In warning letter, VP Vance says Dems are ‘prepared to pour millions’ into Idaho to flip Risch seat

Many Idaho residents recently received a fundraising appeal in the mail from U.S. Vice President JD Vance to support Idaho’s longtime Republican U.S. Sen. Jim Risch in his campaign for reelection, claiming Democrats were “prepared to pour millions of dollars into Idaho” to defeat the incumbent in what Vance said is an “urgent national race.”

The letter, dated “Thursday 3:29 p.m.,” emphasizes the political past of Risch’s opponent, Todd Achilles, who served as a Democratic state legislator in Idaho and donated to Democratic candidates before launching his independent U.S. Senate campaign.

Risch and Achilles will face each other in the Nov. 3 general election.

“They know that if they can flip Idaho – a state that hasn’t elected a Democrat to the Senate since 1974 – they can strike a major blow against President Trump’s agenda,” Vance said in the letter. “Idaho remains one of the most conservative states in America, but that is precisely why national Democrats believe they can catch Republicans sleeping.”  

In the letter, Vance wrote that Risch, who serves as the chairman of the U.S. Senate’s powerful Foreign Relations Committee, “has earned a position of influence that benefits every corner of the state, and we cannot afford to lose it.”

The vice president asks that the letter’s recipients donate their “most generous contributions of $3,500, $2,000, $1,000, $500, $250, or even $100,” while pointing to high-profile efforts to elect independent candidates in Montana and Nebraska as a warning.

Nebraska candidate Dan Osborn in 2024 came within about 7 points of Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. Deb. Fischer with support from a Democratic super PAC, Politico reported. Osborn is running again this year.

Crispin Gravatt, communications director for Achilles’ campaign, confirmed the campaign had seen the letter. 

“This is proof to us and all Idahoans that Jim Risch knows he’s in trouble and the race is competitive – and that he’s willing to do anything to win except answer directly to the voters,” Gravatt wrote in a Wednesday email to the Idaho Capital Sun. “Jim hasn’t held a town hall one time in the 18 years he’s been in the Senate, and he won’t debate the issues facing voters this cycle, but he will have the Vice President send a letter on his behalf. He is scared of conversation but he will happily fund lies and attack ads online to distract from the fact that his policies have made life more expensive and challenging for working Idaho families.” 

Risch’s campaign manager Marc Kilmer told the Sun that it wasn’t unusual for top officials to weigh in on an election for a federal post. 

“Having senior party officials send fundraising appeals is common practice in Senate races around the country on both sides of the aisle in every election cycle,” Kilmer wrote in an email.

Vance’s office could not immediately be reached for comment. 

Fundraising reports for candidates seeking federal office won’t be available until Oct. 16

The Federal Election Commission requires quarterly reports on campaign fundraising and spending. The most recent data available runs through June 30, and the next report is due Oct. 15. 

As of the most recent FEC reports, the Achilles campaign had raised nearly $700,000, and spent about $500,000. 

For the 2025 to 2026 campaign cycle, Risch’s camp had collected more than $3.3 million.