SANDPOINT — Longtime Idaho resident and attorney Lori Hickman is running to become the state’s next Attorney General. 

“I’ve got two decades of legal experience, and I really, really love this state,” said Hickman. “I want to step off the sidelines and try to give back and serve as a public servant.” 

Hickman said reestablishing trust with the agencies and boards the Office of the Attorney General serves remains her top priority. 

“Those are important relationships to maintain trust [with] and have that valuable attorney-client relationship,” said Hickman. “I think a little bit of that has been lost with this attorney general.” 

After having a conversation with a group of concerned Idahoans about the current state of the Attorney General’s office, Hickman decided to throw her hat in the race. 

“I was kind of minding my own business. I’ve never campaigned for anything before in my life,” said Hickman. 

Hickman said the attorney general’s office has become distracted by politics and culture war issues over the past four years — debates she said fall outside the role of Idaho’s chief legal officer. 

“After talking to these individuals, I thought, ‘Well, I’m going to take a step forward and try to make a change,’” said Hickman. 

Although Hickman is running as a Democrat, she said she believes the role of the Attorney General should be non-partisan. 

When Hickman made the decision to run, she didn’t have enough time to run as an independent, a title she said better aligned with her message. 

“There are a lot of areas that affect everyday Idahoans,” said Hickman. “The attorney general plays a really important role in that. That should be based on the law and the rule of law, which is the bedrock of our democracy.” 

As the chief legal officer providing legal advice and representation for all state boards and agencies, Hickman said she would not be influenced by a particular political party. 

Among Hickman's top priorities if she was elected is preserving safe access to women’s healthcare. 

“In our state, we have some of the strictest abortion laws that there are, and that is endangering women’s health and lives,” said Hickman. 

Hickman said ongoing lawsuits in Idaho have created uncertainty for what doctors can and cannot do when an abortion is medically necessary, resulting in 35% of Idaho’s OBGYNs leaving the state. 

“That would be really important to me. I do have to uphold the laws as they are written, but I would not take extreme interpretations of those laws that the current attorney general is undertaking,” said Hickman. 

Hickman said she would also advocate for providing legal analysis to the Idaho Legislature as it drafts bills. 

Providing legal advice for the Legislature when it drafts bills is not currently a responsibility for the attorney general, said Hickman. 

Since many legislators are not attorneys, Hickman said providing legal advice would save time, money and resources for the state. 

“Without legal oversight and input, then a really poorly drafted bill becomes law, and they face an immediate legal challenge on the back end,” said Hickman. “That a really important job that, on day one, I would restore.” 

After graduating from J Reuben Clark Law School in 1991, Hickman started her legal career as a litigation associate in the New York City office of Latham & Watkins. Missing the West, Hickman returned to Utah, taking a position at Holme Roberts & Owen in Salt Lake City for one year. 

In 1996, Hickman was recruited to join Micron Technology’s in-house team as associate general counsel, handling intellectual property transactions, trademark and copyright work, and other high-level corporate matters, according to Hickman’s campaign website. 

She currently represents and advises clients in business, litigation and intellectual property manners at a Boise law firm and provides pro bono legal counsel to support advocates for children in protection cases. 

"Being Idaho’s next attorney general would be a really big ask and a tall order to fill, but I think I can do it,” said Hickman.