By Laura Guido – Story Originally Published in the Idaho Press Tribune
An educator in her 30s is challenging a longtime legislator in his 70s for the District 22 House Seat A.
Democrat Natalie Maclachlan, 32, is a theater teacher who lives and works in southwest Ada County and is a first-time candidate for public office. Republican John Vander Woude, 73, lives near Nampa and is in his sixth term in the House. He also served a term in 2006 to 2008, lost his bid for reelection, and then returned to the Legislature two years later.
District 22 covers southwest Ada County from around Victory Road to the north to near Hubbard Road to the south. It’s bounded by Cole Road on the eastern side of the district.
Legislative priorities
As co-chairman of the Idaho Broadband Advisory Board, Vander Woude named bringing internet access across the state as a top focus should he be reelected. He said there are a number of opportunities to use federal funding to install this infrastructure.
“I see broadband basically very similar to roads, it’s going to be an access point for everybody to try and get internet service to all of Idaho,” he said.
Maclachlan, as a public school teacher, said fully funding education would be her top priority if elected. She said she would support increased pay for teachers and staff, more programs for students, and protecting art, trade, career and technical education classes from being eliminated. The exodus and shortage of employees in the field is particularly concerning to her.
The rhetoric regarding schools coming from some members of the Legislature over the past two years was what motivated her to register as a candidate.
“I’m an educator, a public school teacher, and so during the COVID pandemic, I was increasingly frustrated with the attacks on public education, freezing of funds when we were most in need of help … and so that’s what really compelled me to run.”
Both candidates also named property tax relief as a primary area of concern.
Vander Woude said that while it’s difficult for the state to fix, because it’s mostly overseen by cities and counties, it’s too large of an issue not to address. He said he’d like to look into the state taking on school bonds, which could then relieve that burden from property taxes.
The increased funding the state recently allocated to education could then go to build new schools, he said, and local districts wouldn’t need to rely on bonds to do so.