Justin Alexander Peter Hughes

Justin Hughes, Republican candidate for Idaho House District 17, Seat B

Justin Alexander Peter Hughes is the Republican nominee for Idaho House District 17, Seat B, on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot. He is challenging Democratic incumbent Megan Egbert. Hughes ran unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary and received 2,104 votes, per certified Idaho Secretary of State results. This is his first run for elected office.

Background

Hughes lives in Boise and lists his years in Idaho as 13, though he told the survey he "lost track after a decade." Before that, he says he lived, worked, and studied across the country and overseas.

He earned a B.S. in Physics with a minor in mathematics from Principia College, where he was a member of the national Society of Physics Students, according to his campaign site. In the CBS2/FOX9 candidate survey, he wrote that he is "halfway through another B.S. in Accounting."

His most distinctive credential is a dance career. Hughes spent more than a decade with Ballet Idaho, rising to Principal Dancer and, in his words, "performing all the lead roles." He says he has recently retired from the company.

Where he stands

Hughes frames his platform around what he calls making Idaho "healthy again" and "verdant again." Per his campaign site, that means:

• No data centers, surveillance cameras, cloud seeding, or heavy pesticides, which he links to protecting water, air, and agriculture
• Better forest management, which he argues has permanently stripped land of trees in some areas and let wildfires burn out of control in others, at a cost to taxpayers, timber profits, and quality of life

In the CBS2/FOX9 survey, he listed data centers and Flock surveillance cameras first among district priorities. He also named rat control, housing density, and wildfire smoke as top issues, arguing that fires stem from "improper forest husbandry" and proposing Idaho cooperate with neighboring states on forest management.

On his Idaho GOP candidate page, he lists three priorities in his own words. On traffic, he argues Boise should follow cities that have "completely eradicated their traffic congestion" through transportation alternatives and street redesign. On housing, he wants to incentivize developers to build "small, simple, starter homes" in mixed-use communities rather than what he calls "uninspiring, expensive apartments" with a few subsidized units. On education, he wants to disentangle school funding from standardized testing, end automatic grade promotion, and distribute funds to classrooms rather than athletic facilities.

He has filed an Integrity in Affiliation submission with the Idaho Republican Party, affirming his support for the party platform.

Campaign finance

Per the Idaho Sunshine financial disclosure database, Hughes has raised $1,620.80 this election cycle. He has spent $1,584.91, leaving an ending cash balance of $35.89. He has no outstanding debt and no loans. All contributions came from individuals, with $600.20 from in-state donors and $1,020.60 from out of state.

Sources

• Justin Hughes campaign site
• Idaho Republican Party candidate page
• CBS2/FOX9 2026 general election survey, District 17B
• Idaho Sunshine financial disclosure, Justin Hughes candidate profile