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How an Idaho Falls democrat became the state’s 16th governor and started a political dynasty
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June 27, 2022
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This is the first in a series of podcasts about former Gem State Governors from eastern Idaho.
IDAHO FALLS – Barzilla Clark’s election as Idaho’s 16th governor in 1936 was the culmination of an idea planned out nearly 30 years earlier.
The 55-year-old Democrat had already served for a decade as Idaho Falls’ mayor when he had beaten his Republican opponent, Frank Stephan, in the gubernatorial election with 58% of the vote (115,098 total votes), according to the book “Idaho’s Governors.”
An engineer by profession, one of the major highlights during Clark’s time as mayor was the development of the hydroelectric dam and power plant. In the book, an essay from Willard Barnes notes Clark’s first speech to the Idaho Legislature was focused on providing greater freedom for cities to establish hydroelectric power plants.
Clark had unsuccessfully run for governor in 1914 following a stint on the Idaho Falls City Council. He was elected mayor for the first time in 1912 before another successful run in 1926. And he ultimately lost his re-election bid for governor after just one term.
But regardless of how things played out, it was the beginning of a political dynasty that shaped public policy in Idaho throughout the 20th century.
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