Richard (Rick) Cheatum

Rick Cheatum: Idaho House District 28 Seat A, 2026 Election Profile

Rick Cheatum won the May 19, 2026 Republican primary for House District 28, Seat A with 3,120 votes, or 43.5 percent, beating James Lamborn's 2,885 votes (40.2 percent) and Mike Saville's 1,173 votes (16.3 percent), according to certified results from the Idaho Secretary of State. The primary was a rematch of the 2024 three-way race, which Cheatum also won. He faces Democrat Kim Jackman in the November 3, 2026 general election.

Background

Richard W. "Rick" Cheatum was born in western Kansas, raised on a farm, and moved to Idaho in 1977, according to his official legislative biography. He holds a B.S. in broadcast journalism from the University of Kansas. He worked in radio, automobile sales, and credit unions, and retired in 2017, when he decided to seek elective office.

He and his wife, Debra, have been married 34 years. They have a daughter, Nicole, and a step-son, Tony. His official bio also lists him as an NRA life member and an avid hunter, shooter, and reloader.

Pocatello City Council

Cheatum was elected to the Pocatello City Council in 2017 and re-elected in 2021. He served as Council President in 2022 and 2023, per his legislative bio. His council liaison assignments covered the Pocatello Airport Commission, the Bannock Transportation Planning Organization, the Pocatello Development Authority, Historic Downtown Pocatello, the Senior Activity Center, and the Southeastern Idaho Community Action Agency. He also served as a regional director of the Association of Idaho Cities.

He won his first House term in 2022 and took the seat on December 1 of that year, meaning he served on the City Council and in the Idaho House at the same time for more than three years, a stretch that ran across both of his House terms. He announced in August 2025 that he would not seek another council term, and his last council meeting came on January 8, 2026.

Legislative Record: Votes Against School Choice and a Dual-Office Ban

Cheatum is in his second term representing the district, which spans much of the Pocatello area and other parts of southeastern Idaho, per the Idaho Education News profile cited below.

Two 2025 votes stand out. The first was on House Bill 93, which created the Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit and the Idaho Parental Choice Tax Credit Advance Payment Fund. The bill passed the House 42-28-0 on February 7, 2025, and the Senate 20-15-0. Governor Brad Little signed it on February 27, 2025, and it took effect retroactively to January 1, 2025. Cheatum voted no.

He explained the vote to Idaho Education News in March 2026. The deficiency he saw in rural school funding was part of the reason, and he called the tax credit a redistribution of wealth. "I think there's an issue with it, yes, when we have so many needs across this state, not only in rural areas, but you know, we've cut highway transportation funding this year very dramatically," Cheatum said. He told the outlet he was not sure whether the tax credit would pull resources from public schools but knew schools had many needs. His interest in rural schools traces to his own account of his college years: raised in a town of 2,000, he said the gap became clear once he got to college. "It didn't take long to realize that as a rural student, I didn't get an equal education to those kids who lived in the metropolitan areas," he told Idaho Education News.

The second vote came two days later. House Bill 362 would have amended state law so that taking the oath for certain elective offices created a vacancy in certain other offices, meaning a legislator holding a local seat would have to give one up. The bill passed the House 43-27-0 on March 11, 2025. Cheatum voted no. At the time, he held both his House seat and his Pocatello City Council seat. The bill did not become law; the Senate took no further floor action on it in 2025.

2024 Primary and Outside Spending

The 2024 primary drew heavy outside money. Idaho Education News reported that two PACs spent a combined $73,416 to oppose Cheatum, while several PACs spent $26,167 to support him. His own campaign spent $36,020, and total spending in the race reached $135,603.

The largest opponent was the Idaho Federation for Children PAC, which spent $63,546 against him. Nearly all of that group's 2024 funding, $574,000, came from the Alabama-based national super PAC AFC Victory Fund, which billionaire Jeff Yass gave $8.7 million in 2023 and 2024. Make Liberty Win, a Virginia-based PAC, spent another $9,870 against him. "It's been really hard," Cheatum told the outlet. "I certainly can't match the donations."

Cheatum won anyway, taking 40 percent to Lamborn's 33.2 percent and Saville's 26.8 percent. He said his campaign style comes from Braver Angels, a nonprofit that promotes civil discourse, and told Idaho Education News he does not go negative when he campaigns.

Committees and 2026 Priorities

Cheatum sits on three House committees in the 2026 session: Business, Local Government, and Revenue & Taxation, according to his legislator page.

His campaign priorities page lists four areas in his own words: agriculture, education, water, and local control. On agriculture, he writes that he supports fair tax policies that exempt essential assets and policies that strengthen rural communities and family farms in Bannock, Power, and Franklin Counties. On education, he writes that every Idaho student deserves fair funding regardless of location, that he supports expanding vocational and technical training, and that the state should end its dependence on local bond levies for school facilities. On water, he writes that he advocates for local input in water policy to avoid one-size-fits-all state mandates. On local control, he writes that local issues should be resolved locally, without unfunded mandates from the state.

He also told Idaho Education News he supports career and technical education and the Idaho Launch grant program, which helps cover tuition for in-demand careers. "We need people to work as plumbers and carpenters and nurses and things that don't necessarily take a four-year degree," he said.

Civic and Party Background

Beyond elected office, Cheatum's legislative bio lists service as a Bannock County GOP precinct committeeman and past treasurer of the Bannock County GOP. He is a past president of Portneuf Valley Partners and of the Chamber Chiefs, and a former Idaho Central Credit Union board member and board chair. He received the Pocatello-Chubbuck Chamber of Commerce Volunteer of the Year award and the Idaho State University College of Education Volunteer of the Year award, and twice received the Award of Merit from the Region 5 supervisor for Idaho Fish and Game, where he served on and chaired the Region 5 Wildlife Feeding Committee.

His campaign site frames his candidacy around local experience: "With my background raised on a farm, decades in Southeast Idaho, and experience on the Pocatello City Council and Association of Idaho Cities Board, I fight for practical, local solutions that respect taxpayer dollars and promote self-reliance," the site states. On the Local Government Committee, he writes that he works "to reduce regulations on local governments, ensuring they have the autonomy to provide essential services like public safety and infrastructure without excessive state overreach."

Sources

• Idaho Secretary of State, certified May 2026 primary results
• Idaho State Legislature, official member page for Rep. Richard Cheatum
• Idaho State Legislature, House Bill 93 status page
• Idaho State Legislature, House Bill 362 status page
• Rick Cheatum for Idaho, campaign priorities page
• Idaho Education News, "District 28: School choice takes center stage in three-way rematch," March 23, 2026
• Idaho Secretary of State, Sunshine campaign finance portal