Story Created:
Nov 4, 2008 at 4:15 PM MDT
Story Updated:
Nov 21, 2008 at 6:03 AM MDT
BOISE (AP) - The race in Idaho's 2nd Congressional District was this year's version of David and Goliath: Democratic political novice Debbie Holmes against Republican Mike Simpson, who has held the seat for the past decade.
Simpson, seeking his sixth term in Tuesday's election, is a 57-year-old former dentist from Blackfoot whom Esquire magazine named one of the "10 Best Members of Congress" last month for his ability to find common ground on policy issues.
Holmes, a mother of three with no previous political experience, recently spent her 47th birthday last month peddling her message to students on the Boise State University campus.
"I am unfortunately the underdog," Holmes said.
Holmes earned the chance to square off with Simpson when she grabbed nearly 70 percent of the Democratic vote in the May primary race against David Sneddon. Holmes appointed her 21-year-old son Jesse, a political science and history major at the College of Idaho, to manage her campaign after he persuaded her to run for Congress.
Holmes spent the summer touring the district and touting her views on health care reform, education and opposition to the Iraq war. She tried supplementing a cash-strapped campaign budget by reaching out to voters on Internet blogs and the social networking site Facebook.
Simpson cruised to victory in the primaries, capturing more than 85 percent of the vote in a district that stretches from east Boise to Island Park.
Simpson, who sits on the power House Appropriations Committee, said if given another two years in Congress he'll continue working to pass a wilderness bill, reorganize the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals and improve the stability of Social Security.
