Idaho’s Lt. Gov. Bans Mask Mandates While Governor Is Out of State, Is Promptly Reversed When He Returns

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Politics in Idaho took a strange turn on Thursday when Republican Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin signed an executive banning mask mandates in public facilities. The only reason she was able to issue the order was because Gov. Brad Little was out state attending a meeting of the Republican Governors Association in Nashville. McGeachin signed the order in her brief stint as acting governor.

The New York Times called the move “the government equivalent of throwing a party while your parents are out of town.”

As awkward as that sounds, McGeachin has announced she will run for governor in 2022 despite the fact Little is eligible to run again. He has not yet said if he will run for a second term, though he is expected to. The Idaho Statesman reported that the two hadn’t spoken in three weeks.

Little returned soon after McGeachin signed the executive order, and on Friday issued one of his own which gave control back local public entities to impose mask mandates should they so choose.

“The action that took place was an irresponsible, self-serving political stunt,” said Little. “Taking the earliest opportunity to act solitarily on a highly politicized, polarizing issue without conferring with local jurisdictions, legislators, and the sitting Governor is, simply put, an abuse of power.”

McGeachin’s order read in part, “Neither the state nor a political subdivision may mandate that an individual in this state must use a face mask, face shield, or other face covering for the purpose of preventing or slowing the spread of a contagious or infectious disease.”

Today, as acting Governor of the State of Idaho, I signed an Executive Order to protect the rights and liberties of individuals and businesses by prohibiting the state and its political subdivisions — including public schools — from imposing mask mandates in our state. #idpol pic.twitter.com/Nmb6DX9v6X

— Janice McGeachin (@JaniceMcGeachin) May 27, 2021

Little and McGeachin have been at loggerheads over Covid-19 restrictions. Early in the pandemic, Little issued a stay-at-home order and declared some occupations as nonessential. But he never authorized a statewide mask mandate. In announcing her run for governor earlier this month, McGeachin said, “Idahoans are tired of being ignored, shut out of the process, declared nonessential and discriminated against by the state.”

In March, McGeachin attended and spoke at a mask burning event in Boise. Last October, she said the pandemic “may or may not be occurring.”