C. Scott Grow

C. Scott Grow: Idaho Republican Incumbent for Senate District 14

C. Scott Grow is a Republican member of the Idaho State Senate seeking a sixth term in District 14, which covers Eagle and surrounding areas in Ada County. Grow lives in Eagle and has served in the Idaho Senate since his appointment in August 2018. He is running unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary and no general election challenger had been identified at the time of publication.

Background

Grow was born in Moscow, Idaho, and grew up in Boise, where he graduated from Borah High School. He earned a bachelor's degree in accounting from Brigham Young University. His professional career spans decades as a certified public accountant, small business owner, and business consultant; he founded Grow Rasmussen & Co., CPAs, in Boise in 1976, as described on his campaign website. He and his wife Rhonda raised eight children in Meridian and have numerous grandchildren. Before entering the Senate, he served two terms as a trustee on the West Ada School Board, including a term as board chair, as noted on his campaign website. He also served on statewide advisory committees on Idaho families and religious freedoms, appointed by then-Gov. Dirk Kempthorne, and has been a member of the West Boise Rotary Club. He has served as a general authority of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, a role documented at the time of his 2018 Senate appointment by the Spokesman-Review and KIVI.

Political Career

Grow was appointed to the Idaho State Senate on August 15, 2018, by Gov. Butch Otter to fill the vacancy left by Sen. Marv Hagedorn, who resigned to lead the Idaho Division of Veterans Services, as reported by KTVB. He had already won the 2018 Republican primary for the seat before the appointment. He defeated Democratic challenger Richard Boozel in the 2018 general election, defeated Ted Hill in both the 2018 and 2020 Republican primaries, then defeated incumbent Steven Thayn in the 2022 primary after redistricting placed two incumbents in the same district. He ran unopposed in the 2024 primary and defeated Constitution Party candidate Kirsten Faith Richardson in the general election. He currently chairs the Senate Finance Committee and also serves on the Local Government and Taxation Committee, per his Idaho Legislature member page. He co-chairs the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee (JFAC), the 20-member committee responsible for setting Idaho's annual state budget. For the 2026 session he co-chaired JFAC with Rep. Josh Tanner following the departure of longtime co-chair Rep. Wendy Horman, as reported by Idaho Education News. The 2026 session presented Grow and Tanner with a significant challenge: Idaho faced a projected $40.3 million deficit for fiscal year 2026 and an estimated $555 million deficit for 2027, stemming in part from cumulative prior tax cuts and conformance to federal tax changes. JFAC responded with broad agency budget cuts and a flat overall budget, a process that generated criticism from both Democrats and some Republicans, as reported by the Idaho Capital Sun. The 2025 session also drew significant coverage for JFAC procedural disputes. Grow and former co-chair Horman operated the committee without a formal set of published joint rules after the House declined to adopt them in December 2024, leading to disputes over voting procedures and criticism of JFAC's decision to pass tax cut bills before setting a revenue projection, as reported by the Idaho Capital Sun.

Policy Positions

Grow's publicly stated priorities, drawn from his campaign website, center on fiscal conservatism, tax relief, education workforce preparation, infrastructure, and property tax reform. He has stated his focus on protecting taxpayer dollars, reducing the tax burden on Idaho families, and ensuring state agencies operate within responsible budget standards. On infrastructure, he has prioritized funding for highways 55, 44, 20/26, and 16 serving District 14. On education, he supports preparing students for the workforce and has expressed concern about ideologically driven curricula. He has also identified the sales tax on groceries as a constituent priority worth legislative attention.

Political Alignment

Grow is a Traditional Conservative Republican. His record reflects the institutional core of the Idaho Senate's conservative majority. As JFAC co-chair and Senate Finance Committee chair, he occupies a central role in Idaho's budget process, focused on fiscal discipline and agency accountability. His endorsements from the Idaho Farm Bureau and the Fraternal Order of Police reflect broad-based conservative institutional support. No documented ties to the Idaho Freedom Foundation or Idaho Freedom Caucus networks have been identified.

Campaign and Endorsements

Grow is running unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary and no general election challenger had been identified at the time of publication. His documented endorsements include the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry, Idaho Farm Bureau, and the Idaho Fraternal Order of Police, per campaign finance records. He has signed the U.S. Term Limits pledge. The general election is November 3, 2026.