Veilie appointed to D35 seat
Mike Veile (panelist at the right end of the table) was one of the speakers at a summer education forum. Here, he listens as Rep. Josh Wheeler talks about the legislature.
After a meeting of committeemen from District 35 in which they selected a slate of three names to be submitted to the governor, Governor Brad Little announced his appointment of Michael Veile to the District 35 House Seat A vacated by Kevin Andrus.
Veile is the owner of Process Improvement Engineering, an engineering, procurement, and construction management company based in Soda Springs. He worked for Monsanto from 1998 to 2025. He holds bachelor’s and master’s degrees in mechanical engineering from Utah State University and is a licensed professional engineer in the State of Idaho. Veile was a school board trustee for the Soda Springs School District, past president of the Idaho Fish and Wildlife Foundation, and a past board member of the Idaho Association of Commerce and Industry and Idaho Business for Education. Veile and his wife, Shelly, have been married for more than 30 years and have four children.
“I have always been motivated to solve problems, and I appreciate the opportunity to serve the people of District 35 as we address challenging issues across state government. My experience in professional, civic, and service oriented endeavors will help me deliver results for Idahoans while safeguarding Idaho values and conservative principles,” Veile said in a statement released by the Governor’s office.
Veile will complete the remainder of Andrus’ term, which ends Nov. 30, 2026. The Trump administration appointed Andrus to serve as the state executive director for the Farm Service Agency at the U.S. Department of Agriculture in June of 2025.
Idaho Code 59-904A addresses how vacancies in the Idaho legislature are filled. District 35 Republicans submitted a list of names to Governor Little for consideration, consistent with Idaho law.
The names were generated after balloting by members of the D35 Central Committee, which met in quorum in Inkom two weeks ago. The three names that were submitted to the governor—Mike Veile, Alana Burns, and Lori Anne Lau—were all from Caribou County, which is impressive since the district is one of the largest, area-wise, in Idaho, and includes parts of Bannock, Caribou, Bear Lake, Teton, and Bonneville counties. Mike Veile was the winner of a majority of votes on the first ballot, and Burns and Lau were also winners of the majority of votes in the following rounds, indicating a high degree of support for each of the candidates.
The process involved three ballot counters, including Caribou County’s Aaron Cook, who said, “it was an amazingly transparent process, and it went really well.”
Andrus officially announced his resignation from the position on September 12, after several months of speculation about when and whether the announcement was coming. Andrus’ appointment to the federal position required a level of background and other vetting before it was secured.
Veile’s term will include the upcoming legislative session, and then require him to run in an open 2026 election to maintain the position.
