Off-topic: Idaho open seat

This Tuesday is Idaho's primary election, and the biggest race to watch is the open seat contest to replace Rep. Butch Otter in Congress. Six Republicans and two Democrats and will battle it out on the primary ballot, and in all likelihood the GOP primary winner will become the district's next member of Congress. The players involved:

Sen. Skip Brandt [R-Kooskia]
Larry Grant [D-Fruitland]
Andy Hedden-Nicely [NL-Boise]
Controller Keith Johnson [R-Boise]
Dave Olson [I-Saint Maries]
Cecil Kelly III [D-Coeur d'Alene]
Rep. Bill Sali [R-Kuna]
Norm Semanko [R-Eagle]
Paul Smith [CST-Letha]
Former Sen. Sheila Sorensen [R-Boise]
County Commissioner Robert Vasquez [R-Caldwell]

Here's the deal. The GOP primary contains one moderate Republican, Sheila Sorensen. She's pro-choice and in favour of reasonable environmental protections. She began the race as the front-runner and because of her moderate positions the wingers in the primary have been labeling her the L-word ever since. Bill Sali, a loudmouthed ultra-conservative, appears to have surpassed Vasquez for the fundy vote and in a six-way primary it could be enough for him to win. A potential positive of Sali or Vasquez winning is it gives assumed Democratic nominee Larry Grant a shot at taking the seat, but I would rather not even take the chance. The only other reasonable choice in the GOP primary is state Controller Keith Johnson, a mainstream (usually) conservative.

Idaho has had a habit recently of electing moderate-conservatives to major offices, and needs to continue the trend by voting for Sorensen in Tuesday's primary, lest they fall back into their nuttily-right days of Helen Chenoweth. My prediction is Sorensen edges Sali for the nod, but I'm not at all confident of it.