Idaho’s 1st Congressional District race is shaping up as a multi-candidate contest with sharply different visions for healthcare affordability and agricultural labor, as incumbent Republican Rep. Russ Fulcher heads into the November general election against three challengers: Democrat Kaylee Peterson, independent Sarah Zabel, and Constitution Party candidate Brendan Gomez.

The district spans the Idaho panhandle and the western portion of the state. Gomez did not respond to requests for comment, leaving the three other candidates to lay out their platforms. The general election is scheduled for November 3.

Healthcare: Three Different Approaches

Healthcare costs are a central theme across all three active campaigns, though the candidates diverge significantly on how government should respond.

Zabel, running as an independent, proposes targeting four distinct sectors: hospital services, physician services, prescription drugs, and the insurance marketplace. Her approach centers on structural changes rather than sweeping new programs — breaking up consolidated hospital systems, expanding the roles of nurse practitioners and physician assistants, and requiring hospitals to publish pricing openly.

On insurance affordability, Zabel says she would back enhanced premium tax credits similar to those that expired at the end of 2025. “We’ve seen where the biggest holes were,” Zabel told the Idaho Capital Sun. “Let’s see if we can patch those parts at least where the people are most affected.”

Peterson, the Democratic candidate, takes a broader structural position, backing a single-payer health insurance system while leaving room for private insurance options. She argues the current arrangement forces Idahoans to shoulder both tax costs and high out-of-pocket expenses simultaneously. “For me, the government needs to step in, and we have to reimagine a system in which we’re not also paying the taxes for healthcare and paying thousands of dollars a month,” Peterson told the Idaho Capital Sun.

Fulcher points to the 2010 Affordable Care Act as a driver of the cost increases Idahoans have experienced over the past decade and a half. His preferred solution is a “voluntary parallel path” that would allow a private marketplace to operate alongside existing coverage structures. He has been collaborating with Alabama Republican Rep. Gary Palmer on legislation reflecting that approach.

Agricultural Labor and Immigration Policy

The candidates also split over how to handle agricultural workforce shortages, a practical concern for Idaho’s dairy and farming industries.

Peterson expressed support for the Farm Workforce Modernization Act, a measure that would have established temporary legal status for undocumented agricultural workers, streamlined the existing H-2A visa program, created a pathway to permanent residency for long-term farm workers, and mandated E-Verify use by all employers. The bill passed the House in 2021 but stalled in the Senate. Idaho Republican Rep. Mike Simpson voted in favor; Fulcher voted against it.

Beyond agricultural policy, Peterson supports funding additional immigration judges and simplifying legal immigration pathways more broadly.

Fulcher has drawn a firm line against what he characterizes as amnesty provisions, preferring changes to immigration policy that proceed state by state and industry by industry rather than through sweeping federal reform.

One issue all sides acknowledge: the current H-2A visa program is limited to temporary, seasonal work and cannot be used for year-round operations like dairy farming — a gap that creates ongoing difficulties for Idaho agriculture.

Zabel supports the Securing Agriculture’s Future Act, introduced this year, which would expand the H-2A program to cover year-round agricultural employment. She also supports creating comparable visa structures for the construction and hospitality sectors.

Public Lands and Other Issues

Fulcher has identified public lands management as a top priority heading into the general election — a perennially significant issue in Idaho’s 1st District, where federal land ownership shapes local economies and community decisions.

With healthcare costs, agricultural labor, and land policy all in play, the race reflects tensions within Idaho over how much of the solutions should come from Washington versus market-based or state-level action. The November 3 vote will determine whether Fulcher holds the seat or whether one of his three challengers breaks through in a district that has leaned heavily Republican in recent cycles.