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

Idaho Legislature The Idaho Legislature is the legislative branch of the government of the 43rd State of Idaho and is bicameral, consisting of the upper chamber of the Idaho Senate and the lower chamber of the Idaho House of Representatives. The state of Idaho ...

. Twilegar was the 1990 Democratic nominee for the open

United States Senate The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...

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

Larry Craig Lawrence Edwin Craig (born July 20, 1945) is an American retired politician from the state of Idaho. A Republican, Craig represented Idaho in the United States Senate from 1991 to 2009 and represented Idaho's 1st District in the U.S. House of ...

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. Founded in 1825 and incorporated in 1857, Vancouver had a population of 190, ...

. 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 primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

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 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 seats. ...

from 1975 to 1976 and the

Idaho Senate The Idaho State Senate is the upper chamber of the Idaho 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 th ...

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, Boise, Idaho. The council is composed of six members elected in staggered four year terms. Three of the six seats are elected in November every odd-numbered year. Before 20 ...

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 2020 census, the county had a population of 494,967, which by 2024 was estimated to have risen to 535,799. Ada County is by far the state's most populous county; ...

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 The state controller of Idaho is a constitutional officer in the executive branch of government of the U.S. state of Idaho. Twenty-one individuals have held the office of state controller or its predecessor office of state auditor since statehood ...

, 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 Politicians 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 20th-century members of the Idaho Legislature {{Idaho-politician-stub