Camille Blaylock

Camille Blaylock: Republican incumbent for Idaho Senate District 11

Camille Blaylock is the Republican incumbent state senator for Idaho Senate District 11, seeking a second term on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot. She won the May 19, 2026 Republican primary with 1,824 votes (58.84 percent) over Chris Trakel, who received 1,276 votes (41.16 percent), a certified result. She faces Democrat Susan Counsil, who won her own primary unopposed with 689 votes, and Constitution Party candidate Esther Ma, who had no primary contest.

Background

Blaylock was born and raised in Canyon County and lives in Caldwell. She holds a degree in communications from Idaho State University, according to her official Idaho Legislature biography, which describes her as an entrepreneur with a background in healthcare technology and corporate event management who has worked alongside government agencies nationwide. She has two children. In the Senate, she sits on the Agricultural Affairs and Health & Welfare committees.

2024 election and family

Blaylock first won the seat in 2024, defeating then-incumbent Sen. Chris Trakel in the Republican primary by 129 votes, 51.9 percent to 48.1 percent. She went on to win the general election over Democrat Toni Ferro, 65.9 percent to 34.1 percent. Trakel, a retired Marine who served 15 years, had served one term in the Senate after his election in 2022.

Her father is Tom Luna, a former Idaho superintendent of public instruction. Idaho Education News and Yahoo News have both reported the relationship, and Idaho Sunshine donor records show Tom Luna and Cindy Luna of Caldwell as $2,000 donors to her campaign. Blaylock was 37 years old as of May 2026.

Legislative record

Special-education funding has been a focus of her first term. In 2025 she sponsored HB 291, which would have created a $3 million fund for high-needs special-education students; it died in the Senate by one vote. "I felt like I let some people down," she told Idaho Education News. "That was kind of a bummer."

She brought the idea back in 2026 as SB 1288, creating a $5 million one-time fund for high-needs special-education students. Gov. Brad Little signed it into law. "Every student will get an education in America and I just think that's beautiful," Blaylock said after it passed.

She also sponsored SB 1142, which repealed the $30 million-per-year Empowering Parents grant program, created with federal COVID-era dollars and later funded with state money to help parents pay for laptops and other home-learning equipment. "Was it needed going forward? You know, buying laptops and things?" Blaylock said. "In my opinion, no, and obviously other legislators agreed because they voted to repeal it." On parental involvement in education, she said: "Nobody's going to know a kid better than the parent."

Where she stands

Her campaign site lists five priorities. On fiscal policy: "Lower taxes + Less spending + Fewer regulations = Stronger economy." On education, she supports parental choice and school safety. On agriculture and transportation, she says she will "continue to fight to protect our water" and invest in infrastructure.

On law enforcement, she writes: "I back the blue. Full stop." She says the state must "stop deadly drugs like fentanyl from flooding in by securing our borders and supporting ICE." Under "Liberty & Idaho Values," she describes herself as "unapologetically pro-life" and a "strong defender of the 2nd Amendment," and writes that "men don't belong in women's sports or bathrooms."

On her Idaho Republican Party candidate questionnaire, she does not support repealing the Seventeenth Amendment: "Direct election of U.S. Senators ensures accountability to the people." On abortion, she wrote: "I am pro-life and believe in protecting life, while also recognizing very limited exceptions in cases of rape or incest. Those exceptions should require clear due process to ensure the claim is legitimate."

Asked by Idaho Education News about her primary opponent, Blaylock said she had nothing bad to say about Trakel's character, adding that the two sometimes shared the same ideas but that she found him less likely to be open-minded.

Her 2026 campaign finance filings show $80,798.94 in contributions, $76,847.19 in expenditures, and a $4,591.98 ending cash balance, with $6,331 in outstanding debt.

Sources

• Idaho State Legislature, official biography of Sen. Camille Blaylock
• Yahoo News, "Who's running in Idaho Legislature's District 11 primary?" May 6, 2026
• Idaho Education News, "District 11: Retired Marine wants a rematch against first-term Senator," April 3, 2026
• Camille for Idaho, On the Issues page
• Republican Party of Idaho, Camille Blaylock candidate page
• Idaho Secretary of State, Sunshine campaign finance database