The filing deadline for Kootenai County’s November 3 general election has closed, with the vast majority of races featuring Republican candidates running unopposed. Two seats on the North Idaho College board of trustees are also up for election, both held by incumbents who face no challengers in the fall.
At NIC, trustees Tarie Zimmerman and Brad Corkill—both elected in 2022—will retain their seats without opposition. The two positions represent half of the five-member board. A third trustee seat does not appear on the 2026 ballot.
County Races Dominated by Unopposed Republicans
Six Kootenai County races will feature only Republican candidates on the November ballot. County Commissioner Bruce Mattare will retain his position unopposed, as will County Clerk Jennifer Locke and County Coroner Duke Johnson.
In Commissioner District 1, Julie Hensley will succeed Marc Eberlein, the two-term commissioner who chose not to seek reelection. Hensley will run unopposed. Carlos Zamora will take the Kootenai County Treasurer position without opposition, replacing Steve Matheson, who did not run for another term.
Allyson Knapp will run unopposed for Kootenai County Assessor, having defeated incumbent Béla Kovacs in the Republican primary election earlier this year.
Assessor Race Marked by Legal Challenge
Knapp’s path to the general election ballot was complicated by a residency dispute. After losing the primary, Kovacs filed a lawsuit seeking to remove Knapp’s name from the November ballot, alleging she did not meet Kootenai County residency requirements for the assessor position.
Knapp disputed the allegation, and a judge dismissed Kovacs’s lawsuit last week for being filed too late in the election cycle. However, the judge’s decision left open the possibility that Kovacs could challenge the results of the general election after voting concludes.
The residency question had surfaced earlier when Kovacs, in her capacity as the sitting assessor, revoked Knapp’s homestead exemption. The Idaho Board of Tax Appeals subsequently overturned that decision, affirming that county commissioners had correctly restored Knapp’s homestead exemption in 2025. The board stated that Knapp “took every reasonable step” to establish her Rathdrum property as her domicile in 2022.
What Comes Next
Voters across Kootenai County will cast ballots on November 3. With most races unopposed, the primary election in May effectively determined the outcomes for county offices. The NIC board races will be decided by general election voters, with Zimmerman and Corkill seeking confirmation for another term.
For more on local elections and county governance, see related coverage on recent leadership elections within the Association of Idaho Cities and Coeur d’Alene Council decisions affecting county resources.