Valerie Wade

Valerie Wade: Democratic Candidate for Idaho Senate, District 2

Valerie Wade, a Democrat, is challenging Republican incumbent Phil Hart for Idaho Senate District 2 on the November 3, 2026 general election ballot. Wade ran unopposed in the May 19 primary and received 1,202 votes. Hart, who is in his second Senate term after four previous terms in the Idaho House, was also unopposed in his primary and drew 8,511 votes. District 2 covers Shoshone, Benewah, and Clearwater counties along with parts of Kootenai and Bonner counties, according to the Idaho Legislature's district map. Wade filed for the seat during the February 2026 filing period, which Idaho Education News tracked.

Background

Wade is a geologist and registered environmental health specialist from Shoshone County. According to her campaign materials, her career includes work as a production geologist, stream survey technician, utilities cost analyst, mining cost analyst and researcher, food and septic inspector, and human resource assistant. She is a 2025 graduate of the National Environmental Health Association Leadership Academy and a graduate of the University of Idaho's Stormwater and Erosion Education Program. The Coeur d'Alene Press independently confirmed the stormwater credential in a 2020 candidate profile that described her interest in serving private landowners and protecting water quality.

Wade has held elected office once before. In November 2020, she ran in two separate county-designated contests for Kootenai-Shoshone Soil and Water Conservation District supervisor against the same seven opponents. She won the Shoshone County seat outright with 2,290 votes, or 17.6 percent. In the Kootenai County contest, she finished fifth of eight with 25,686 votes, or 12.4 percent. The Idaho Secretary of State's elections database records her overall result as one win out of two contests.

Where She Stands

Wade's campaign site organizes her platform around three slogans: “Keep Idaho's Public Lands in Public Hands,” “Support Education, Support Idaho,” and “Standing up for Rural Idaho.” Her background materials emphasize land and water issues, including her past work on stream surveys and septic inspection, and she has spoken about working with landowners to conserve and improve Idaho's natural resources as growth reshapes the region.

Sources

This profile draws on the Idaho Secretary of State's elections database, a 2020 Coeur d'Alene Press candidate profile, the Idaho Education News candidate filing roundup, and district information from the Idaho Legislature.