City Government
Former Top Copper Enters Mayor Race
March 20, 2023 
Former Boise top copper Mike Masterson has filed the appropriate campaign notice with the Secretary of State to become a candidate for mayor. He will challenge Lauren McLean in the November election.
Here is his statement:
Statement from Mike Masterson
March 20, 2023
“I recently took the first step to run to be the next Mayor of Boise by filing a Declaration of Candidacy with the Secretary of State’s Office. In the coming weeks, I will be talking to as many Boiseans, organizations and businesses as possible to determine what my campaign would look like if I chose to move further with my candidacy.
It is already clear to me that in order to lead this incredible city into the future, we need a mayor who prioritizes public safety, affordable housing, fiscal responsibility within the city’s budget and mayor’s office, finds permanent solutions to address homelessness and, above all, who can restore public faith and transparency in our city’s government.
I appreciate the encouragement and support of so many of my friends, family, and neighbors who have expressed confidence and trust in my leadership abilities already, and am excited tcao explore this opportunity to once again make Boise the safest, most livable city in the country.”
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Comments & Discussion
Comments are closed for this post.
Mar 20, 2023, 10:54 pm
Finally a ray of hope for the disaster that is the Mayors office. I look forward to Masterson holding her accountable for the failure on her part in being fully transparent with the BS her hand picked former Chief of Police was doing. The citizens deserve better.
Mar 21, 2023, 8:22 am
Mike will be a good leader of the City. I worked with him for the ten years he was Chief. He is honest, open, fair minded and even handed…. Not traits currently seen.
I wish him well.
Mar 21, 2023, 11:39 am
I view this as good news in that an experienced candidate has entered this race for Mayor of Boise.
Mar 21, 2023, 12:56 pm
prioritizes public safety,
AFFORDABLE HOUSING,
fiscal responsibility
solutions to address HOMELESSNESS
restore public faith (was it lost?)
and transparency (?)
for the
most livable city in the country.”
Well that looks a lot like Dave Beiter’s campaign. How did that go?
Mar 21, 2023, 3:19 pm
Editor, please give us some history on this candidate.
His past record pretty easy for you to find, but harder for me.
What was his position on various points of conflict the past 20 years in Boise.
What is his vision for Boise?
What’s he think happened in Portland?
Who did he vote for in 2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020?
Mar 21, 2023, 3:52 pm
Watch how quickly the local media bury this important announcement as deep as they can in their news feeds. Because the local media love our current commie mayor.
Mar 21, 2023, 5:19 pm
Masterson will need to attach specifics to his hot-button words regarding affordable housing, homelessness, etc. And merely adding ‘public safety’ isn’t enough to get the voters on his side.
Having said that, our current Mayor and (most of the) Council are so deeply entrenched in the ‘more housing’ and ‘more workforce housing’ they are missing the dirty underbelly of Boise. Just look at the trashy houses, RV’s and trailers and monster trucks parked in front and back yards and on the streets.
Get beyond the North End (where the lots are too small to accommodate a fleet of disused cars in the back yard) and take good hard looks at the neighborhoods.
Clean Up Boise (save the politics for Phase II).
Mar 22, 2023, 4:22 am
Masterson is the perfect candidate. He has an excellent track record serving Boise and the right platform.
Bigot Sanchez is out on corruption. Now its time to take down Marxist McLean. They and others are turning Boise into the failed Portland dumpster fire.
Mar 22, 2023, 9:25 am
western guy: Please name a few neighborhoods. I want to go see of what you speak. I don’t see it near me (not the North End).
Mar 22, 2023, 10:30 am
I am not sure that a cop overseeing BPD is a good thing.
Mar 23, 2023, 5:07 pm
In the City of Boise, our current elected public servant’s ignorance on major issues should be concerning to us all. This ignorance is compounded when our elected public servants appoint or hire YES people.The mayor had the opportunity to create affordable housing at The Franklin and choose to invest in the investors instead.
We need to look at other options for property tax relief like reduced city budgets. Maybe instead of hiring additional firemen we decide not to send a fire truck to a residence when there is a call for an ambulance need. A FIRETRUCK will NOT take you to an emergency room. If their budget is tied into runs then maybe that is a run that might not be necessary.
A big concern of drivers is the lack of the BPD not enforcing the rules of the road! There are a lot of new neighbors moving in from out of state that don’t put the Idaho license plate on the front of their vehicle. Pay attention to this and you will see the additional rules they break. When was the last time you saw a police car patrolling the roads of Boise? And the chief wants to hire 150 more.. I haven’t seen a police car at the downtown yard ever. Did we need to spend millions for the property? Probably not. There’s that ignorance surrounded by YES people.
Mar 23, 2023, 7:34 pm
Caeth (and others):
Look at NW Boise, let’s say west of 24th, north of State, south of Hill Road.
Whitewater area of w Boise, around Whittier elementary school.
Try any neighborhood in west Boise: north of Fairview, west of Orchard, south of McMillan.
Lots of area, plenty of blight.
Mar 23, 2023, 8:41 pm
Western Guy when you say ‘plenty of blight’, you mean crime right? The same crime that took root over the past 20 years. The same criminals that were during BPD Chief Masterson’s reign.
Masterson retired in 2015. Whatever crime Boise has did not start in 2016. He is part of the problem as any other politico. The publicly outed racist BPD was on duty during Masterson’s reign. Good job rooting that out. A opportunity for other better candidates still exists. Being Chief for 10 years doesn’t mean it was a good 10 years.
Mar 24, 2023, 6:26 am
erico49….Masterson was, quite literally, “a cop overseeing BPD” for many years as Chief. By all accounts, he did an admirable job. On the other hand, McLean’s choice for chief was Ryan Lee and we all know what an absolute disaster that was, even with McLean trying her best to sweep all his wrongdoings under the rug until the pressure became too intense and she couldn’t keep hiding it. That said, if Masterson were to be elected, he’d have far more on his plate than just overseeing BPD. My bet is that he would hire a seasoned, trustworthy professional as chief and let that person oversee the department, just as it was meant to be. And if there were problems brought on by the new chief at BPD (or in any other city department, for that matter), I’m confident that Masterson would address it and deal with it in an open and transparent manner, which is exactly the opposite of what we’ve seen from the McLean administration.
Mar 24, 2023, 10:47 am
He’s Dave Bieter’s hand pick. Dave tried Diana and failed. Tried Maryanne and failed. He’d have tried to run the Antichrist if he thought it would get “that woman” that had the temerity to run against him out of office. No mind that politically McLean and Bieter are mostly the same… Dave’s feelings were hurt and he thinks cooking up Masterson in the lab will do the job. Time will tell.
Mar 24, 2023, 8:43 pm
A good, strong leader is only as good as those they select to surround themself with in their administration. Looks like McLean may have made career limiting choices regarding the COO and the planning director.
Mar 25, 2023, 2:22 pm
DB makes a good point. Boise’s problems (not just crime and policing) go back into the Bieter days.
Recalling my comments about blight: why isn’t the City Code Enforcement leadership and staff failing to clean up the city? Simple question.
Mar 28, 2023, 11:03 am
This is great news. The current mayor has made a mess of the police department. Having a mayor that understands and can provide leadership to the PD would be a great improvement. For comparison, look how many lawsuits have been filed against Boise related to BPD and then compare that number to the Sheriff’s Office. No comparison. The ACSO bumps along just fine without getting sued every other week. No reason BPD can’t do the same. A new mayor and city attorney would be a step in the right direction.
Mar 29, 2023, 12:22 pm
Philo, you’re making a case against Masterson about all those BPD lawsuits. Those officers being the defendant have been working on the force for many years. Ex: the obvious racist Boise cop that came to light recently. That was also on Masterson’s watch. Do you have the actual data for the past 20years, or are you just throwing up stuff?
Mar 30, 2023, 5:32 pm
DB, Masterson’s years at BPD’s helm seemed very quiet compared to his successor chefs Bones and Lee. I’m not talking about citizens suing the agency for misconduct – I’m referring to the recent barrage of claims by employees who have been mistreated by BPD – something the mayor is responsible for allowing. As far as data, you can google them as easy as I can, but off the top of my head you have Norman Carter, Jesus Jara, Sierna Berg, Tom Fleming, and Kirk Rush. ACSO during the same time? Can’t think of one.