Seeking Democrat to Replace Dave Bingaman for Valley County Commissioner

Press Release from Valley County Democratic Party

2-28-22

Valley County Democratic Party is now accepting applications from registered Democrats for District 3 County Commissioner, replacing Dave Bingaman who is resigning. Three candidate names will be submitted to the Governor for appointment. Please Submit resume, cover letter by 5 PM Friday, March 18, 2022 for consideration by email to valleycountydems@gmail.com or by mail to P.O. Box 1274, McCall, Idaho 83638

Frequently Asked Questions:

You must be a registered Democratic to request to fill Dave Bingaman seat. Deadline to registered as a Democratic is Friday, March 11, 2022.

You must be a resident of District 3 to run for Dave Bingham’s seat. The District boundaries has greatly changed since the 2020 census . District three is on both sides of Rt 55 now and below the City of McCall. District 2 is now the City of McCall and north around the lake. District 1 is south of District 3. Go to this link to determine what County Commissioner District your are in by putting in your address. https://valleycounty.maps.arcgis.com/home/webmap/viewer.html?layers=37121ba82df34ebc9bf198ba78eb1ba4

Friday, March 11 at 5 pm is the deadline to submit your name to run in the May Democratic Primary for any office, county and legislature. Here is the link for county offices candidate declaration. https://www.co.valley.id.us/media/Departments/Elections/Forms/Election%20Forms/Candidate%20Packet-Declaration%20of%20Candidacy.pdf
Candidate shall have resided in the county one (1) year next preceding his election and in the district which he represents for a period of ninety (90) days next preceding the primary election.

After submission of your cover letter and Bio to the Valley County Central Commmittee you will be contacted for interview with committee. Valley County Democratic Central Committee will decide on 3 candidates to submit to the Governor for decision.

Need more information email us at valleycountydems@gmail.com or call Bill Thomas at 208-339-4583.

Dave Bingaman’s Resignation Letter

Dave Bingaman Resigns from Valley County Board of County Commissioners

Cascade, Idaho – Dave Bingaman has announced today that he will officially resign as the District 3 Valley County Commissioner, effective April 1st, 2022.

Bingaman is resigning as Commissioner after competing for and being offered a full-time position as Recreation Planner for the Valley County Recreation Department. Those who know Dave, know that his background and passion center around all things recreation. In addition to leaving his post as Commissioner, Bingaman will be leaving his part-time position of 13 years as an Avalanche Forecaster for the USFS Payette Avalanche Center.

Valley County began discussions of growing and supporting the recreation department in early 2021. The county budgeted for the additional position to assist Larry Laxson, Director of Recreation for Valley County during the Fiscal Year 2022 budget process. The Recreation Planner position was created to meet the growing demand for recreation and to guarantee access to recreation throughout Valley County. The duties of this position are: to identify and plan for current and future recreation initiatives, work with the Valley County Grant Writer to help secure recreational funding, identify potential new recreation assets and needs, to secure access and easements for recreation, and to work with citizens, agency and staff collaboratives on all recreational issues. This position will allow Bingaman the opportunity to continue to support sustainable recreation and a healthy recreational economy in Valley County.

In November of 2022 Valley County posted the position. Bingaman applied and competed for the position against 5 other applicants. The position was originally offered to another candidate who declined due to salary. Bingaman, being the next candidate in line was formally offered the job in February. Due to Bingaman’s commitment to his position of County Commissioner, he will not assume his new position until May 1st, 2022.

Dave Bingaman has been the District 3 Valley County Commissioner for the last 3 plus years. During that time, Dave has enjoyed working with the Board of Commissioners as well as the other Elected Officials and County staff. Dave has worked successfully on a multitude of projects yet is most proud of his work with the Waterways Ordinance governing all water bodies within the County, and Recycling and Solid Waste issues including the reorganization of the previous Recycling Centers into a staffed, centralized, and organized facility. Dave was also invited to participate on the Payette Endowment Lands Working Group at the request of the State Land Board. This group works to ensure access to public lands surrounding Payette Lake.

In Dave’s own words, “Being a Commissioner has been one of the most rewarding and challenging jobs I have ever held. I am honored to have served, saddened to be leaving my term early, yet excited for my new position and the ability to continue working for Valley County. One of the things that I have realized over the last few years is that citizen participation is one of the most critical components of a strong and efficient government and I truly appreciate the people of Valley County that take the time to engage in local issues”.

The Valley County Democrats are currently seeking candidates to fill the remainder of Bingaman’s term. Please contact Valley County Democratic Party Chair Bill Thomas for more information. Interested parties wishing to run for the 2-year term for the District 3 seat will need to file their intent to run by March 11.