Zamora pitches finance expertise in Kootenai County treasurer race

Carlos Zamora asked Kootenai County voters to judge him on a long career in finance, not on years inside the courthouse. After more than 40 years in global banking and financial markets, he retired last week from his most recent post as executive director and head of asset and liability management at First Abu Dhabi Bank USA.

Zamora’s pitch was simple: the treasurer’s office handles large sums of money, and his background could help the county invest surplus funds more effectively and maybe ease the tax burden in small ways. He said he wanted to continue Steve Matheson’s legacy and build on it, not tear the office apart and start over.

The job he is seeking reaches well beyond keeping money in a vault. Under Idaho law, the county treasurer is the ex officio tax collector and ex officio public administrator, and must receive, safely keep, account for, deposit and disburse county funds. In Idaho, the treasurer is also the point of contact for property-tax questions, and those taxes help pay for schools, cities, counties, local law enforcement, fire protection, highways, libraries and other public services.

That is why the race mattered beyond office politics. Kootenai County has treated fund balances as a financial safety net for operating costs, emergencies and future projects, so the person managing county liquidity can affect how much cushion the county has when revenue tightens or expenses rise. Zamora argued that his private-sector experience would translate into stronger cash management and more disciplined investing of idle money, the kind of work that could show up in steadier reserves and, over time, small taxpayer benefits.

Still, Zamora was candid about the parts of the office he did not know as well. He said he would need to learn more about tax collection and the handling of deceased residents’ cases, and would lean heavily on staff to absorb institutional knowledge quickly. He described the treasurer’s office as largely apolitical, even while acknowledging the race itself was partisan.

The contest had narrowed to Zamora and Teresa Mallery in the Republican primary after Steve Matheson announced on November 26, 2025, that he would not seek a fourth term. Mallery brought nearly 20 years in the Kootenai County Treasurer’s Office, starting as a clerk and rising to treasury specialist accountant, giving voters a stark choice between a finance veteran from outside government and a county insider who knew the office from the inside out.