Treg A. Bernt

Treg A. Bernt: Idaho Senate District 21

Treg A. Bernt, the Republican incumbent state senator for District 21 in Meridian, is positioned for a third term without a November opponent. He ran unopposed in the May 19, 2026 Republican primary, receiving all 3,597 votes cast, according to official state election results. Democrat Brenda H. Quick won her own primary unopposed but withdrew from the general election on August 5, 2026. As of now, Bernt has no filed opponent for the November 3 ballot, barring a write-in candidacy.

Background

Bernt was born and raised in Pocatello and is a fourth-generation Idahoan. He graduated from Idaho State University with a B.A. in speech communication and moved to Meridian from Pocatello in 2003. In his own survey responses, he says that apart from two years living in Brazil and time spent at the University of Utah, he has lived in Idaho his entire life, according to the idahonews.com candidate survey.

His public service in Meridian started before his legislative career. He was elected twice to the Meridian City Council and served two years as Council President. He works as a business owner in the flooring industry: he was a territory manager for Shaw Industries before founding his own flooring business in 2015, which he runs alongside his family's existing flooring business in Pocatello. He and his wife Tiffanie have three children.

He currently holds three appointed or elected roles beyond the Senate, per his campaign site: a seat on the Idaho Broadband Advisory Board, a position on the Board of Directors of Your Health Idaho, the state's health insurance exchange, and a seat on the Legislative Council, to which the Senate Republican Caucus elected him.

Committees and legislative record

Bernt is in his second Senate term. He serves as Vice Chair of the Senate State Affairs Committee and sits on the Commerce and Human Resources and Local Government and Taxation committees, according to his official legislative page.

Two bill co-sponsorships stand out from his record. In 2023 he co-sponsored House Bill 292, a property-tax-relief bill that created the School District Facilities Fund and the Homeowner Property Tax Relief Account. In 2024 he co-sponsored House Bill 521, a statewide school-facilities-funding bill that also addressed school district bond and levy elections; the bill affects districts across Idaho, including West Ada.

Budget fights and the "scalpel" argument

Bernt's most visible moment of the 2026 session came during the Senate's debate over budget cuts. In March, the Senate passed Senate Bill 1331, a budget rescission act cutting $192.7 million in overall state funding, including $131.3 million from the general fund, on an 18-17 vote, according to Idaho Capital Sun. Bernt voted for the bill, but said the across-the-board cut was arbitrary and lazy, arguing that lawmakers should instead take a detailed look at individual programs to see where cuts were most appropriate. "I don't want it to seem like I'm against cutting when we need to cut," he said on the Senate floor. "However, what I'm against is, when we do cut, I believe that we need to do it in a responsible manner. I believe that we need to take a scalpel to these budgets, not necessarily a certain number across the board."

Idaho Freedom Index

The Idaho Freedom Foundation, a conservative advocacy group, scores legislators on how they vote on bills it rates. In its 2026 scorecard, Bernt received a Freedom Index grade of F (44.5 percent) and a Spending Index grade of F (11.2 percent). The scores reflect the advocacy group's own methodology, not an official or neutral rating of his record.

Campaign finance

Bernt has raised $68,684.94 in contributions this cycle and lent his campaign $10,000, per Idaho's Sunshine financial disclosure database. He has spent $28,475.74, leaving $113,146.89 in cash on hand with no outstanding debt. His largest contributors, giving $1,000 to $2,000 each, include the IBWDA PAC, Esto Perpetua, the Idaho Credit Union Legislative Action Committee, Intermountain Gas Company, Blue Cross of Idaho, United Heritage, Google, the J.R. Simplot Company, and the Idaho Association of Realtors.

What he says his priorities are

In the idahonews.com general election survey, Bernt listed three top priorities: safe communities and support for law enforcement, firefighters, and EMS; economic opportunity and reduced regulation for small businesses; and responsible investment in infrastructure as Idaho grows.

Asked what issue the legislature was failing to address, he pointed to children riding e-bikes and e-motorcycles, a topic he said comes up repeatedly in District 21. "This issue has tragically affected our family, so it's something that I want to address," he wrote.

Endorsements

Bernt's campaign site lists endorsements from Gov. Brad Little, former Gov. Butch Otter, Meridian Mayor Robert Simison, former Meridian Mayor Tammy de Weerd, and former Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder. Organizational endorsements include Meridian Firefighters Local 4627, Professional Firefighters of Idaho, the Idaho State FOP, the Idaho Farm Bureau, the Idaho Association of General Contractors, and the Idaho Hospital Association.

Sources

• Treg A. Bernt, official biography, Idaho Legislature
• Treg Bernt for Idaho Senate, campaign website
• 2026 general election survey: State Senate District 21, CBS2/FOX9
• Idaho Senate narrowly approves 4% budget cuts for most state agencies, departments, Idaho Capital Sun
• Lawmaker Leaderboard, Idaho Freedom Index
• Treg Bernt candidate profile, Idaho Sunshine portal
• Certified May 19, 2026 primary election results, Idaho Secretary of State