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Former President Donald Trump endorsed Idaho Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin for governor in a statement this week, calling her a “true supporter of MAGA since the very beginning.”
“I am giving Janice McGeachin my complete and total endorsement to be the governor of Idaho,” Trump said. “She will make a fantastic governor, and will never let you down.”
McGeachin is running to replace Republican Gov. Brad Little, who hasn’t yet announced whether he’s running for reelection, along with seven other declared Republican candidates, including activist Ammon Bundy.
McGeachin called Trump’s endorsement a great honor and added “Endorsed by President Trump” to her Twitter bio.
Many of Trump’s endorsements of nonincumbents this year have been acts of revenge against Republicans he deems disloyal to him. In the Idaho race, however, his relationship with the incumbent, Little, seemed fine.
Since Trump won the state by nearly 64% in 2020, Little wasn’t pressured by Trump to overturn election results like governors in swing states like Arizona and Georgia. And Trump called Little “a terrific gentleman” during a speech at Mar-a-Lago last week, Politico noted.
Still, Little didn’t court Trump’s endorsement like McGeachin. Last week, in a tweet that included a video wearing a red, signed “MAGA” hat, McGeachin said she met with Trump twice.
“It was great to meet with our president and share our ideas on what we need to do to protect our people both here in Idaho and in the nation,” she said in the video. McGeachin said they discussed issues including education, the border and their opposition to Republicans who voted for the bipartisan infrastructure bill.
Despite no evidence of widespread voter fraud, McGeachin has leaned into Trump’s claims about the 2020 election. After a Republican-backed audit in Arizona found no evidence the election was stolen, she called for additional audits in all 50 states.