Idaho politicians are using AI to write for them + More people go without insurance + Ballot measures written at grad school level

By Christina Lords | Editor-in-Chief

AI detectors flagged dozens of op-eds and other statements published under the names of state constitutional officers and lawmakers, some of whom employ professional writers earning six-figure salaries. (Photo by Getty Images)

GOVERNMMENT + POLITICS

Idaho politicians are using AI to write for them

By Ryan Suppe

The next time you come across an op-ed by an Idaho politician, think twice about the source. It may not be human.

Op-eds and other online posts from some of Idaho’s most powerful elected officials contain heavy doses of artificial intelligence, according to AI detectors, tools that distinguish between writing by humans and writing that comes from machines like ChatGPT.

Idaho Education News started using these detectors last week after a series of stories from RANGE Media exposed a “startling” amount of “AI slop” in the opinion pages of Spokane newspapers and in written statements from candidates for political office.

HEALTH

The percentage of people without health insurance is growing

By Shalina Chatlani

The percentage of working-age adults without health insurance has increased in the past two years, largely because many people can no longer afford Obamacare coverage after Congress allowed federal subsidies to expire at the end of last year.

The uninsured rate for adults ages 19-64 rose to 11.2% this year, up from 8.9% in 2024, according to a new analysis by the Commonwealth Fund, a health policy and philanthropic nonprofit.

Voters mark their primary election ballots at Second Presbyterian Church in Little Rock, Arkansas, on March 3, 2026. (Photo by John Sykes/Arkansas Advocate)

ELECTION 2026

2026 ballot measures are written at a graduate-school reading level, report finds

By Anna Claire Vollers

This year’s statewide ballot measures are written, on average, at a graduate-school reading level, according to a new report.

The readability of 2026’s ballot questions — which ask voters to weigh in on issues as varied as abortion, property taxes, voter ID and firearms — varies by state, political data tracking nonprofit Ballotpedia found in its newest Ballot Measure Readability Report.

MORE IDAHO NEWS FROM US

2026 general election voter guide: The candidates, the ballot measures, and the tools you need to cast your vote. | Idaho Capital Sun staff

MORE REGIONAL AND NATIONAL NEWS FROM US

DOJ sending election monitors to Washington’s King County | Jake Goldenstein-Street

ICYMI

Shining a light on other Idaho politics reporting

Note: Some links may lead to stories behind a news organization's paywall

Boise State Public Radio: Idaho Secretary of State says Prop 1 ads followed campaign finance laws
Idaho EdNews: Pocatello-Chubbuck rejects 4-day week, semester schedule change
Idaho News 6: Idaho could see nuclear boom as small modular reactors near reality; Twin Falls panel set for Oct. 27
Lewiston Tribune: Rafting, fishing guides dream of a river without dams
| Speakers at a recent conference pictured the lower Snake River in a post-breaching world
Local News 8: Shoshone-Bannock Tribes mourn the loss of Fort Hall Business Council Treasurer Ladd R. Edmo

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