Idaho Matters

(James Edmondson / Flickr)

For years now, Treasure Valley cities have been among some of the fastest-growing urban areas in the country. And Idaho's not alone; since the late 1700s, there have been identifiable growth spurts in America's population that have sometimes lasted for decades.

However, have you ever wondered why population shifts like this suddenly take place?

That's a question that Tom Baerwald will be answering in his upcoming lecture with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute. He’s been studying how and why America's metropolitan regions have changed over time, and he's joined Idaho Matters for a preview.

(Emilie Ritter Saunders / Boise State Public Radio)

Election Day is just one day away, and while we have seen unprecedented early voting in Idaho to date, officials are expecting even bigger numbers on Tuesday.

We wanted to get a preview of tomorrow’s election, so we turned to Boise State political science professor Jaclyn Kettler. She sat down with our Morning Edition host, George Prentice, to break down what the election might look like in Idaho.

People incarcerated at the Jefferson County jail vote in the 2024 general election. All Colorado jails are holding at least six hours of in-person voting as a result of a new state law. (Rachel Cohen / KUNC )

In a waiting room inside the Jefferson County Jail, in the foothills West of Denver, a few incarcerated people in gray uniforms are filling out paperwork to vote.

A sheriff’s deputy brings them to a neighboring room to check in with election volunteers. Behind a folding table, Kyle Giddings looks up their case history on a laptop and asks for their home addresses to determine what ballots they should get.

“He is good and eligible to vote,” said Giddings, the civic engagement coordinator at the Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition, as he looks over one voter’s forms.

The laws about when people with felony convictions can vote again vary by state. In Colorado, they can vote after being released from jail or prison. So, Giddings makes sure the interested voters aren’t currently serving time for a felony.

However, most of the roughly half a million people in jails across the country have not lost the right to vote. They’re awaiting trial, meaning they haven’t been found guilty of a crime, or they're serving misdemeanor sentences. But very few people in jail cast ballots.

About 900 people in the Jefferson County Jail were allowed to vote in the 2022 midterms, yet only three actually did.

Nine years ago, Giddings was incarcerated in this very jail.

“I dealt with addiction for years and finally it all caught up to me,” he said.

It was the lead up to the 2016 election, and he was talking about it with others in his pod.

“They just assumed they could never vote again,” he said. “It was kind of in that moment that I realized that this is work that needs to be done.”

Kyle Giddings was formerly incarcerated at the Jefferson County Jail. Now he's helping the jail run its first-ever in-person polling place. (Rachel Cohen / KUNC )

Aside from misinformation about eligibility, there are numerous other barriers to voting from jail. Often, you need to switch your home address to the jail to receive an absentee ballot, which can be further complicated if you’ve never registered to vote before. To fill out the ballot you might need to ask permission to use a pen – considered contraband. Then, you need to navigate the jail mail system to return your ballot on time. The rules and protocols can differ in each jail.

That’s why The Colorado Criminal Justice Reform Coalition helped pass a state law this year to reduce those obstacles. The law requires all county jails in the state to stand up in-person voting for at least six hours. This is the first election it’s in effect.

An election volunteer checks people in to vote at the Jefferson County Jail. (Rachel Cohen / KUNC )

In his pod, Jesus Rodriguez studied Colorado’s information booklet on ballot measures. He even recited it to a neighbor who isn't able to read. But when he woke up on the morning of election day inside the jail, he wasn’t sure if he was going to vote. He didn’t know whether he was eligible to cast a ballot.

“Somebody was like, ‘Why don’t you just go check,?’” Rodriguez said.

It turned out he was eligible. Rodriguez had never voted before.

“I felt like my voice didn't matter because I've been incarcerated multiple times; I've lived a hectic lifestyle,” he said.

When Rodriguez entered the voting room, an election volunteer handed him a ballot. He sat down at a gray desk with partitions on both sides. When he was done, he stuffed the ballot in a yellow bag, and a deputy escorted him out of the room. He said he’s proud he voted.

Election volunteers facilitate the first in-person voting inside the Jefferson County Jail.(Rachel Cohen / KUNC )

“It made me feel really good to know my opinion matters in this situation,” Rodriguez said.

Many consider jail-based polling places the best way to eliminate the hurdles people in jail face to voting. Yet just a handful of jails around the country offer in-person voting. Colorado is the first state to require it in all counties.

However, not everyone was initially on board. The state sheriffs’ association opposed the law in the legislature. Sam Zordel, the Prowers County Sheriff and the president of the association, said the group wasn’t trying to block anyone from voting, but it thought the old system was working and the new one could mean more work and money, especially for smaller counties.

“We felt that it may create undue stress on certain agencies that didn’t need it because they were probably already allowing inmates to vote,” he said.

Yet advocates say the extremely low voter participation in jails across the country leaves room for improvement. In Arizona, they’re working to help people navigate their eligibility and polling them on whether they’ve received accurate voting information from elections offices.

An election volunteer helps voters in the Jefferson County Jail submit their ballots. (Rachel Cohen / KUNC )

In Nevada, a new state law requires jails to put into writing a plan to ensure that qualified inmates can register to vote and cast a ballot. As a result of the law, the Clark County Detention Center set up a polling place for the first time during the June primary. During the general election, it’s holding two days of early voting and election day voting inside the jail.

In Jefferson County, Colo., Clerk Amanda Gonzalez, who oversees elections, has already noticed a difference. More than 300 people incarcerated in the jail have voted so far in this election – a mix of those who cast ballots in-person and who voted as part of a separate initiative where elections officials drop off ballots and sheriff's deputies return them.

“This is just one more step in making sure that everyone who’s eligible to vote actually gets to vote,” said Gonzalez. “Our democracy is just so much stronger when we have everyone’s voices.”

This story was produced by the Mountain West News Bureau, a collaboration between Wyoming Public Media, Nevada Public Radio, Boise State Public Radio in Idaho, KUNR in Nevada, KUNC in Colorado and KANW in New Mexico, with support from affiliate stations across the region. Funding for the Mountain West News Bureau is provided in part by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

( Boise Soul Food Organization)

Are you hungry? Because BoiseDev Eats is serving up some great recommendations on where to get your next meal!

Whether you're looking for dinner, snacks or drinks, they've got a spot for you to try.

BoiseDev Eats editor Kara Jackson joined Idaho Matters to set the table for Idaho's local food scene.

(Christine Tanner / flickr )

Micron recently made a donation that will have a big impact on the community, there was another wildfire in Southeast Boise, Ashton Jeanty is a front runner for the Heisman trophy and we get an update on the states legislative races.

It’s Friday, which means it's time for our Reporter Roundtable when Idaho Matters gets you up to date on all the news that made headlines this past week.

Our journalist panel today:

Jay Tust, sports director at KTVB

(Torfaen Corvine / Flickr)

As people prepare for an evening of candy and frights, we thought we’d help set the mood with a look at one of America's most dark and melancholic writers, Edgar Allan Poe.

Known as the “father of horror,” Poe’s work not only evoked dread but also helped to pave the way for detective fiction, leaving a lasting impact on today's popular culture.

Steven Olsen-Smith is a professor of English literature, and he joined Idaho Matters for a look into this important figure's life.

(Marcus Kellis / Flickr)

Haunted houses have been busy this month as they do their best to provide chills and thrills to the many people who pay to be scared this time of year.

But did you know there's lots of places here in Boise that don’t have to put on a production at all? That’s right, they're actually haunted.

We wanted to find out more about these spots, so we invited U.S. Ghost Adventures tour guide Hilarie Goodnight to tell us more.

(Madelyn Beck / Mountain West News Bureau)

During its time of operation, the Old Idaho Penitentiary had thousands of people pass through its gates; however, not everyone who arrived got to leave.

This could be why the prison is now considered one of the most haunted spots in the Gem State, prompting visits from paranormal investigators and plenty of curious tourists.

Anthony Parry, historic sites administrator, joined Idaho Matters to talk more about the eerie site.

A ghost town in Caribou County, Idaho.(Brent Watkins / Flickr)

Idahoe has a large number of abandoned towns, many of which have grown from mining operations that went bust.

One local blog, The Traveling Spud, is a one-stop-shop for travel adventures, and it has a great list of Idaho ghost towns that you can visit — including one or two that might be haunted!

Katie Williams joined Idaho Matters to talk more about ghostly destinations.

Protestors stand in front of the Supreme Court while Idaho v. United States is argued.(Victoria Pickering / Flickr)

A new study has found that in the wake of the recent Roe v. Wade decision infant mortality rates are on the rise in the U.S. as states implement stricter abortion bans.

Dr. David Pate, former CEO of St. Luke's Health System joined Idaho Matters to talk more about this study along with other public health issues.