State Preemption Through the Lens of Idaho Local Officials
Abstract
In this field note, we partnered with the Association of Idaho Cities (AIC) to conduct an original survey of 119 mayors and city councilors across the State to assess their perceptions of – and experiences with – state preemption. We find that local officials across Idaho, Democrat and Republican alike, are strongly opposed to preemption and overwhelmingly believe that it negatively affects local affairs. We also find that, despite their limited autonomy, local officials express a desire to resist state preemption through various mechanisms, ranging from advocacy efforts and local ordinances to legal action and defiance. Our qualitative data corroborates our quantitative data, illustrating local officials’ negative sentiments about state preemption.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Public Policy and Administration Research
Electoral Systems and Political Participation
Policy Transfer and Learning
Publication details
- Journal / source
- State and Local Government Review
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Volume
- 58
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 309–320
- Publication date
- 31 January 2026
- Language
- EN