On July 1, District 16 Rep. Todd Achilles announced he plans to leave the Democratic Party to run as an independent candidate for Senate. He will be challenging current U.S. Sen. Jim Risch, R-Idaho, in the next Senate election cycle in November 2026.
Risch, who has been endorsed by Donald Trump, has served as an Idaho state senator since 2009. On Achilles’ website, he says, “I’m running for the U.S. Senate because the two-party system has failed Idaho. Both parties threaten public lands, grow the national debt, keep us in forever wars and support corporations over families. I will fight for Idahoans, not billionaires or extremists.”
In his campaign video, he continued this sentiment. “We must rebuild an economy where a 40-hour week supports a home, a family and a future. And in Congress, we need term limits, a stock trading ban and money out of our elections,” said Achilles. “I’m running to recommit ourselves to the Constitution and to each other.”
To the Idaho Capital Sun, he expressed his growing frustration with both the Democratic and Republican parties, referencing the increased federal debt, deficit and the country’s continued involvement in overseas conflicts. “We cannot spend more lives and money on endless foreign conflicts,” he said in his campaign video.
Achilles comes from a farming background and served as a tank commander and armor officer in the U.S. Army. He spent 20 years in the tech sector, and today he teaches public policy and advocates for veterans.
In a brief statement to The Argonaut, Achilles emphasized that politicians need to reassess“how we run this country and for whomwe run this country. … The two-party system is broken, it’s just not working at all.”
Achilles also recognized the growing demographic of independent voters across the country in recent years. As he said to the Capital Sun, “People are tired of a system that is more and more divisive.”
According to a 2024 Forbes report, the percentage of adults in the country self-identifying as Democrats fell to 27% in 2023, from a survey of 12,000. This shows a steady decline from the higher percentage of 36% in 2008 and 1998.
“[We need to assess] for whom we need to start focusing this country. If you’re a millennial or Gen Z, the American Dream is out of reach,” Achilles said. “The system is broken and that didn’t just happen.”
More information on Achilles’ campaign is available on his website.
Julia Kolman can be reached at [email protected].