Judge Robert J Elgee won seven out of eight counties in Idaho's 5th Judicial District in Tuesday's primary election, but lost in Camas County, apparently because of lingering resentment there over court rulings Elgee made a few years ago.
With the final votes were tallied early Wednesday morning in the primary election, which for judges was the final election, Elgee was re-elected with 12,304 votes, 57.6 percent of the total, compared to 9,054 votes for challenger Douglas Werth, a Hailey attorney and former county prosecuting attorney.
Elgee, who has been Blaine County's district court judge for six years, scored best on the home turf, garnering 2,650 votes, 77.2 percent of the total, compared to 784 votes for Werth.
Elgee is also district court judge for Camas County, where he received only 35.8 percent of the vote. He received 143 votes and Werth received 257 votes. The county has a population of about 1,200.
Elgee's winning percentage was fairly consistent in the district's other six counties—Cassia, Gooding, Jerome, Lincoln, Minidoka and Twin Falls, ranging from 52.8 percent in Gooding County to 58.6 percent in Lincoln County.
Elgee said he stayed up late Tuesday evening as precinct returns came in for posting on the Secretary of State's website.
"I'm rested now," he said late Wednesday afternoon. "I did a lot of website checking last night. I did well in Blaine County, and I'm very pleased about that."
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Elgee said he wasn't particularly surprised about a poorer showing in Camas County.
"I've made some land-use decisions over there that probably didn't sit well," he said.
Camas County Commissioner Ronald Chapman said he didn't agree with Elgee's court decisions but did agree with his assessment of voter dissatisfaction.
"I believe they are upset," Chapman said about voters in Camas County.
He said many people were not happy with Elgee's ruling on a lawsuit filed against the county by Fairfield developer George Martin, who objected to procedural matters and alleged conflicts of interest involving Camas County's comprehensive plan.
In 2007, Elgee decided in Martin's favor, ruling that the plan was illegal. The next year, county officials redrafted and enacted essentially the same plan. Martin also challenged that plan, but the case went instead to 5th District Court Judge John Butler, who rejected Martin's claims.
The campaign between Elgee and Werth became somewhat heated in the final weeks before the election, but Elgee said, "It's over, so we'll let it go."
Elgee said he hopes business will go back to usual between him and Werth, who frequently represents clients in cases before Elgee.
"One of the things of being a judge is that you're not ruling for the attorney—you're ruling for or against the case," Elgee said. "That's one of the most important things about being a judge."
Werth released a short statement Thursday concerning the election.
"Judge Elgee ran an effective campaign and he is to be complimented," Werth stated. "I want to thank all of my supporters for their support and hard work. Challenging an incumbent is not easy. We had a tall mountain to climb and came up short."
Terry Smith: tsmith@mtexpress.com
Primary election vote results from the Idaho Secretary of State’s Office show that Judge Robert J. Elgee won seven of eight counties in the 5th Judicial District. Express graphic by Erik Elison
