Susie Schuetz was a candidate for the West Ada County School District last fall, the largest district in the state of Idaho. She is an alumna of LCV’s Candidate Academy and we are proud of the strong race she ran, even though she came up short by 108 votes (less than 1% of the votes cast).

“I learned that every vote really matters,” Susie reflected. Though she isn’t planning to run for the school board again as her son will be graduating high school in the next couple of years, she is staying involved in local politics and is planning to help another local candidate with her run for the Idaho State Legislature.

Participating in the Candidate Academy gave Susie the confidence to believe she could actually run. “The contacts I made were also helpful, meeting other candidates and being able to connect with them afterward.” She stayed in touch with the other candidates and they supported each other over the course of their campaigns.

Susie’s favorite parts of campaigning were meeting and talking with voters on the doors and learning about the dysfunctional parts of the political system that she’d like to tackle someday as an elected official.

The campaign was disorienting at the outset. “I am a quiet, back-of-the-room person. I like to observe,” she explained. “Being out there in front was nerve-wracking at first, but I came to love it. Through the hard conversations, I discovered what was most important to me, and that I liked answering questions that were uncomfortable.”

Idaho is one of many states where books are being banned and removed from library and classroom shelves, because some people are not comfortable with content about racial justice or different genders or sexual orientations. “Through the campaign, I learned the things that matter most to me. I am anti book-banning, and I learned that from campaigning, and the many conversations I had on the campaign trail,” said Susie.

One of the difficult parts of the campaign was realizing how ingrained the party system is, even though school board races are supposed to be non-partisan. “I am unaffiliated and I always will be,” Susie said. This was an uncomfortable position during her campaign, because she didn’t fit neatly into the boxes people wanted to put her into. “I want to get people talking to each other again like humans and find the things we do agree on and start there. We have to find a way to move forward respectfully.” As a professional mediator, she was looking forward to applying her skill of bringing people together to the school district.

Even though she lost, Susie is proud that her campaign helped constituents in her district to feel more welcome, saying, “I got a text message from a lesbian mom who said that my campaign made her feel that Idaho is still a place for her and her family,” despite the conservative attacks on queer families in Idaho.

Another challenge was realizing that not everyone in her life saw her campaign as the priority that it was for Susie. “It was disappointing to realize that people who say they support you won’t show up for you as much as you expected them to. But also you will meet new people who are all in,” she said.

Susie is supporting a candidate for state legislature now, and the first advice she gave her candidate was about the importance of family support and to not take it personally if people say they will show up but don’t.

“You have to focus on who you are and not who people think you should be. You don’t have to be a politician. Be strong in your voice and find the things that are non-negotiable for you and work from there.”

Susie’s closing words of wisdom for future candidates: “Never give up. Know that things will be really tough and you will want to quit, but don’t give up.” As she works to help another emerging leader in Idaho win her seat at the table, Susie is using these lessons from the campaign trail to uplift future leadership in her state.

Our country urgently needs more leaders who share our vision of a world with a healthy environment and healthy communities, protected by a just and equitable democracy. To empower more people in our movement to become leaders, LCV and our state affiliates offer robust leadership development opportunities. Read more about LCV’s Candidate Academy and other programs.