Scott Herndon

State Senator Legislative District 1

Biography and Background

As a self-taught home builder with a previous career in finance and computer programming, Scott Herndon built his own home in Idaho in 2005, acquiring skills which he developed into a full-time career as owner and operator of Scott Herndon Homes. In short order, it became a great success and a primary contributor to Bonner County’s booming housing market. A true family-values conservative, Scott’s sons help him with the family business.

As a Christian, a husband, and a father of eight, Scott believes in preserving and protecting human life. He has followed this in word and deed as an active Abortion Abolitionist and Pro-Gun advocate.

Scott has served his community for 5 years as a Bonner County jail chaplain and is now chairman of the Bonner County Republican Central Committee.

Married for 24 years to Arlene, Scott has resided near Sandpoint for 18 years. In his spare time, Scott enjoys the beautiful outdoors of the Gem State, boating on Lake Pend Oreille, and building a new workshop on his property. His five daughters all still live on the family farm, milking the family’s two milk cows and raising chickens and pigs. They are also talented musicians who have just started to publish their music online.

Top 3 Issues

Issue 1

Value and protect individual liberties. These liberties include those enumerated in the state and federal constitutions and those granted by our Creator. Scott’s mission will be to restrain encroachments on individual liberty from all levels of civil government. We saw shocking violations of individual liberty during the Covid pandemic. For example, in Idaho a mother was arrested for taking her children to play in a public park. Separately, a Christian was arrested in North Idaho for attending his church’s outdoor worship service. In 2020, it was a crime in Idaho to have family gatherings for Thanksgiving and Christmas. This governmental overreach should never have been tolerated. Scott Herndon would help ensure that government never shuts down businesses and churches, and government should never require masks nor vaccines in response to a pandemic. On an ongoing business, government regulation of human lives should always remain extremely limited, and individual liberty should always be respected and protected by those in government.

Issue 2

Uphold the constitutional authority of the state of Idaho in relation to the federal government and prevent the encroachments on that authority by an overreaching federal government. Idaho is already constitutionally authorized and must actively oppose federal power grabs. An example is when the Feds try to unconstitutionally seize power from the state by massive federal cash infusions to the state with unconstitutional strings attached. The federal government currently funds 43% of Idaho’s budget. A lot of THAT money is borrowed against future generations of Americans. This lack of fiscal responsibility by the federal government has led to massive inflation and a mushrooming national debt and erosion of the financial prosperity of Idahoans. Federal debt spending MUST be resisted by the states. If the Congress won’t exercise fiscal responsibility, then the states should say no to Congress’ debt fueled cash giveaways. This means Idaho should start to say no to all national debt financed federal programs, those that were created during Covid and those that have been propagated for decades. Similarly, the federal government claims ownership of 63% of the land in Idaho. Idaho should retake control of these lands. This would help solve the housing crisis and real estate price shocks from high demand, and it would result in better management of these lands locally rather than the mismanagement we have experienced from 3,000 miles away in Washington DC.

Issue 3

Enforce the boundaries that exist between the several branches of government. During the Covid era, we have seen these boundaries obliterated. Legislatures make laws, not governors, Presidents, nor judges. The Idaho legislature must actively fight for their constitutionally granted lawmaking authority and resist power grabs by activist judges, overzealous governors, Presidents and un-elected bureaucratic agencies. The legislature is closest to the people and is best positioned to fight for the interests of all Idahoans. One example: Idaho’s governor changed the 2020 May election statutes by executive proclamation. The legislature is the only body in Idaho authorized to change statutes, and the governor should have been compelled to call the legislature into session to accomplish his goals. In 2020, Idaho passed the Fairness in Women’s Sports Act which would prohibit biological males from competing against girls in girls’ sports. A federal court declared the law unconstitutional. Idaho should ignore such judicial activism from the bench on this and other subjects like traditional marriage and murder by abortion. The idea that the judiciary would rule our country is foreign to our founders and the constitution. The legislature and the executive branch of Idaho MUST resist activist judges. Legislatures make laws, not courts.

Integrity in Affiliation

Submission: Yes

“I have read the Idaho Constitution and the Idaho Republican Party Platform. I support the Idaho Republican Platform and accept it as the standard by which my performance as a candidate and as an officeholder should be evaluated. I certify that I am not a candidate, officer, delegate or position holder in any party other than the Republican Party.”