Nate Roberts

Nate Roberts: Idaho Democratic Candidate for House District 29B

Nate Roberts is a Democratic candidate for the Idaho House of Representatives District 29B, which covers portions of Pocatello in Bannock County. Roberts lives in Pocatello and is running in the May 19, 2026, Democratic primary, per Idaho Education News. He will face Republican incumbent Tanya Burgoyne in the November 3, 2026, general election. Roberts served one term representing District 29B from 2022 to 2024 before losing to Burgoyne by 1,139 votes. He is seeking to reclaim the seat.

Background

Roberts was born and raised in Pocatello and has lived in Idaho his entire adult life. He has worked as a construction electrician for 36 years and is an elected union officer, as described on his campaign website. He and his wife, who he describes as a significant influence in his political journey, have been married for more than 35 years and have two sons. His career in the skilled trades and his union leadership have been central to his political identity.

Political Career

Roberts was first elected to the Idaho House in November 2022, becoming one of a small number of working tradespeople serving in the Idaho Legislature at the time. During his term he served on committees relevant to labor and construction policy. He participated in a June 2024 rally at Pocatello's Marshall Public Library opposing Idaho's HB 710 library restrictions law alongside Sen. James Ruchti and House candidate Mary Shea, per East Idaho News. He was a vocal advocate for the East Idaho Forensics Center during his term, writing in the Idaho State Journal in April 2024 that Idaho ranked alarmingly third lowest in the nation for autopsies performed and that the proposed center represented a critical step forward for the community's safety and justice systems. He lost the November 2024 general election to Burgoyne, 10,359 votes to 11,498, and filed to run again in 2026.

Policy Positions

Roberts's documented priorities draw from his campaign website and his op-eds published during his 2024 term. On workers' rights, Roberts has called for stronger protections against wage theft, improved workplace conditions and safety, enhanced workers' compensation, and rejection of the state's right-to-work law, which he argues suppresses union organizing and wages for working families. He has also opposed legislation that would have weakened child labor protections in Idaho. On education, Roberts has called for full public school funding, fixing deteriorating school facilities - citing a state report finding nearly 60 percent of Idaho's public schools in fair or poor condition - and opposing private school vouchers on grounds of fiscal irresponsibility, accountability failures, and harm to rural schools. He supports registered apprenticeships and the Idaho Launch grant program as pathways for students who do not follow a four-year college route. He wrote in the Idaho State Journal in May 2024 that as someone who has laid groundwork for buildings as a construction electrician, he recognizes the critical importance of solid foundations in both infrastructure and education systems. On individual rights, Roberts has stated that removing a woman's reproductive autonomy creates a class of second-class citizens and that freedom of choice must be protected. He also supports freedom of gender identity, stating that personal choices causing no harm to others are human rights. On local control, Roberts has written that the state legislature is undermining local authority over schools, libraries, and city governance, per his May 2024 Idaho State Journal op-ed. On taxation, he supports eliminating the grocery tax and reforming the property tax system by requiring the legislature to fully fund schools rather than passing costs to local levies. On housing, he has called for increased affordable housing supply to address a near-127 percent increase in Pocatello home values between 2017 and 2024. On public lands, he opposes any sale of state lands and supports maintaining public access for hunting, fishing, and recreation.

Political Alignment

Roberts is a Liberal Democrat. His platform combines labor union advocacy, reproductive rights, LGBTQ rights, public education defense, local control, and public lands protection into one of the most comprehensive Democratic platforms in Idaho's southeastern legislative delegation. His identity as a working tradesperson and elected union officer distinguishes him from most Idaho Democratic candidates and gives his working-class economic message particular credibility. The Indiana Capital Chronicle cited him in 2024 as one of a rare group of working-class people who hold seats at state legislative tables, per that publication.

Campaign and Endorsements

Roberts is running in the May 19, 2026, Democratic primary for District 29B against Burgoyne. No formal endorsements for his 2026 campaign have been publicly reported as of April 2026. Campaign finance records are available through the Idaho Secretary of State's Sunshine database.