idaho Code § 34-1205?

3. Under Idaho Code § 34-2309, a losing candidate may request a recount at public expense when the margin is:

4. How much advance notice does Idaho Code § 34-2426 require for the public logic and accuracy test of voting equipment?

5. How long must a county clerk retain voted ballots under Idaho Code § 34-217?

Reference Materials

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Footnotes

  1. Idaho Code § 34-305 makes the clerk the chief elections officer. Idaho Const. art. XVIII, § 6 says the clerk of the district court "shall be ex-officio auditor and recorder." The 34-305 text was read on legislature.idaho.gov in October 2026.
  2. The Secretary of State's 2026 primary audit report refers to "the 44 county clerks." Idaho Secretary of State, 2026 Primary Election Post-Election Audit Report (June 9, 2026).
  3. Idaho Code §§ 34-201, 34-202, 34-204: the Secretary as chief election officer, the written directives and sample forms sent to every clerk, and the conferences on election administration. Section 34-202 was last amended in 2021 (ch. 262). The Secretary of State is Phil McGrane per voteidaho.gov, October 2026.
  4. Idaho Code § 34-212 (prosecutor investigates a clerk's noncompliance); Idaho Code § 34-213 (Secretary may seek mandamus); Idaho Code § 34-215 (appeal to district court by a person adversely affected); Idaho Code § 18-2301 (willful neglect, up to $1,000, five years, or both, plus removal under Title 19, chapter 41).
  5. Idaho Code § 34-209 (expenses allowed by the commissioners); Idaho Code §§ 34-301, 34-306 (precincts); Idaho Code § 34-302 (polling places); Idaho Code § 34-303 (election workers); Idaho Code § 34-902 (ballots and ballot boxes); Idaho Code § 34-1205 (canvass). Section 34-302 was amended in 2026 (S.L. 2026, ch. 288, S1389) and 34-303 in 2026 (ch. 59, H560).
  6. Idaho Code § 34-218: election administration, private moneys prohibited. Added 2021 (ch. 275), amended 2023 (ch. 20).
  7. Idaho Code § 34-701 (declarations of candidacy filed with the proper officer) and Idaho Code § 34-704 (filing period; county clerk or Secretary of State by office). Section 34-704 was amended in 2025 (ch. 113) and 2026 (ch. 333).
  8. Idaho Code §§ 34-106, 34-601: election dates. Section 34-106 was amended in 2025 (ch. 113).
  9. Idaho Code § 34-704: the filing window for partisan county offices, party affiliation at filing, and public access to declarations in subsection (6). Amended 2025 (ch. 113) and 2026 (ch. 333). If the window matters to a deadline you are tracking, read the current text.
  10. Idaho Code § 34-617: commissioner qualifications (age, citizenship, residency in the county and district). Idaho Code § 34-701: filing fee and the five-signature alternative.
  11. Idaho Code § 34-701: the declaration form and its sworn statement of qualifications. Amended 2022 (chs. 10, 81, 305) and 2023 (ch. 218).
  12. Idaho Code § 34-708: independent candidates and the petition requirement. Amended 2026 (ch. 333).
  13. Idaho Code § 34-702: write-in candidates at a primary. Amended 2026 (ch. 333).
  14. Idaho Code § 34-717: withdrawal of candidacy. Amended 2025 (ch. 113).
  15. Idaho Code § 34-219: investigation of candidate qualifications on request of a registered voter. Added 2022 (ch. 81).
  16. Idaho Code § 34-402: qualifications of electors; Idaho Code § 34-107: residence defined.
  17. Idaho Code §§ 34-408, 34-408A, 34-410: registration deadlines and election day and early voting registration; read the current text before relying on a date. Online registration is described at voteidaho.gov.
  18. Idaho Code § 34-411: application, proof of identity and residence. Amended 2023 (ch. 293).
  19. Idaho Code § 34-433: accuracy of voter registration information, including the SAVE comparison, the 90-day deadline and clerks' immediate review. Added by 2025 Session Laws, chapter 276.
  20. Idaho Code § 34-419: suspension of registration of electors who appear not to be citizens; Idaho Code § 34-435: cancellation of registration after four years without voting.
  21. Idaho Code § 34-431: challenges of entries in the election register.
  22. Idaho Code § 34-437 (list of registered electors on request, no commercial use) and Idaho Code § 74-106 subsection (25) (physical voter registration application exempt, with a redacted copy available, and the driver's license number and date of birth withheld).
  23. Idaho Code § 34-302: polling places, accessibility and public school facilities. Amended 2026 (ch. 288, S1389).
  24. Idaho Code § 34-303: appointment of election judges and clerks, committeeman recommendations, student workers and pay. Amended 2026 (ch. 59, H560).
  25. Idaho Secretary of State, Become an Election Worker lists the requirements as U.S. citizen, at least 16, and "able to read and write English." This requirement was found on that page and was not located in Title 34.
  26. Idaho Code § 34-111: the combination election record and poll book; Idaho Code § 34-209: the clerk's powers. The chief judge and the oath appear in Title 34, chapter 3.
  27. Idaho Code §§ 34-111, 34-111A, 34-1106A: the poll book and electronic poll books (certified by the Secretary of State).
  28. Idaho Code §§ 34-1113, 34-1114: identification at the polls and the affidavit in lieu of identification. Section 34-1114 was amended in 2026 by Senate Bill 1322 (S.L. 2026, ch. 240), which added the date of birth or license number requirement and the felony for knowingly false information.
  29. Idaho Code § 34-1103: opening ballot boxes in the presence of bystanders.
  30. Idaho Code § 34-304: challengers and watchers. Last amended 2009 (ch. 341).
  31. Idaho Code § 18-2318: electioneering at polls; 250 feet; $300 infraction for the first two violations and a misdemeanor for three or more. Amended 2024 (ch. 195).
  32. Idaho Secretary of State, Making Voting Secure: "The paper ballot serves as the official record, not the images or data stored by the voting equipment."
  33. Idaho Code §§ 34-2409, 34-2410: examination and certification of voting machines, specifications, and the no-internet and no-wireless rule. Amended 2024 (ch. 260).
  34. Idaho Code § 34-2404: tampering with voting machines or vote tally systems, and Idaho Code § 18-2306B, added 2026 (ch. 63, H697), making a violation a felony.
  35. Idaho Code § 34-2426: public logic and accuracy tests. Added 2024 (ch. 260).
  36. Idaho Code § 34-901: official ballot identification and the anti-fraud measures. Section 34-901 was amended in 2025 (ch. 88).
  37. Idaho Code §§ 34-1001, 34-1002: absentee applications; voteidaho.gov describes absentee voting as "by request only." Deadlines were read from the current statute text.
  38. Idaho Code §§ 34-1005, 34-1010: return of an absentee ballot, the affidavit envelope, and rejection of defective ballots. Section 34-1005 was amended in 2021 (ch. 262).
  39. Idaho Code § 34-1011: the clerk's record of applications for absent elector's ballots, "open to public inspection under proper regulations." Amended 2022 (ch. 173).
  40. Idaho Code §§ 34-1012, 34-1013: early voting procedures, ballot security plans and seal logs. Section 34-1012 was amended in 2025 (ch. 113).
  41. Idaho Code §§ 34-910, 34-1201, 34-1202, 34-1204: delivery of ballots, sealing after the count, the comparison of ballots, poll book and stubs, and delivery of supplies to the clerk or the sheriff.
  42. Idaho Code § 18-2324: collection and conveyance of another person's ballot, with exceptions and felony or misdemeanor grading.
  43. Idaho Code § 34-1203: counting of ballots, certificates of judges, and the time zone release rule.
  44. Idaho Code § 34-1205 (canvass within nine days) and Idaho Code § 34-1410 (canvass for political subdivisions). Section 34-1205 was amended in 2025 (ch. 113, sec. 18); section 34-1410 and 34-308 were amended in 2026 (ch. 286, House Bill 873). The Secretary of State's calendar lists November 12, 2026 as the county canvass deadline for the November 3 election and May 28 for the May 19 primary: voteidaho.gov calendar.
  45. Idaho Code §§ 34-1206, 34-1207, 34-1209, 34-1210: the board's statement of votes, the canvass report, certificates of election to county candidates, and ties.
  46. Idaho Code § 34-1211: the state board of canvassers.
  47. Lansdon v. State Board of Canvassers, 18 Idaho 596, 111 P. 133 (1910), and Tiegs v. Patterson, 79 Idaho 365, 318 P.2d 588 (1957). Both were read in the Harvard Caselaw Access Project text (static.case.law). The quoted phrases are from those opinions.
  48. Idaho Code § 18-2301: official neglect or malfeasance. No Idaho appellate decision applying it to a county board's refusal to certify was located for this page.
  49. Idaho Code §§ 74-204, 74-205: notice, agenda and minutes of public meetings. See the Open Meeting Law module.
  50. Idaho Code §§ 34-2301, 34-2302, 34-2303, 34-2304, 34-2305: application, $100 per precinct, impoundment, order, procedure.
  51. Idaho Code §§ 34-2306, 34-2307: relief from costs and general recount.
  52. Idaho Code § 34-2309: recount at public expense when the margin is 0.1 percent of the votes cast for the office or five votes, whichever is greater.
  53. Idaho Code § 34-2313: recount procedures for automated tabulation systems. Added 2011 (ch. 285).
  54. Idaho Code § 34-2308: appeal of recount results to district court.
  55. Idaho Code §§ 34-2001, 34-2008, 34-2030: grounds, complaint and bond (20 days after the canvass), and the five-day primary contest affidavit.
  56. Noble v. Ada County Elections Board, 135 Idaho 495, 20 P.3d 679 (2000) (51-vote margin; ten illegal votes found; burden of proof not met). Read in the Harvard Caselaw Access Project text. The case cites older section numbers that have since been renumbered.
  57. Hart v. Shepherd, 425 P.3d 1245 (Idaho Sept. 7, 2018) (No. 46304) (summary judgment for contestee affirmed because irregularities were not shown to be sufficient to change the result). Source: Justia Election Law Opinion Summaries, September 7, 2018. The Idaho Reports cite was not confirmed.
  58. Idaho Code § 34-220: judicial review of election results by petition of the Secretary of State or a county clerk within 28 days of the election. Added 2022 (ch. 73), redesignated 2023 (ch. 218).
  59. Idaho Code § 34-1203A: postelection audit. Added 2022 (ch. 32), amended 2023.
  60. Idaho Secretary of State, 2026 Primary Election Post-Election Audit Report (June 9, 2026). Eight counties were audited; the Power County finding is on the Power County page of the report.
  61. Idaho Code § 34-217: retention of county election records. Amended 2021 (ch. 262).
  62. Idaho Code § 74-102: the right to examine public records, written requests, and fees for residents. Amended 2025 (ch. 298).
  63. Idaho Code § 74-106: exemptions from disclosure, including subsection (25).
  64. Idaho Code § 34-437: furnishing lists of registered electors.
  65. Idaho Code §§ 18-2306, 18-2306A, 18-2306B: added by 2026 Session Laws, chapter 63 (House Bill 697).
  66. Idaho Code § 34-1114: amended by 2026 Session Laws, chapter 240 (Senate Bill 1322).
  67. Idaho Code § 18-2316: tampering with certificates of nomination or ballots; felony, one to five years. Amended 2024 (ch. 317).
  68. Idaho Code § 18-2315: election offenses not otherwise provided for. Amended 2017 (ch. 293).
  69. Idaho Code § 18-2301: official neglect or malfeasance.
  70. Idaho Code § 34-209: powers of county clerks; expenses allowed by the commissioners and paid from the county treasury.
  71. Idaho Code § 34-212: reports to the prosecuting attorney of noncompliance with election laws by a county clerk.
  72. Idaho Code § 34-2305: the attorney general is the final authority in recounts for federal, state, county and municipal elections, and the county prosecuting attorney for other elections.