Gov. Otter officially announces campaign with statewide tour

It is no secret that Idaho Gov. C.L. “Butch” Otter is running for re-election. Wednesday, he made it official with a whirlwind, formal tour around the state.

The governor started his day in Meridian, stopped in Twin Falls, spent lunch in Idaho Falls, and then finished out the tour in Coeur d’Alene. The Idaho Falls stop was at Snake River Landing at the new Scientech building that is under construction.

Gov. Otter joked that his previous stops were warmer, but this location made sense: It showed the growth made in Idaho. He mingled with local lawmakers and then gave a brief speech.

Otter spoke about his commitment to the 20 recommendations from the Task Force for Education.

“Sure, they told us it was going to cost us about 350 million bucks. I believe I and the legislature are committed to that 350 million bucks to be spent, including this year, over the next four years,” said Otter.

When asked about his primary competition, state Sen. Russ Fulcher, he said, “The difference between Russ Fulcher and I is he talks about what he thinks he can do. I already said in my opening speech what we are going to continue to do. It’s proven against theory.”

The Republican primary election is May 20.