Simpson, LeFavour winning primary for congressional race

Democratic U.S. congressional candidate Nicole LeFavour will face seven-term Republican U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson in November after both were well on their way to winning the 2012 primary election.

In voting Tuesday, LeFavour beat token candidate Jack Wayne Chappell of Buhl.

Simpson bested tea party-backed Marvin “Chick” Heileson, who also ran unsuccessfully in 2010. Though they weren’t running head to head, Simpson’s early vote totals show the daunting challenge faced by LeFavour, a retiring four-term Idaho state lawmaker, in the general election.

With about a quarter of precincts reporting, Simpson’s 69 percent Republican support included nearly 19,000 votes.

By contrast, LeFavour’s 82 percent Democratic support included only about 4,500 votes.

That difference illustrates how far more eastern Idaho Republicans went to the primary polls than did Democrats.