Advertisement SKIP ADVERTISEMENT You have a preview view of this article while we are checking your access. When we have confirmed access, the full article content will load. A Republican, Mr. Kempthorne rose to prominence as the mayor of Boise in the late 1980s and early ’90s, as the city became a haven for outdoor enthusiasts. Dirk Kempthorne testifying in 2008. Before his tenure as interior secretary, he was elected as the governor of Idaho in 1998 and remained in office until 2006. Credit... Brendan Hoffman for The New York Times April 28, 2026, 9:53 p.m. ET Dirk Kempthorne, the personable former governor of Idaho who later served as President George W. Bush’s second interior secretary, died on Friday in Boise. He was 74. His family confirmed his death in a statement , but did not specify a cause. He said last year that he was undergoing chemotherapy for colon cancer. Mr.…