Russ Fulcher

Russ Fulcher
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho's 1st district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 3, 2019
Preceded by	Raúl Labrador
Member of the Idaho Senate
In office December 1, 2005 – December 1, 2014
Preceded by	Jack Noble
Succeeded by	Lori Den Hartog
Constituency	21st district (2005-2012) 22nd district (2012-2014)
Personal details
Born	Russell Mark Fulcher (1962-03-09) March 9, 1962 (age 62) Boise, Idaho, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Kara Fulcher ​ ​ (m. 1987; div. 2018)​
Children	3
Education	Boise State University (BBA, MBA)
Website	House website

Russell Mark Fulcher^[1] (born March 9, 1962) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for Idaho's 1st congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he represented the 21st district in the Idaho Senate from 2005 to 2012 and the 22nd district from 2012 until 2014.

Fulcher ran for governor of Idaho in 2014, unsuccessfully challenging incumbent Butch Otter in the primary. He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in 2018, succeeding incumbent Raúl Labrador, who retired from Congress to run, unsuccessfully, for governor of Idaho.

Fulcher is a member of the Freedom Caucus.

Early life and education

A fourth-generation Idahoan, Fulcher was born in Boise, Idaho, but grew up on a dairy farm in Meridian, Idaho.^[2] He received both a bachelor's and master's degree in business administration from Boise State University in 1984 and 1988, respectively.^[3] He also completed a course on electronic engineering through Micron Technology.^[4]

Career

While a member of the Idaho legislature, Fulcher worked as a broker in the commercial real estate business. Before that, he was involved in Idaho's technology industry. Fulcher spent much of that time working in international business development with Micron Technology.^{[citation needed]}

Idaho Senate

Idaho Senate District 21

In 2005, Governor Dirk Kempthorne appointed Fulcher to the Idaho State Senate, representing the 21st legislative district, which encompasses large parts of Boise, Meridian and Kuna, to replace Jack Noble, who resigned after a conflict of interest. Fulcher was first elected in 2006 and served through 2012.^[5][6]

Idaho Senate District 22

Fulcher represented District 22 in the Idaho Senate from 2012 to 2014.^[7] He served as Majority Caucus Leader from 2008 to 2012 and from 2013 to 2014.^[8]

Committees

Fulcher served on the following committees:

• Senate Education Committee (Member)
• Senate State Affairs Committee (Vice-chairman)^[9]

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2018

See also: 2018 United States House of Representatives elections in Idaho § District 1

On June 15, 2017, Fulcher announced that he would seek the Republican nomination for Idaho's 1st congressional district in the 2018 election.^[10][11]

He was endorsed by the incumbent representative, Raúl Labrador,^[12] and Texas Senator Ted Cruz.^[13]

Fulcher won the Idaho Republican Party primary with 43.1% of the vote, defeating David H. Leroy, Luke Malek, Christy Perry, Michael Snyder, Alex Gallegos, and Nick Henderson.^[14] Fulcher won 18 of 19 counties in Idaho's 1st congressional district. He was one of two candidates to win his home county.^[15]

He won the general election in November with 62.7% of the vote, defeating Cristina McNeil^[14] (Democrat), W. Scott Howard^[16] (Libertarian), and Marvin "Pro-Life" Richardson (Constitution).^[17]

2020

See also: 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in Idaho § District 1

Fulcher was reelected on November 3, 2020, with 67.8% of the vote, defeating Rudy Soto (Democrat) and Joe Evans (Libertarian).

Tenure

In December 2020, Fulcher was one of 126 Republican members of the House of Representatives to sign an amicus brief in support of Texas v. Pennsylvania, a lawsuit filed at the United States Supreme Court contesting the results of the 2020 presidential election, in which Joe Biden defeated^[18] incumbent Donald Trump. The Supreme Court declined to hear the case on the basis that Texas lacked standing under Article III of the Constitution to challenge the results of an election held by another state.^[19][20][21]

On December 1, 2023, Fulcher voted against the expulsion of Representative George Santos.^[22]

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:^[23]

• Committee on Energy and Commerce
  • Subcommittee on Communications and Technology
  • Subcommittee on Environment, Manufacturing, and Critical Minerals
  • Subcommittee on Innovation, Data, and Commerce
• Committee on Natural Resources
  • Subcommittee on Energy and Mineral Resources
  • Subcommittee on Federal Lands

Caucus memberships

• Freedom Caucus^{[citation needed]}
• Republican Study Committee^[24]

Political positions

Israel

Fulcher voted to provide Israel with support following 2023 Hamas attack on Israel.^[25][26]

Big Tech

In 2022, Fulcher was one of 39 Republicans to vote for the Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022, an antitrust package that would crack down on corporations for anti-competitive behavior.^[27][28]

Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023

Fulcher was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House.^[29]

Electoral history

Idaho Gubernatorial Republican Primary, 2014^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Butch Otter (incumbent)	79,779	51.4
	Republican	Russ Fulcher	67,694	43.6
	Republican	Harley Brown	5,084	3.3
	Republican	Walt Bayes	2,753	1.8
Total votes			155,310	100.0

Idaho 1st Congressional District Republican Primary, 2018^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Russ Fulcher	42,793	43.1
	Republican	David H. Leroy	15,451	15.6
	Republican	Luke Malek	14,154	14.3
	Republican	Christy Perry	11,110	11.2
	Republican	Michael Snyder	10,255	10.3
	Republican	Alex Gallegos	3,478	3.5
	Republican	Nick Henderson	2,003	2.0
Total votes			99,244	100.0

Idaho 1st Congressional District General Election, 2018^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Russ Fulcher	197,167	62.7
	Democratic	Cristina McNeil	96,932	30.8
	Independent	Natalie Fleming	6,188	2.0
	Libertarian	W. Scott Howard	5,435	1.7
	Independent	Paul Farmer	4,479	1.4
	Constitution	Marvin "Pro-Life" Richardson	3,181	1.0
	Independent	Gordon Counsil	1,054	0.3
	Independent	Michael J. Rath (write-in)	91	0.0
Total votes			314,527	100.0
	Republican hold

Idaho 1st Congressional District Republican Primary, 2020^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Russ Fulcher (incumbent)	93,879	79.9
	Republican	Nicholas Jones	23,657	20.1
Total votes			117,536	100.0

Idaho 1st Congressional District General Election, 2020^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Russ Fulcher (incumbent)	310,736	67.8
	Democratic	Rudy Soto	131,380	28.7
	Libertarian	Joe Evans	16,453	3.6
	Write-ins	Pro-Life	7	0.0
Total votes			458,576	100.0
	Republican hold

Idaho 1st Congressional District General Election, 2022

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Republican	Russ Fulcher (incumbent)	222,901	71.3
	Democratic	Kaylee Peterson	82,261	26.3
	Libertarian	Darian Drake	7,280	2.3
Total votes			312,442	100.0
	Republican hold

Other political campaigns

2014 gubernatorial race

On November 23, 2013, Fulcher announced his intention to run against incumbent governor Butch Otter in the 2014 Idaho gubernatorial election.^[32] He was endorsed by Congressman Raúl Labrador.^[33]

Fulcher lost to Otter in the May 2014 Republican primary, earning 43.6% of the vote.^[34]

2016 presidential election

Fulcher was a Ted Cruz delegate at the 2016 Republican National Convention.^[35] He supported Donald Trump in the general election.^[36]

2018 gubernatorial race

Fulcher announced on August 24, 2016, that he was running for governor.^[37][38]

On June 15, 2017, he announced that he was dropping out of the 2018 Idaho gubernatorial election and would instead run for Idaho's 1st congressional district in the 2018 cycle.^[39]

Personal life

Fulcher was married to Kara Fulcher from 1987 to 2018. They have three adult children.^[40]

Fulcher is an Evangelical.^[41]

References

1. Dan Popkey, Twenty years and a revolution in the Republican Party separate Otter and Fulcher, The Idaho Statesman
2. "Biography". Congressman Russ Fulcher. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
3. "US Congress Rep. Russ Fulcher (R) | TrackBill". trackbill.com. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
4. "9B News". 9b.news. Retrieved October 20, 2022.
5. "Who Is Russ Fulcher?". Idaho Statesman. November 25, 2013.
6. "2012 General Results Legislative". www.sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
7. "2012 General Results Legislative". www.sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
8. Miller, John. "Denney ousted as house speaker". Argus Observer. Ontario, OR. Associated Press. Retrieved May 3, 2017.
9. Project Vote Smart - Senator Russ Fulcher - Biography
10. "Russ Fulcher makes it official: He's leaving Idaho governor's race to run for Congress". idahostatesman. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
11. "Fulcher drops out of guv race, switches to 1st CD, winning Labrador's endorsement". Spokesman.com. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
12. "Fulcher shifts gears, runs for Congress". Idaho Education News. June 15, 2017. Retrieved June 15, 2017.
13. "Ted Cruz Endorses Russ Fulcher in Idaho Congressional Race". U.S. News & World Report. March 18, 2018. Retrieved April 19, 2018.
14. Almukhtar, Sarah (May 15, 2018). "Idaho Primary Election Results". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
15. "Idaho Secretary of State-US Representative District 1 – by County".
16. "Home | W. SCOTT HOWARD FOR IDAHO". www.wsh4idaho.org. Retrieved May 25, 2018.
17. Almukhtar, Sarah (January 5, 2019). "Idaho Election Results: First House District". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved January 5, 2019.
18. Blood, Michael R.; Riccardi, Nicholas (December 5, 2020). "Biden officially secures enough electors to become president". AP News. Archived from the original on December 8, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
19. Liptak, Adam (December 11, 2020). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
20. "Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. December 11, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
21. Diaz, Daniella. "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
22. "Who voted to expel George Santos? Here's the count on the House expulsion resolution - CBS News". www.cbsnews.com. December 1, 2023. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
23. "Russ Fulcher". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved May 24, 2023.
24. "Membership". Republican Study Committee. December 6, 2017. Retrieved March 30, 2021.
25. Demirjian, Karoun (October 25, 2023). "House Declares Solidarity With Israel in First Legislation Under New Speaker". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
26. Washington, U. S. Capitol Room H154; p:225-7000, DC 20515-6601 (October 25, 2023). "Roll Call 528 Roll Call 528, Bill Number: H. Res. 771, 118th Congress, 1st Session". Office of the Clerk, U.S. House of Representatives. Retrieved October 30, 2023.
27. "House passes antitrust bill that hikes M&A fees as larger efforts targeting tech have stalled". CNBC. September 29, 2022.
28. "H.R. 3843: Merger Filing Fee Modernization Act of 2022 -- House Vote #460 -- Sep 29, 2022".
29. Gans, Jared (May 31, 2023). "Republicans and Democrats who bucked party leaders by voting no". The Hill. Retrieved June 6, 2023.
30. "Russell M. Fulcher (R)". Idaho Secretary of State's Office. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
31. "Russ Fulcher (R)". Idaho Secretary of State's Office. Retrieved January 24, 2022.
32. "Sen. Russ Fulcher announces for governor". idahostatesman. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
33. "Raul Labrador backs Russ Fulcher for Idaho governor". Spokesman.com. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
34. "Statewide Totals". www.sos.idaho.gov. Retrieved May 1, 2017.
35. "Idaho's Semanko: GOP floor fight not about dumping Trump | Idaho Statesman". www.idahostatesman.com. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
36. Idahoans for Liberty Campaign 2016 (November 8, 2016), Russ Fulcher Idaho leading on States Rights, archived from the original on December 15, 2021, retrieved May 2, 2017
37. "Russ Fulcher explains his qualifications for Idaho governor". idahostatesman. Retrieved November 3, 2016.
38. "Russ Fulcher for Governor 2018 – YouTube". YouTube. June 14, 2017. Archived from the original on June 14, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
39. Russ Fulcher (June 14, 2017), "Russ Fulcher For Congress | My Announcement", youtube.com, retrieved June 15, 2017
40. "Idaho congressman Russ Fulcher quietly divorced prior to election | The Spokesman-Review". www.spokesman.com. Retrieved December 29, 2021.
41. "JNS: Russ Fulcher - an evangelical Christian from Idaho who will 'stand' with Israel". January 3, 2020.

External links

• Congressman Russ Fulcher official U.S. House website
• Close partner Brandi Swindell
• Russ Fulcher for Congress
• Biography at the Biographical Directory of the United States Congress
• Financial information (federal office) at the Federal Election Commission
• Legislation sponsored at the Library of Congress
• Profile at Vote Smart
• Financial details at OpenSecrets
• Appearances on C-SPAN

Idaho Senate
Preceded by Jack Noble	Member of the Idaho Senate from the 21st district 2005–2012	Succeeded by Cliff Bayer
Preceded by Tim Corder	Member of the Idaho Senate from the 22nd district 2012–2014	Succeeded by Lori Den Hartog
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by Raúl Labrador	Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Idaho's 1st congressional district 2019–present	Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by Lizzie Fletcher	United States representatives by seniority 236th	Succeeded by Chuy García