High-profile Hailey attorney and former attorney general candidate Keith Roark has been elected chairman of the Idaho Democratic Party.
Members of the party's Central Committee elected Roark on Friday, Jan. 4. He succeeds former Idaho Rep. Larry Stallings, who stepped down Dec. 20. Roark defeated Jerry Brady, two-time candidate for Idaho governor, in the secret ballot for party chair.
"It is time for Idaho Democrats to take a cold, hard look at some rather dismal facts," Roark said in a written statement. "In the general elections of 1994, 1998, 2002 and 2006, Idaho Democrats have lost 24 of the 28 races for statewide office. Today, not one statewide elected official is a Democrat. We have not won a U.S. Senate race since 1974 and have lost every race for the U.S. House of Representatives since 1992."
Roark, 58, ran unsuccessfully for attorney general against Republican Lawrence Wasden in 2002.
He said it is unfortunate for all Idahoans—Democrats, Republicans and independents alike—that Idaho no longer has a two-party system.
"As a result, there is no accountability for our top elected officials," he said, going on to point a finger at some of Idaho's elected Republicans.
"When there is no effective two-party system, there is no accountability," he said. "Where there is no accountability, there is no responsibility. Elected officials under such circumstances eventually ignore not just those who did not vote for them but those who did as well."
But Roark said he could feel the "first faint rumblings of a still distant earthquake" that will restore integrity, fair play and openness to Idaho government. He said the "one-party system" at work in Idaho caters to special interests, replacing the power of the ballot.
"I am a realist," he said. "The one-party system is firmly entrenched in this state and will not be overcome in a single election year. The road ahead is long and hard. We are going to be patient, persistent and tenacious.
"We are going to rebuild our party from the ground up. Seizing upon the winds of change that are clearly blowing across this nation, we will build momentum, not just over the coming months but over the coming years. We will build precinct by precinct, county by county, district by district, election by election."
Roark concluded by saying he is not naïve enough to believe that, 10 years from now, the people of Idaho will reflect that 2008 was the year Idaho Democrats made a comeback.
"But they will say that 2008 was the year the great comeback of the Idaho Democratic Party began," he said.
Roark is the senior and managing partner of the Roark Law Firm in Hailey. He previously served as Blaine County prosecuting attorney and mayor of Hailey.
Hailey attorney Keith Roark has been elected chairman of the Idaho Democratic Party. Photo by Mountain Express
