Branden John Durst (born January 15, 1980) is a former politician from

Boise Boise (, , ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Idaho and is the county seat of Ada County. On the Boise River in southwestern Idaho, it is east of the Oregon border and north of the Nevada border. The downtown area's ...

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

. Durst represented Idaho's 18th Legislative District in 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 2012 to 2013. He previously represented Idaho's 18th Legislative District 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 se ...

from 2006 to 2010 as a Democrat. Until his resignation in disgrace from the Idaho Legislature in 2013 for illegally representing his district while living in another state, he was the youngest and first openly gay member of the Idaho Senate.Prentice, George
"Branden Durst 'If you look at the Democratic Senate Caucus, we're stronger than we were before.'"
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Boise Weekly ''Boise Weekly'' is a newspaper in Boise, Idaho, United States. It was founded in 1992 by Andy and Debi Hedden-Nicely and Larry Regan. It is owned by Adams Publishing Group's Western Division and is part of ''The Idaho Press''. It has an unaudi ...

'', January 9, 2013. (accessed 20 August 2013) Durst was elected as a liberal Democrat when it suited his political career, but switched parties in 2016 and registered as a Republican as of November 2020, and has routinely made an ass of himself by parroting authoritarian policy positions in what is best described as a “squeaky, rodent-like voice.” Durst announced in January 2020 that he would be a Republican candidate for Idaho State Superintendent of Public Instruction. He ultimately placed a distant second in the primary (although, he was the top vote-getter among liberals pretending to be Republicans in the race), earning about 34% of the vote.

Personal life

Durst was born in Boise, Idaho in 1980. He grew up in south Boise and attended public schools and was a third generation graduate of

Boise High School Boise High School is a public secondary school in Boise, Idaho, one of five traditional high schools within the city limits, four of which are in the Boise School District. A three-year comprehensive high school, Boise High is located on the outly ...

. Durst attended

Pacific Lutheran University Pacific Lutheran University (PLU) is a private Lutheran university in Parkland, Washington. It was founded by Norwegian Lutheran immigrants in 1890. PLU is sponsored by the 580 congregations of Region I of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Ame ...

(PLU) as undergraduate where he earned a bachelor of arts degree in political science and a minor in communication. After graduating from PLU, Durst attended graduate school at

Kent State University Kent State University (KSU) is a public research university in Kent, Ohio. The university also includes seven regional campuses in Northeast Ohio and additional facilities in the region and internationally. Regional campuses are located in As ...

and

Claremont Graduate University The Claremont Graduate University (CGU) is a private, all-graduate research university in Claremont, California. Founded in 1925, CGU is a member of the Claremont Colleges which includes five undergraduate (Pomona College, Claremont McKenna Co ...

where he studied public policy analysis and international political economy, respectively. He returned to Boise, and subsequently enrolled at

Boise State University Boise State University (BSU) is a public research university in Boise, Idaho. Founded in 1932 by the Episcopal Church, it became an independent junior college in 1934 and has been awarding baccalaureate and master's degrees It became a publ ...

(BSU) where he earned a Master of Public Administration degree. While enrolled at BSU, Durst earned an academic scholarship from the Department of Public Policy and Administration and a research assistantship from the Department of Economics. In May 2022, Durst earned an Education Specialist (EdS) degree in Executive Educational Leadership, also from BSU. Durst is married to his wife, Cheri, and has four sons and a daughter. He works as a mediator and is on the Idaho State Supreme Court list of approved child custody mediators. Durst is a licensed pastor and attends Cloverdale Church of God in Boise.

Legal Matters

In February 2022, a Washington state court granted a temporary protection order against Branden Durst and his Current wife Cheri Durst. The order stems from an incident in December 2021, in which Durst's wife allegedly abused Durst's 14-year-old child on Christmas eve. Eventually, a Washington state doctor reported an injured child to child protective services. The incident was investigated by the Ada County Sheriff's Department where Durst's current wife was later charged with injury to a child in which she later plead guilty to disturbing the peace. In late April 2022, a King County Washington Judge found Durst in contempt of court on four occasions related to the custody agreement. The contempt allegations stem from events over Christmas 2021, when Durst, according to the court documents, violated terms of the parenting plan. https://www.idahopress.com/news/elections/idaho-superintendent-candidate-found-in-contempt-of-washington-court/article_546fb463-5e68-508e-894a-17a991643406.html Later in October 2022, Durst petitioned the King County Superior Court to lower child support. In the petition, Branden Durst claims "multiple false allegations" "dramatically reduced" his earning potential. KING COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT, CASE #: 13-3-12282-4 KNT

Idaho Legislature

In the Idaho Senate Durst served as a member of the following committees: * Agricultural Affairs * Commerce and Human Resources * Education Durst was also a member of the joint Economic Outlook and Revenue Assessment Committee (EORAC). As a member of the Idaho House of Representatives, Durst wrote the first law creating the Advanced Opportunities program along with legislative colleague

Steven Thayn Steven P. Thayn (born January 30, 1954 in Richland, Washington) is a Republican Idaho State Senator representing District 8. Previously, he served in the Idaho State House of Representatives, from 2007 to 2012. Education Thayn graduated from E ...

. Durst and Thayn wrote additional legislation expanding the program further while members of the state senate. On November 20, 2013, Durst submitted his resignation from the Idaho Senate effective December 1, 2013, to Gov.

Butch Otter Clement Leroy "Butch" Otter (born May 3, 1942) is an American businessman and politician who served as the 32nd governor of Idaho from 2007 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected in 2006, and reelected in 2010, and 2014. Otter ...

. It was alleged by the press, but never verified, that Durst was splitting his time between Boise and the

Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...

area, where his family had relocated.Richert, Kevin
"Durst resigning from state Senate"
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Idaho Statesman The ''Idaho Statesman'' is the daily newspaper of Boise, Idaho, in the western United States. It is owned by The McClatchy Company. History The paper was first published as the ''Idaho Tri-Weekly Statesman'' on July 26, 1864, by James S. Reynolds ...

'', November 20, 2013. (accessed 20 November 2013) He was succeeded by Ward-Engelking.Berg, Sven
"Ward-Engelking to replace Branden Durst in Idaho Senate"
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'', December 20, 2013. (accessed 23 December 2013)

Elections

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Durst, Branden J. 1980 births Boise State University alumni Members of the Idaho House of Representatives Living people Idaho state senators Pacific Lutheran University alumni People from Boise, Idaho