By Darrel Kerby
Did any of you know about this attempt to take your vote away? Buried in the Idaho Republican Party’s official platform is a provision to repeal the 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution — the very amendment that guarantees your right to vote for your United States senator.
That’s not just a policy tweak. That’s a direct assault on your voice, your vote, and your power as a citizen.
Let’s call this what it is: a power grab by the party’s far-right extremists. These aren’t reforms aimed at strengthening democracy — they’re maneuvers to concentrate control in the hands of a few. Idaho’s Republican Party, once a broad tent of conservative values and civic responsibility, continues to drift away from its core principles.
Instead of representing the people, it increasingly serves the ambitions of the power-hungry elite — those who believe they know better than the voters and who want to decide for you, not with you.
Repealing the 17th Amendment would mean turning over the power to choose our senators to the Idaho Legislature — a body already dominated by narrow ideological factions and internal party machinery.
Do you trust them to speak for all of us? Do you want your vote replaced by legislative backroom deals?
The current system works. It puts the power where it belongs — in the hands of the people. Senators must earn our trust, campaign across the state and answer to us.
That’s accountability. That’s democracy. And that’s exactly what the extremists want to dismantle.
Let’s not pretend this is about constitutional purity or restoring balance. It’s about control. It’s about silencing voters and empowering insiders. Idahoans should reject this effort with clarity and conviction.
Because once your vote is gone, it won’t be the last thing they try to take.