Ron Jess Twilegar (born September 18, 1950) is an American attorney who served as a member of the

Idaho Legislature The Idaho Legislature consists of the upper Idaho Senate and the lower Idaho House of Representatives. Idaho is divided into 35 legislative districts, which each elect one senator and two representatives. There are no term limits for either cha ...

. Twilegar was the 1990

Democratic Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

nominee for the open

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and ...

seat in Idaho vacated by Jim McClure. He was defeated by

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or again ...

Congressman

Larry Craig Lawrence Edwin Craig (born July 20, 1945) is an American retired politician from the state of Idaho. A Republican, he served 18 years in the United States Senate (1991–2009), preceded by 10 years in the U.S. House of Representatives, repre ...

Early life

Twilegar was born in

Vancouver, Washington Vancouver is a city on the north bank of the Columbia River in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington, located in Clark County, Washington, Clark County. Incorporated in 1857, Vancouver has a population of 190,915 as of the 2020 Unit ...

. He moved to Boise, Idaho when he was 10 years old and later served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (also known by #Names, other names) was a conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. It was the second of the Indochina Wars and was officially fought between North Vie ...

Career

Prior to his Senate run Twilegar was a member of the

, serving in the

Idaho House of Representatives The Idaho House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the Idaho State Legislature. It consists of 70 representatives elected to two-year terms. The state is divided into 35 districts, each of which elects two representatives to separate sea ...

from 1975 to 1976 and the

Idaho Senate The Idaho Senate is the upper chamber of the Idaho State Legislature. It consists of 35 Senators elected to two-year terms, each representing a district of the state. The Senate meets at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise, Idaho. Composition of t ...

from 1977 to 1982. Additionally, Twilegar was the Senate Minority Leader during his time in the Senate. Twilegar was on

Boise City Council The Boise City Council is the governing body of the City of Boise, Idaho. The council is composed of six members elected at-large for four-year terms. Three of the six seats are elected in November every odd-numbered year. Regular council meeting ...

from 1984 to 1987. Twilegar ran unopposed in the primary for Boise County prosecutor and was unopposed in the general election. Although he lived in

Ada County Ada County is located in the southwestern part of Idaho, United States. As of the 2021 United States census estimate, the county had a population of 511,931, making it by far the state's most populous county; it is home to 26.8% of the state's ...

and did not have the necessary bar license, Twilegar ran in the 2008 primary in both Boise County and Camas County, seeking to ensure that he would achieve office in one of them. He won both primaries but chose to withdraw from the Camas County ballot. He was investigated by the Idaho Attorney General's office for failure to meet the legal residency requirement in Boise County. but was found to qualify for the general election, which he won. In 2020, Twilegar ran unopposed in the Democratic primary for Ada County Prosecutor. He was defeated by Republican Jan Bennetts in the November general election.

Personal life

Twilegar's ex-wife, Jackie Groves Twilegar, was the 2006 Democratic nominee for Idaho state controller, but lost the election to the Republican, Donna Jones. Twilegar was a 2nd Lieutenant in the Army for his service in the Vietnam War.https://rjtwilegar.com/bio/

References

Living people People from Boise, Idaho Idaho lawyers Democratic Party members of the Idaho House of Representatives Democratic Party Idaho state senators 1943 births Politicians from Vancouver, Washington {{Idaho-politician-stub