ID GOP Chair: Ammon Bundy Not Welcome to Run for Governor Due to Previous Black Lives Matter Alliance and Support for Defunding Police

Anti-government activist Ammon Bundy announced his intentions to run for Governor of the state of Idaho. He gained notoriety as the son of Cliven Bundy, the central figure in the 2014 Bundy Standoff, and for the occupation of the Malheur Wildlife Refuge in 2016. 

Shortly after the announcement, the Idaho Republican Party Chairman Tom Luna released a statement laying out several reasons why “Ammon Bundy is not suited to call himself an Idaho Republican let alone run for Governor of our great state.” 

The statement from the GOP Party Chairman stresses that the Republican Party is a party of law and order and cannot tolerate Bundy’s “antics or his chaotic political theater.”

Ammon Bundy has been arrested several times by Idaho State Police on multiple occasions. He has accrued several charges for trespassing at the Idaho Capitol, including two on the same day. 

Luna also points out that Mr. Bundy is not registered as a Republican. In fact, he is not even registered to vote in the state of Idaho, which is required to run for office.

The statement goes on to say that Bundy, “openly supports defunding the police, and has known alliances with the radical factions of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement,” making it clear that the Idaho GOP has no interest in being associated with him.

Ammon’s alliance with Black Lives Matter was short-lived, and it’s likely the left-wing organization didn’t reciprocate his request to become one anti-government entity. Nevertheless, many of his fans were disappointed when that happened while many others stuck with him. Read more about that here.

Read the full statement from Idaho Republican Party Chairman Tom Luna here: 

“Last month, I reaffirmed the Idaho Republican Party’s stance in the upcoming 2022 primary elections. We will be fair and uniformed for all registered Republicans running for office, and we will keep that commitment. Recently, it has come to our attention that Ammon Bundy intends to declare his candidacy in the Republican primary for the Governor of Idaho, and this warrants a response.

First, Mr. Bundy is currently not registered to vote in Idaho, and he is not even registered as a Republican. Furthermore, we do not support his antics or his chaotic political theater. That is not the Idaho Republican Party, and we will not turn a blind eye to his behaviors.

To be clear, I was elected Chairman of the Idaho Republican Party to unite all Republicans to share and celebrate conservative values and preserve our traditional way of life. Conversely, Ammon Bundy wishes to divide our party, openly supports defunding the police, and has known alliances with the radical factions of the Black Lives Matter (BLM) movement.

Republicans are the party of law and order, and Ammon Bundy is not suited to call himself an Idaho Republican let alone run for Governor of our great state.”

Here is an article we did about some of the Republicans running for Governor against Brad Little. This writing focuses mostly on Ed Humphreys in particular. We have covered some of the other candidates in other stories as well. Many think current Governor Brad Little will stay in office, but time will tell. There will be some interesting stories soon about Democrats running for the spot as well, stay tuned for more.