Brandon Shippy

Brandon Shippy: Idaho Senate District 9 incumbent on the 2026 ballot

Brandon Shippy won his May 2026 Republican primary for Idaho Senate District 9 by a wide margin, taking 6,928 votes, or 84.44 percent, to Michael Erwin's 1,277 votes, according to certified Idaho Secretary of State results. He now faces Democrat Janice Martell, who ran unopposed in her own primary and drew 643 votes, 100 percent of the ballots cast, on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot.

The race and the district

District 9 covers Payette and Washington counties along with part of Canyon County, a stretch of the western Treasure Valley that borders Oregon.

Background

Shippy is a lifelong Idahoan and a native of Payette County, where he owns and operates Shippy Sprinkler LLC in New Plymouth. He and his wife, Rakel, have three children, Evelyn, Sara, and Samuel, and the couple are licensed foster care providers. He serves as a deacon in his church and volunteers with Narrow Path Prison Ministries, and his campaign site describes him as a fourth-generation Idahoan.

Path to the Senate

Shippy's path to office started small. In 2022 he won a Republican primary for Precinct Committeeman in Payette District 8 over Mike Dolton, 353 votes to 196, according to the Idaho Secretary of State's election record. Two years later he ran for the Senate seat itself, defeating Scott Syme in the May 2024 Republican primary, 4,404 votes to 4,114, a margin of just over three points.

Governor Brad Little then appointed Shippy to the District 9 Senate seat on July 18, 2024, filling the vacancy left when Abby Lee stepped down, under the process set out in Idaho Code 59-904A. He completed the remainder of her term, which ran through November 30, 2024, and that November he won the general election over Democrat Rachel Buck, 20,745 votes to 4,292, a wide 82.9 to 17.1 percent split, per the Secretary of State's election record. He is now in his second full term, serving on the Judiciary and Rules Committee as vice chair, along with Health and Welfare and State Affairs.

Legislative record: abortion

Shippy's most contested bill came in February 2025, when he introduced SB 1059, the "Idaho Prenatal Equal Protection Act," which would have established legal personhood starting at fertilization and stripped the rape and incest exemption from Idaho's abortion ban. Under questioning from Senate Assistant Minority Leader James Ruchti about whether the bill would force a 12-year-old rape victim to carry a pregnancy to term, Shippy answered, "A baby conceived in rape is still a human being equal to you and me." Asked separately, per the Bonner County Daily Bee, whether the bill would let police investigate a miscarriage as a possible abortion, he said, "I suppose that is possible."

The Senate State Affairs Committee introduced the bill on a party-line vote, but it went no further. Committee Chairman Jim Guthrie said it would not receive a full hearing, and Senate President Pro Tem Kelly Anthon told the Idaho Press, "The majority of the caucus would not share the belief that the legislation before us is the proper approach, and I think Senator Shippy understands that."

Legislative record: vaccines and marijuana

Shippy has also pushed legislation questioning immunization policy. In January 2025 he introduced SB 1036, a moratorium on certain gene therapy products used in immunization, named for Doug Cameron, an Idaho farmer who believes a 2021 COVID-19 vaccine injured him. Shippy said he believed "all the gene therapy products that are being used for immunization should be put on hold until we can determine their safety and efficacy," while adding, "I am not against vaccination in any way." A similar measure, SB 1346, was introduced again in the 2026 session.

On marijuana, Shippy led floor debate for a bill adding a mandatory $300 minimum fine for simple possession, arguing from his district's position on the Oregon border, where marijuana is legal. "In not one state where marijuana is legalized has that state become (a) better, safer, more wealthy place to live," he said during the February 2025 Senate debate. The bill passed 27-8, with only Republican Sens. Jim Guthrie and Phil Hart joining Democrats in opposition.

Campaign positions and endorsements

Shippy's campaign site lists what he is "for," including freedom to work, medical freedom, local business, local agriculture, law enforcement, protecting life, protecting education, and freedom to bear arms, and what he is "against," including CRT and Marxism in schools and the sexualizing of children. His campaign tagline describes "representing the conservative Christian values that protect inherent individual and parental rights" and a goal of "making Idaho the best place to raise a family." Named endorsers include former state Sen. Monte Pearce, the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation, Payette County GOP chair Howard Rynearson, and the Fraternal Order of Police.

On the Idaho Republican Party's candidate questionnaire, Shippy left the biography and top-issues fields blank. But on the platform-loyalty question, where candidates certify support for the party platform, he added his own condition: "The only way I would deviate from any provision of the platform according to how I read it is if it conflicts with the Constitution of the United States, the Constitution of the State of Idaho, or the Word of God." He closed with two lines standing alone: "Furthermore, abortion is murder. Jesus Christ is Lord."

Sources

• Idaho Secretary of State, certified 2026 primary results
• Idaho Secretary of State, election record for Brandon Shippy (2022, 2024 contests)
• Office of the Governor, appointment announcement, July 2024
• Idaho State Legislature, official member page for Sen. Brandon Shippy
• Brandon Shippy campaign site
• Idaho Republican Party, candidate questionnaire
• Bonner County Daily Bee, SB 1059 reporting, February 2025
• Idaho Press, SB 1059 reporting, February 2025
• East Idaho News, SB 1036 reporting, January 2025
• Idaho Reports, marijuana fine bill reporting, February 2025