From Spokane Public Radio, it’s SPR News Today.
I’m Doug Nadvornick. It’s Thursday, October 29, 2026.
Washington’s top elections official issues a sharp response to federal officials with claims about non-citizen voters in the Evergreen State.
We take a look at one of Idaho’s statewide ballot measures.
Negotiations for police coverage continue in Hayden, Idaho.
Flu shots are ok for people who are allergic to eggs.
And Lisa Leinberger takes us to Spokane’s Hobbit House.
Those stories and more, coming up on SPR News Today.
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The midterm elections are less than a week away. According to Washington state election data, turnout in Spokane County is similar to what it was ahead of the 2022 midterms. SPR’s Audrey Nelson reports.
As of Tuesday — a week before Election Day — 24.95% of Spokane County voters had returned their general election ballots. A week before the 2022 midterms, 25.3% percent of ballots had been turned in.
These numbers do not account for *challenged* ballots. These are ones that might be under review or lack signatures.
Spokane County is slightly ahead of the state turnout average. Across Washington, just over 23% of ballots have been returned.
In 2022, Spokane County had almost 360,000 registered voters. This year, the county has nearly 377,000. But the percentage of ballots submitted in the days leading up to the midterms is almost identical to 2022.
The state auditor updates its turnout numbers daily after 5 P.M.
I’m Audrey Nelson.
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Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs has publicly responded to the federal government’s claims about noncitizens voting in Washington.
In a letter dated Monday, October 26, the U.S. Department of Justice provided Hobbs with a list of about 400 people identified both as “noncitizens” and “registered to vote in Washington.” The DOJ urged Hobbs to deny ballots submitted by those people.
In his reply, Hobbs notes that many of the people listed are U.S. citizens. Some are not registered to vote, or listed as inactive. He also criticizes the DOJ for sending its letter so close to the general election. He said his office holds regular consultations with the feds and that the issue could have been brought up sooner.
Hobbs said he welcomes the opportunity to review direct evidence of noncitizens voting, but that the feds have not yet provided it.
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Idaho voters are deciding a ballot measure that would give the legislature exclusive power to decide whether to legalize now-illegal drugs.
The legislature approved House Joint Resolution 4 more than a year-and-a-half ago. It is finally making its way to the ballot.
During a March 2025 floor debate, the bill’s sponsor, Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, says it would change the state constitution.
Bruce Skaug: “I want to be up front. That takes it out of the initiative process for people to run an initiative to legalize drugs. It puts it in the power of the elected people to legalize. That’s not for making something illegal, but to legalize what’s currently illegal.”
That would seem to put an end to occasional attempts to use the ballot to legalize medical marijuana, says Boise Democrat Ilana Rubel.
Ilana Rubel: “Really, all that this does is it’s stripping the power of the people, should the people of Idaho ever reach that level where they are so desperate to get medical cannabis legalized, that they are willing to leap through the astonishing hurdles that have already been set in their path for a ballot initiative.”
Others say the real intent of HJR 4 is to continue to erode the people’s ability to govern themselves through ballot initiatives.
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The Hayden City Council has tabled a draft agreement with Kootenai County for police coverage for the city. SPR’s Ember Braun reports the decision was made during Tuesday’s council meeting.
This has been a long negotiation, with back and forth from the city and county starting about a year ago. The old contract expired on September 30. Current negotiations are about overhead and overtime costs, and how deputies report time spent in Hayden.
The city brought a draft contract to the Kootenai County Board of Commissioners earlier this week. They said they would need to review it.
Now, Councilman Tom Shafer says they’re waiting for a counter offer.
TOM SHAFER: “After council voted to not accept the county’s contract proposal, that the city went back and worked with the sheriff. And came up with an amicable agreement between the city and the sheriff on level of service for the enhanced contract and with agreed to numbers.”
That’s when the county commissioners stepped in with their own requests.
While contract negotiations continue, locals worry that they’re not protected. One local man says his dog was attacked and killed by several other dogs.
SPEAKER: “We were told by the two sheriff deputies that due to the ongoing contract dispute between the city of Hayden and the sheriff’s department, they were not able to enforce any rules, they did not cite the owner, they did not take the dog in custody, or label the dog a vicious dog.”
City Administrator Lisa Ailport says while talks are ongoing, the sheriff’s office is providing their typical service to the Hayden community.
I’m Ember Braun reporting.
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The Sandpoint City Council voted to advance a planned reconstruction of the city’s wastewater treatment plant.
The agreement allows city staff to move from planning … to designing and constructing the project. It’s estimated to cost around 130 million dollars across multiple phases.
The replacement has been in the works since 2019. The city’s wastewater treatment plant committed six discharge violations in 2024, according to a report by the Idaho Conservation League.
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The Washington Department of Health says suicide rates across the state rose in 2025.
The agency says the age group with the largest increase in deaths was adults 65 and older. But deaths of younger people rose too, among children ages 10 to 17. And suicide rates of American Indian and Alaska Native people are disproportionately high - 86% higher than the state rate.
Statewide, Washington also has a higher suicide rate than the national average.
The health department is working to reduce that. It has created a 10-year Suicide Prevention Plan. It says the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline is the number to call for help.
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For years, people with egg allergies were told they couldn’t get a flu vaccine because the vaccines contained bits of egg.
Spokane physician Dr. Gretchen LaSalle says the vaccine is now a bit different and so is the medical advice.
GRETCHEN LASALLE: “The guidance has actually been changing for the last 10 to 15 years. And then just in the 23-24 flu season, the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices as it previously existed, finally came to our current guidelines, which is that people with egg allergy have no particular precautions that they need to observe when getting a flu shot, whether it’s an egg-based flu shot or non-egg based.”
LaSalle urges people, even with egg allergies, to be vaccinated for flu. She says the illness is highly damaging, even for healthy people.
Those with underlying health conditions, pregnant women, children younger than five and especially children younger than two are at a high risk of complications from influenza.
She also says there is a lot of disinformation about vaccines. She recommends talking to your health provider.
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There’s a home in west Spokane that celebrates Halloween, Christmas and the beloved book of the homeowner’s childhood. SPR’s Lisa Leinberger found the house just in time for Halloween.
The Spokane Hobbit House is a creation by Ryan Oelrich and his husband, Robert Thompson. During most of the year, anyone can stop by.
There is a round door just the size for a Hobbit that leads to a cozy little room.
OELRICH: I had a bit of a rough time as a kid, and somebody gave me a copy of The Hobbit. And it made such a big difference to me that I’ve probably re-read it or listened to the audiobook once a year ever since.
Oelrich says during their honeymoon to New Zealand, they visited Hobbiton, the movie set from both the Hobbit and the Lord of the Rings.
OELRICH: And I told my husband, someday I want to build a Hobbit House. And then when we went to the movie set, he said, okay, we can do this. I’ll do the planting, you do the building.
The Hobbit hole wasn’t initially part of the house. There was a little indentation between two hills and a porch. It’s small—less than 100 square feet.
Inside, there’s a small desk, where a mannequin of a hobbit—Huckleberry Thorn—sits with his letters and his pipe. Books line the shelves and there are hand-drawn pictures of Gollum and Treebeard—both characters from the Lord of the Rings series.
OELRICH: We’ve had local artists that have done drawings for us and gifted us different artwork that we’ve put in here. So, it’s been a lot of fun.
The Hobbit House is open all year long. Visitors can look at it from the street.
OELRICH: I change out the songs on our motion activated speaker here so people can hear music clips, both from the Lord of the Rings trilogy movies as well as the old original animated films from the ‘80s.
But it’s during Halloween and Christmas when Oelrich and Thompson bring out the big decorations.
A bubble machine churns out bubbles filled with spooky smoke. Smiling pumpkins line the fence. There’s a dragon, skeletons and giant spiders.
Every year, Oelrich adds something new. This year, it’s Sauron, the main villain from the Lord of the Rings. But he realized there are already too many villains in the world today. So, he made Sauron little and put him on the top balcony.
OELRICH: And he’s up there trying to stomp around the rural Middle Earth, but really, when you shine a light on him, he’s just a little guy. And so, that was fun for me.
Oelrich and Thompson don’t accept any money to view their house, but they accept donations for a cause. This year, it’s the Wildfire Relief Fund through Innovia.
It’s truly the dual effort of Oelrich and Thompson that gets the house decorated every season. Oelrich says the two have a system that allows them to have everything done in a weekend.
OELRICH: I usually build about 90%, and then I struggle to finish the last 10%, the little details. But thankfully, Rob is a detail person, and so he comes in and usually paints the last little details and takes care of that.
If you miss the Halloween Hobbit House this year, that’s okay. In November, they turn the jack-o-lanterns around to be autumn decorations. Then it will soon after be the Christmas Hobbit House, with holiday decorations and an ornament exchange.
During the pandemic, people started leaving ornaments on the fence and it turned into something bigger. At the end of the season, the couple collects the ornaments, puts them in storage until next Christmas, when they jumpstart the exchange.
OELRICH: And we have all sorts of people that message us saying, this is an important part of our Christmas holiday. We go out, adopt an ornament as a family and then we come trade it on your fence. And so, we had nothing to do with it, but the community took ownership of, and that’s been wonderful.
If you want to see the Spokane Hobbit House, Oelrich recommends doing a little online research to find it. They don’t publicize the address.
That’s part of the adventure.
I’m Lisa Leinberger reporting.
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SPR News Today is a production of Spokane Public Radio.
Reporting today was contributed by Audrey Nelson, Ember Braun, Lisa Leinberger and Doug Nadvornick, today’s host and producer.
Thanks for listening. This is SPR News.
Web support is provided by Anna Gyure Havlek.
Thanks for listening. This is SPR.
