Brian Seguin

Brian Seguin, Democratic nominee for Idaho Senate District 3

Brian Seguin is the Democratic nominee for Idaho Senate District 3, which covers part of Kootenai County including Hayden. He won his May 19, 2026 primary unopposed with 1,004 votes and is on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot. He faces Republican incumbent Doug Okuniewicz, who is seeking a third Senate term. This is Seguin's second consecutive run for the seat; he lost to Okuniewicz in 2024.

Background

Seguin is a native of Priest River, in Bonner County, and has lived in Idaho roughly 30 years, according to his own account at a 2024 candidate forum hosted by the Coeur d'Alene Press. He said at that forum he has been married 22 years and has two children in the Coeur d'Alene School District. He described himself as a professional librarian who has worked in academia for 25 years, starting at North Idaho College as a student employee while earning his associate degree there.

Seguin worked at North Idaho College until 2023, when he left for the library at Gonzaga University's law school as the college's governance crisis deepened, according to RANGE Media.

The North Idaho College crisis

Seguin spoke publicly in 2023 about the conflict between North Idaho College's board and its administration, which put the college's accreditation at risk. In March 2023, he told RANGE Media: "It's been two years of not being able to have a stable environment to build that culture and climate that allows students to thrive and sets us apart from other community colleges. It's hurtful to us as employees that we are being painted and demonized as doing something nefarious."

The following month, he told NPR: "For those in the community who were thinking that everything's going to be fine and that there are guardrails in place, there are not." He also said: "There's, you know, conspiracy that has been woven by this board, with mentions of a deep state and liberal indoctrination, that folks have completely bought into and has made our jobs very difficult."

At the 2024 candidate forum, Seguin said he saw coworkers come into his office crying, and that he left North Idaho College in 2023 with an undiagnosed ulcer. "These issues are real, and they're affecting everyone in town," he said.

Why he ran

At the 2024 forum, Seguin said he never intended to run for office until Rep. Heather Scott, who represents neighboring District 2, posted that "normalizing sex with children starts in the library." As a library professional, he asked her for clarification. She did not respond, and he then emailed multiple legislators from Districts 1, 2, and 3 seeking the same. "If our area legislators feel like it's okay to just drag local city and state workers without repercussions, then I'm here to step up," he told the forum.

Positions

Seguin's campaign site lists five issue areas. On education, he opposes what he calls "scapegoating educators" and supports investment in public schools. On affordability, he cites cost of living and housing and backs the Idaho Launch job-training program. On the Second Amendment, he supports gun rights alongside what he calls common-sense legislation. On public lands, he opposes privatization. On healthcare, he supports Medicaid and Medicare and criticizes legislators who, in his words, "undermined voter-approved ballot initiatives."

At the 2024 forum, Seguin said he would vote to support Idaho's Proposition 1, the ranked-choice voting ballot initiative, calling it an imperfect system but "the system that we're left with because of outside influences." He said he had heard legislators, naming Sen. Brian Lenney and a conservative commentator, Brian Almond, say they would look for the political will to overturn the measure if it passed, or use other means if that failed.

On party affiliation

At the 2024 forum, Seguin said he has been registered as a Republican, a Democrat, and an independent at different points, and said a candidate's integrity matters more to him than party affiliation.

Sources

• Brian Seguin campaign site, stated positions
• Brian Seguin campaign site, his biography and motivation
• RANGE Media, "Fight over North Idaho College is costing students and employers," March 2023
• NPR, "An Idaho community college faces closure due to criticism from conservative trustees," April 2023
• Coeur d'Alene Press, "Meet the Candidate: 2024 State Senator District 3," October 2024, full transcript