Mike Moyle

Mike Moyle: Idaho Republican Incumbent for House District 10A

Mike Moyle is a Republican member of the Idaho House of Representatives and the Speaker of the Idaho House, seeking a fifteenth term in District 10A, which covers the Star area in Ada County. Moyle lives in Star and is Idaho's longest-serving current state legislator, having served continuously since 1998. He is running unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary. The general election is November 3, 2026.

Background

Moyle was born December 7, 1964, in Rexburg and graduated from Meridian High School in 1983. He worked briefly as a hunting guide before attending Brigham Young University, where he left college after his father was injured in an ATV accident and returned to take over the family farm, as described on his campaign website. He is a farmer and rancher in Star, where he also served as a volunteer fireman and fire commissioner. He has served on the Far West Spearmint Committee and the Middleton Irrigation District Board. He and his wife Janet have five children and ten grandchildren.

Political Career

Moyle was first elected to the Idaho House in 1998, defeating incumbent Dave Bivens by 14 votes in the Republican primary before winning the general election unopposed. He served as assistant majority leader beginning in 2003 and became House majority leader in 2006, a position he held until December 2022, when the Idaho House voted unanimously to make him Speaker, as documented by the Idaho Capital Sun. In 2024, Moyle became the named plaintiff in a significant federal abortion case when he and the Idaho Legislature challenged a federal requirement that hospitals provide emergency abortion care under the Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. The case reached the U.S. Supreme Court as Moyle v. United States, which dismissed the case on procedural grounds on June 27, 2024, without resolving the underlying constitutional question. As Speaker, Moyle's legislative agenda has centered on tax reduction. In the 2025 session, he introduced House Bill 40, which reduced Idaho's individual and corporate income tax rates from 5.695% to 5.3%, and House Bill 74, which directed $50 million annually to the school district facilities fund. Combined with other measures, the 2025 session produced more than $400 million in tax relief across income, property, and sales taxes, as reported by the Idaho Capital Sun. The 2026 session was dominated by the resulting revenue shortfall. Idaho entered the year facing a projected $40.3 million deficit for fiscal year 2026 and an estimated $555 million deficit for fiscal year 2027, in part due to the cumulative effect of prior tax cuts and Idaho's conformance to federal tax changes in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. The Legislature responded with broad agency budget reductions, including significant cuts to Medicaid, and conformed to most federal tax changes, as reported by Boise State Public Radio. The 2026 session produced a record 1,018 pieces of legislation over 82 days. Moyle also advanced school choice legislation, immigration enforcement measures, and gender-related bills during his tenure as Speaker, including legislation clarifying sex definitions and pronoun use in state law, as reported by the Idaho Capital Sun.

Policy Positions

Moyle has stated repeatedly that tax reduction is the primary reason he sought elected office and remains his central legislative priority. He told reporters during the 2025 session: "Those of you that know me know that the only reason I ran for the Legislature is to cut taxes," as reported by the Idaho Capital Sun. He supports reductions across income, property, and sales taxes, school choice through a student-centered funding model, zero-based budgeting for state agencies, immigration enforcement including e-verify requirements, and fiscal conservatism as the foundation of state governance. He has also expressed concern about the rightward drift of some factions within Idaho's Republican Party. After the Idaho Freedom Foundation gave him an "F" on its legislative scorecard, Moyle told InvestigateWest: "Even their own guys have said 'IFF has gone crazy.' Their own guys are saying they're nuts."

Political Alignment

Moyle is a Traditional Conservative Republican. His 27-year record reflects a consistent focus on tax reduction, agricultural interests, and business-oriented fiscal policy. He has drawn endorsements from the Idaho Farm Bureau, the Idaho Fraternal Order of Police, the Idaho Majority Club, and the Professional Firefighters of Idaho, as documented in campaign finance and endorsement records. The Idaho Freedom Foundation has given him failing scores on its legislative ratings, and Moyle himself has publicly criticized the organization's direction, positioning himself at odds with the activist right while advancing conservative governance priorities through institutional channels.

Campaign and Endorsements

Moyle is running unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary. Documented endorsements include the Idaho Farm Bureau, the Idaho Fraternal Order of Police, the Idaho Majority Club, the Professional Firefighters of Idaho, and Rep. Bruce Skaug, per campaign records. He is the longest-serving current member of the Idaho House, now seeking his fifteenth term. The general election is November 3, 2026.