Brad Little

Governor Dirk Kempthorne appointed Little to fill a state senate vacancy in May 2001. He represented what was at the time District 8, which covered a part of Gem County surrounding and north of Emmett, all of Boise, Valley, and Adams Counties, and the southern portion of Idaho County.[15][16]

After a change in district boundaries due to redistricting in 2001–02, Little was elected in the fall of 2002 to District 11, which then encompassed all of Gem County and the northern portion of Canyon County, including the communities of Middleton and Parma.[17][18] He was reelected senator from the 11th legislative district four times.[19][20][21] Little was also elected in 2003 by his Republican peers to the party leadership position of Majority Caucus Chair, which he held until 2009.[22]

• Agricultural Affairs 2002
• Resources and Environment 2002
• State Affairs 2003–2009
• Resources & Environment 2003–2009
• Transportation 2003–2009
• Economic Outlook
• Revenue Assessment

State Senator from District 11: 2002 results[23][24]

State Senator from District 11: 2004 results[25][26]

State Senate from District 11: 2006 results[27][28]

State Senate from District 11: 2008 results[29][30]

In January 2009, Governor Butch Otter appointed Little to the office of lieutenant governor to fill the vacancy left by former Lieutenant Governor Jim Risch's election to the U.S. Senate in 2008. Little was sworn in by Otter on January 6, 2009, and confirmed by unanimous consent when the Idaho Senate convened on January 12.[31][32]

Little was elected lieutenant governor in 2010, defeating two opponents in the primary election and two opponents from the Democratic and Constitution parties in the general election.[33][34] He was reelected in 2014.

Little focused on economic development as lieutenant governor, helping persuade energy bar producer Clif Bar to build a new food manufacturing plant in Idaho in 2013.[37][38]

Little also took part in and led several trade missions. He led a Friendship Mission to Basque Country in Spain in 2010, during which he met President of the Basque Government Patxi López. During this meeting, Little and López agreed to establish a Basque Economic Development Office in Boise that "would provide resources and services for Idaho and Basque companies to ease collaboration on research, sales and collaborative programs."[39] Little later signed the Euskadi-Idaho Friendship Agreement, which affirms the friendship and cultural affinity between the Basque Country and Idaho, which has the largest Basque community outside Spain.[40]

Little was also a member of a 2011 Idaho trade delegation that traveled to Mexico and Brazil.[41] After the trade mission, he said, "we found tremendous interest and opportunities in both countries for Idaho products and services … This trip strengthened key trade relationships and established new customers for Idaho businesses." The Idaho Department of Commerce estimated that the mission resulted in sales of more than $30 million.[42]

In the 2014 legislative session, Little sponsored Senate Bill 1354, an anti-"patent troll" bill. The bill protects companies from abusive or "bad faith assertions of patent infringement" to collect an extortionate licensing fee.[43][44][45]

In June 2016, Little announced his candidacy for the Idaho gubernatorial election in 2018.[46][47] He said that Idaho National Laboratory would be a priority if he became governor.[48]

Little was endorsed by incumbent Governor Otter,[49] former governors Dirk Kempthorne and Phil Batt, and U.S. Senator Jim Risch.[50]

Little speaks during a meeting at the White House with President Trump and Vice President Pence and fellow governors-elect.

During his campaign, Little called for a phased-in $350 million reduction in the state income tax and the elimination of the Idaho grocery tax.[51]

Little won the Idaho Republican Party primary, beating both U.S. Representative Raúl Labrador and businessman Tommy Ahlquist with 37.3% of the vote.[52] In the general election in November, he defeated state Representative Paulette Jordan, the Idaho Democratic Party nominee,[53] by over 130,000 votes.

In March 2022, Little filed papers to run for a second term in office, having announced his intention to run the previous month.[54][55] He won the Republican nomination in May, defeating Lieutenant Governor Janice McGeachin.[56]

The Democratic nominee in the race was Stephen Heidt. At the same time, an anti-government activist, Ammon Bundy, ran in the race as an independent.[57] Little easily won the November 8 election, certifying the win in every county except Blaine County, which Heidt won.[58][59]

In March 2020, Little gained attention for signing two bills into law that addressed transgender people.[60] The first bans transgender women and girls from competing in women's sports, citing possible unfair physical advantages. The second bill, HB 509, bans transgender people from changing the sex on their birth certificates.[61][62][63]

In 2021, Little signed legislation that raised signature requirements for ballot initiatives.[64] That year, he also signed legislation that would permit harvesting up to 90% of the state's estimated 1,500 wolves to the minimum level of 150 as set by Idaho’s wolf conservation and management plan; the legislation was backed by the ranching sector of Idaho as well as many in the hunting and fishing community, but strongly opposed by environmental advocates.[65]

In late April 2021, Little signed House Bill 366, effectively prohibiting abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy, making exceptions for victims of rape, incest, and for medical emergencies. He also said, "We should never relent in our efforts to protect the lives of the preborn" and "Hundreds and hundreds of babies lose their lives every year in Idaho due to abortion, an absolute tragedy."[66][67]

In March 2022, Little signed Senate Bill 1309 modeled after the Texas Heartbeat Act that prohibited abortions after about six weeks of pregnancy. The bill made exceptions for victims of rape, incest, and for medical emergencies.[68] The Idaho Supreme Court later temporarily blocked the law.[69]

In April 2023, Little signed State House Bill 242, which prohibits "recruiting, harboring, or transporting" minors across state lines for abortions without explicit parental consent. It also makes it illegal to obtain abortion pills for a minor. A conviction for "abortion trafficking" carries a minimum sentence of two years in state prison and a maximum of five years. This is the first anti-abortion bill to prosecute people who travel to states where abortions are legal to undergo the procedure.[70]

Little opposes gun control. In May 2021, he signed a bill that would thwart nearly a half-dozen of executive orders from President Joe Biden combating gun control.[71] Little has an A+ rating from the NRA Political Victory Fund for his record on Second Amendment rights and was endorsed in the 2022 election.[72][73]

In March 2020, Little signed both House Bill 500 and House Bill 509, which ban transgender people who identify as female from playing on athletic teams that don't align with their sex-at-birth and ban transgender people from changing their gender mark on their birth certificate.[74]

In April 2023, Little signed House Bill 71 into law, banning anyone under the age of 18 from receiving puberty blockers, hormone therapy, or gender-affirming surgery beginning in 2024. Doctors who violate the law face up to ten years in prison. It offers no exemptions for minors currently taking puberty blockers or undergoing hormone therapy.[75]

In a January 2019 interview, Little expressed opposition to legalizing recreational marijuana. He had expressed skepticism about legalizing medical marijuana for patients.[76]

When being asked about marijuana legalization in April 2019, Little said: “If Idahoans want legal marijuana, they elected the wrong guy as governor.” NORML, a group advocating the legalization of marijuana, gave Little an F rating for his policies about reforming marijuana laws.[77][78]

In February 2021, Little signed Senate Bill 1017, which raises the legal THC limit in cannabidiol (CBD) products from 0% to 0.1% THC. The law went into effect on July 1, 2021.[79]

In April 2021, Little signed a bill that would legalize the cultivation and transportation of hemp in Idaho with up to 0.3% THC in it, making Idaho the final state to do so, but the bill would prohibit the sale of hemp products containing any THC.[80]

In March 2023, Little, a supporter of capital punishment, signed House Bill 186, which adds a firing squad as an alternative form of execution when lethal injection is not available. Idaho is the fifth state to pass such a bill.[81]