Idaho General Election · November 3, 2026Find polling place
Republican

Julie A. Ellsworth

Julie A. Ellsworth

State Treasurer

Julie Ellsworth, Republican incumbent and candidate for Idaho State Treasurer

Julie Ellsworth, a Republican, is Idaho's State Treasurer and a candidate for a third term in the November 3, 2026 general election. She filed on February 23, 2026, and the Idaho Secretary of State's filed-candidates search lists the filing as approved. She won the May 19, 2026 Republican primary unopposed, with 186,437 votes, according to the Idaho Secretary of State's certified results. Her opponent is Democrat Kevin Jones.

Background

The State Treasurer's Office says she was elected Idaho's 24th State Treasurer in 2018. The Idaho Capital Sun reported on September 30, 2026 that she "was first elected as state treasurer in 2018 after serving 12 years non-consecutively as an Idaho state representative" and has been a public school teacher, a mediator and a business consultant. The Sun described the treasurer's office as the state's chief financial officer, overseeing the receipt of state money, accounting for disbursement of funds, investing idle state money and administering the unclaimed property program, the 529 College Savings Fund and the Idaho ABLE savings accounts.

Election history

According to the Idaho Secretary of State's election database, Ellsworth won the May 15, 2018 Republican primary for Treasurer with 60,482 votes (36.8%), ahead of Tom Kealey with 55,657 and Vicky McIntyre with 48,310. She was unopposed in the November 2018 general election, receiving 465,109 votes.

In 2022 she was unopposed in the Republican primary, with 218,227 votes. In the November 8, 2022 general election she received 412,502 votes (71.1%) to Democrat Deborah Silver's 167,596 (28.9%).

Audit findings on interest distributions

The Legislature's Legislative Services Office has issued two internal-control findings about the State Treasurer's Office. The report for fiscal year 2024, dated September 18, 2025, lists Finding 2024-118 as a material weakness: "IDLE pool distributions were not made accurately or timely in accordance with the Idaho State Treasurer's Office investment policy." The auditors wrote that in the aggregate the office's distribution method showed distributions should have been .8% more than the amounts in the state's Luma accounting system for the funds analyzed. The report said the cause included "a lack of sufficient interface testing, including end-user acceptance testing, completed by the Office of the State Controller." The Treasurer's Office responded: "We acknowledge the issues identified and agree that the transition to Luma presented significant challenges in maintaining accurate fund-level reconciliations and timely distributions."

The report for fiscal year 2025, dated July 8, 2026, lists Finding 2025-114, also a material weakness, and identifies it as related to prior Finding 2024-118. The auditors wrote that "reconciliations from the implementation of Luma have not been completed as of April 2026." The Treasurer's Office responded that it "concurs with the Legislative Audits Division finding" and gave July 1, 2027 as its anticipated completion date.

The Idaho Capital Sun reported in February 2024 that the office had not distributed interest payments to state agencies since July 1, 2023, and that the withheld interest added up to $101.6 million through the end of December, according to Ellsworth. She told the Sun: "I can't distribute it until I have complete confidence in the fund account amounts in every state agency." In its September 2026 report the Sun wrote that Ellsworth said her office is still verifying the numbers from 2023 and that she feels confident a reconciliation process will be in place by November. The Sun wrote that she has hired outside auditors to do that verification manually.

Investment performance

The Idaho Capital Sun reported on September 30, 2026 that the state's IDLE investment fund "has returned .34% less than a comparable index fund since its inception, according to an Aug. 13 Treasurer's Investment Advisory Board presentation." Ellsworth answered: "We're not out to make money ... My first goal is safety." The Sun reported that she countered that state law only permits certain investments. Jones said: "The performance of our investment portfolios has been, in my personal opinion, almost the worst I've seen in 38 years of managing institutional portfolios."

Investment standards and endorsements

The Idaho Capital Sun reported that on June 7, 2022 Ellsworth hosted a Statehouse discussion on environmental, social and governance investment standards with Sen. Mike Crapo joining remotely, Sen. Steve Vick, Rep. Sage Dixon and guest speakers including Vivek Ramaswamy, Utah Treasurer Marlo Oaks and Derek Kreifels, the chief executive of the State Financial Officers Foundation.

The Legislature's record for Senate Bill 1405 of 2022, on disfavored state investments, shows the Senate passed it 28-7, the House passed it 57-12-1 and the governor signed it on March 28, 2022. The bill's Statement of Purpose lists Julie Ellsworth, Idaho State Treasurer, as a contact. Silver, her 2022 opponent, told the Idaho Capital Sun about the investment standards debate: "This is a business, this job is a business, and it's being safe with the state's money. To throw these kinds of political things into it, it's not being responsible to all the citizens of Idaho." The Idaho Majority Club's endorsements page lists Ellsworth among its endorsed candidates for 2026.

The Capitol office lawsuit

Legislative leaders sued Ellsworth in 2019 over her refusal to leave her first-floor Capitol office. Boise State Public Radio reported that the Idaho Supreme Court unanimously ruled against her on January 26, 2021 and that she would have to cover the Legislature's legal fees. Ellsworth said: "I am still concerned this is another step towards a full-time legislature which will grow government and create further distance and isolation between the citizens of Idaho and their elected officials." House Speaker Scott Bedke said: "While we applaud the pointed and sensible decision by our Supreme Court, we would have preferred the State Treasurer had respected the rule of law and avoided the need for this lawsuit."

Programs

The Idaho Capital Sun reported in December 2025 that the Treasurer's Office returned a record $2.25 million in unclaimed property to Idahoans the previous month, according to the office's news release. In August 2026 the Sun reported that Ellsworth presented a $47,675 check from sales of the Idaho Women Veterans Medallion to the Idaho State Veterans Cemeteries, according to a press release.

What supporters say

After the 2018 primary, House Majority Leader Mike Moyle said of Ellsworth, in a column by Chuck Malloy in the Lewiston Tribune: "She's smart, and what she doesn't know, she learns fast."

Campaign finance

The Idaho Secretary of State's Sunshine campaign finance system showed contributions of $1,000.00, expenditures of $0.00 and $34,384.62 in cash on hand for the 2026 cycle on October 2, 2026, as of her most recent filed report, the August 2026 monthly report filed September 11, 2026, for the committee Ellsworth for Idaho. It showed $24,200.00 in outstanding debt, a loan from herself recorded on her 2023 annual report with a date of December 30, 2023. The only itemized contribution was $1,000.00 from the Idaho Bankers Association. The Idaho Capital Sun listed her at $1,000 and Jones at $0 as of September 30, 2026.

Sources

Profile published by IdahoVoters.com. Last updated October 2, 2026. This profile will be updated as additional information becomes available.

Frequently asked questions

What office is Julie Ellsworth running for?
She is the Republican incumbent seeking a third term as Idaho State Treasurer in the November 3, 2026 general election. Her opponent is Democrat Kevin Jones.
What does the Idaho State Treasurer do?
The Idaho Capital Sun described the office as the state's chief financial officer, responsible for receiving state money, accounting for disbursement of funds, investing idle state money and administering the unclaimed property program, the 529 College Savings Fund and the Idaho ABLE savings accounts.
When was Julie Ellsworth first elected?
She was first elected State Treasurer in 2018 and won re-election in 2022 with 71.1% of the vote, according to the Idaho Secretary of State's election database.
What did the audits find about the Treasurer's Office?
The Legislature's auditors listed material weaknesses in 2024 and 2025 involving how interest from the IDLE pool was distributed. The Treasurer's Office acknowledged the issues in 2024 and concurred with the 2025 finding, and pointed to problems with the state's Luma accounting system.
How has the state's IDLE investment fund performed?
The Idaho Capital Sun reported that it has returned .34% less than a comparable index fund since its inception, according to an August 13 advisory board presentation. Ellsworth said her first goal is safety.
What was the lawsuit over Julie Ellsworth's Capitol office?
Legislative leaders sued her over the first-floor Capitol office, and the Idaho Supreme Court ruled unanimously against her on January 26, 2021, according to Boise State Public Radio.
How much money has Julie Ellsworth raised?
Idaho Sunshine showed $1,000.00 in contributions for the 2026 cycle on October 2, 2026, as of her most recent filed report, along with a $24,200.00 loan from herself.