Malmen Stumps for Otter, GOP

By ](UJ(!l/e Brown

Butch Otter is riding high. Wearing a cowboy shirt embroi­ for an easy victory over Moscow City Council president Linda dered with "Otter for Congress," Wrangler jeans and spit­ Pall for the seat held t,y retiring Rep. Helen Chenoweth-Hage, polished boots; 's lieutenant governor and Republican can­ Malmen isn't taking anything for granted. didate for the 1st Congressional District strides through the "If we buy that, we don't get the &igns up, we don't get the crowd at the Western Idaho Fair, stopping every few minutes to information in people's hands. Perhaps most importantly, we for· shake hands with well-wishers or banter about politics, farm get to go vote," he says. "You always need to be in a position of pric¥8 or the sweltering weather. building. It's difficult to correct a glide." "If I was in Detroit, I'd probably go to the Ford Motor Co .. but Besides, as Malmen knows firsthand, elections are never a in Idaho, this is where it's at," says Otter, sweeping out his arm to done deal. At one point in Batt's bid for governor in 1994, he was encompass the colorful 38 points behind in scene. the pOlls, then went On the other side of on to defeat Larry the fairgrounds, Otter's EchoHawk. "ln campaign manager, some ways, it's easi­ Jeff Malmen, paces er that way,'' back and forth in front Malmen says. "You of the Idaho always know what Republican booth and the target is." talks on his cell phone Malmen's days about Otter's upcom­ start early and end ing visit to Coeur late. He keeps a d'Alene. Otter; riding a notebook by his bed borrowed hors.e, will so if he wakes up in carry the state flag in a the night with an procession at the North idea, he t:an write it Idaho Fair Rodeo. down. A major task Malmen wants to make is figuring logistics sure the horse is used and priorities for to big crowds and Otter's appearances won't be spooked. It's around the state - just one of a deluge of everything from a details he'll handle barbecue at Givens today- little things Hot Springs in that alone might Owyhee County to a appear insignificant, fund-raiser in but taken together, shape a candidate and a campaign. Wallace and a meet­ "Outside of Boise, Idaho is still a rural state. People want to ing with real estate look the candidate in the eye and talk to him. That's very impor­ agents in Caldwell. tant," says Malmen, who studied social sciences at Boise State "Butch loves to University from 1985-87 and was involved, not surprisingly, in campaign, he loves to be in the middle of people," says Malmen. student government and debate. "He's a little bit of a character- but in the 1st District, they Malmen's job is to have Otter in a winning position by Election don't demand people be 100 percent politically correct or 100 Day on Nov. 7. From campaign headquarters in downtown Boise, percent polished. They like someone who is a little rough and he charts strategy, marshals volunteers, builds coalitions, oversees tough." fund-raisers and schedules his candidate throughout the vast 1st Like any good manager, Malmen plays to his candidate's District, which includes 19 counties, two time zones and 582 strengths, keeping Otter on a tight schedule of people-to-people miles from top to bottom. appearances around the district. "Jeff gives me discipline. He Malmen thrives on it all. A veteran GOP campaigner, he has keeps me from making silly mistakes," says Otter. "He maintains managed the successful bids of Gov. , Sen. a healthy schedule for me- it's probably not a schedule he'd and former Gov. , and also helped get Steve like to keep, but he has no qualms about me doing it." Symms elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986. He has served as exec­ With some 5,000 volunteers and the campaign well on its way utive director of the , as Batt's chief of toward reaching its goal of raising $1 million, Malmen is confi­ staff, Craig's field director, Symms' legislative correspondent, and dent the campaign is on track. Still, he expects his days to be as administrator of the Idaho Division of Financial Management. increasingly busy. "Jeff was a great help to me both in my campaign and as gov­ "You can sense when people start to pay attention, when they ernor," says Batt. "He's intelligent and hardworking. He'll go a focus on what the election is about," says Malmen. "That should long way in the world." be happening soon." Craig describes Malmen as a "self-starter" who understands He'll make last-minute changes in campaign strategy in the how to motivate people. "He has always impressed me with a weeks ahead, depending on voter mood and the issues that sur­ sharp political mind and attention to detail," Craig says. face. "The day before the election, you find out if you put every­ Malmen shrugs off the accolades. "I have a healthy fear of fail­ thing together right," says Malmen. "But now is the time to make ing. That helps drive me," he says. Though Otter appears poised sure that happens." 0

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