Aaron Hayes

Aaron Hayes: Democratic nominee for Idaho House District 4, Seat B

Aaron Hayes was the Democratic nominee for Idaho House District 4, Seat B, on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot. He won the May 19, 2026 Democratic primary unopposed with 1,282 votes, 100 percent, per certified results from the Idaho Secretary of State. He is a middle school music teacher and a former president of the Coeur d'Alene Education Association, the local teachers' union. His opponent was Republican incumbent Elaine Price.

Background

Hayes teaches instrumental music, band and orchestra, at Canfield Middle School in the Coeur d'Alene School District. His staff page lists his degrees: a PhD in Music, an MA in Music, and an MA in Philosophy from Stony Brook University, and a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and a BA in Philosophy from Washington State University.

He is a graduate of North Central High School. On his campaign site, he describes himself as a lifelong Pacific Northwest resident. He and his wife, Lauren, a librarian, live in Coeur d'Alene and have two sons.

Union leadership and the 2023 levy campaign

Hayes served as president of the Coeur d'Alene Education Association from 2022 to 2025, according to his campaign site. The Idaho Education Association profiled his work during the district's 2023 school levy campaign. In March 2023, voters rejected a $25 million perpetual supplemental levy that represented about 25 percent of the district's budget and put more than 300 district jobs at stake.

"It personalized for a lot of people what was at stake with that levy vote," Hayes told the IEA. "The programming cuts and building closures the district started talking about with the levy failure woke people up."

Two months later, on May 16, voters approved a new two-year $25 million levy with 63 percent support. "I think that was because teachers decided to engage with the community on this," Hayes said. "As a local, we wanted to make sure everyone in the community was correctly educated and knew what was at stake for real."

Campaign framing

Hayes introduced his candidacy on his campaign Facebook page in plain terms: "Hello - I'm a teacher, parent, and community member and I'd like to represent you in the Idaho Legislature!"

The general election matchup

Price, the Republican incumbent, won her May 19 primary over Christa Hazel, 4,135 votes (59.5 percent) to 2,814 (40.5 percent), per certified results from the Idaho Secretary of State. Hayes ran unopposed for the Democratic nomination. District 4 covers part of the Coeur d'Alene area in Kootenai County.

Hayes told the IEA, looking back at the levy campaign: "I'm very proud of the teachers that stood up and defended their community."

Sources

• Idaho Secretary of State, certified May 19, 2026 primary results
• Coeur d'Alene School District, Canfield Middle School staff page for Aaron Hayes
• Coeur d'Alene School District, Canfield Middle School staff directory
• Aaron Hayes campaign site, About page
• Aaron Hayes for Coeur d'Alene, campaign Facebook page
• Idaho Education Association, "Failed Levy Sparks New Focus in Coeur d'Alene," November 30, 2023