County races headline local election choices
The Daily Inter Lake | Hagadone News Network | UPDATED 10 years, 7 months AGO
Flathead County voters go to the polls on Tuesday to decide who will advance to the Nov. 4 general election in county, state and federal races.
There are two key contested races on the county level: for clerk and recorder and District 1 county commissioner.
In the Democratic race for commissioner, businesswoman Stacey Schnebel of Coram faces retired railroader John “Jack” Garlitz of Whitefish.
On the Republican side, incumbent Commissioner Cal Scott faces Whitefish businessman Phil Mitchell. Scott was appointed a commissioner following the death of Commissioner Jim Dupont in March 2012 and was elected later that year to fill out the remainder of Dupont’s term.
There are three Republican contenders for the county clerk and recorder position being vacated by Paula Robinson, who is retiring.
They are Debbie Pierson, the current grant administrator for Flathead County; Rebekah Savelle, a temporary office assistant with LC Staffing; and Char Sherman, an account representative and loan processor at a local financial institution.
The name of a fourth clerk and recorder candidate, Corey Pilsch, will appear on the ballot, but he has dropped out of the race.
The winner of the Republican primary faces no opposition in the November election.
County incumbents Sheriff Chuck Curry, Treasurer Adele Krantz and County Attorney Ed Corrigan are running unopposed for re-election.
In the county superintendent of schools race, newcomer Jack Eggensperger is unopposed. Current Superintendent of Schools Marcia Sheffels is retiring.
Flathead County Department 1 Justice of the Peace Dan Wilson and Department 2 Justice of the Peace Mark Sullivan also are running unopposed for new terms.
Voters not only countywide but also within the cities of Columbia Falls, Whitefish and Kalispell will decide during the primary election whether or not to approve reviews of their local governments.
The Montana Constitution requires that residents statewide get this opportunity every 10 years.
Should voters opt for a review, the process moves forward to the general election in November, when voters would choose study commission members. City residents vote on two ballot issues — one to establish a government study commission for their city and another to vote on a study commission for the county.
IN LEGISLATIVE races, Republicans John Michael Myers and Doug Adams square off for the House District 5 seat. The winner will face incumbent Democrat Ed Lieser in the general election.
In House District 7, Republicans Ronalee Skees and Frank Garner and Democrats Alex Schaeffer and Catie Henderson are running to advance to the general election.
In Senate District 4, Republicans Tammi Fisher and Mark Blasdel are competing; the winner will face Democrat Elizabeth Cummings this fall.
Republicans Albert Olszewski and Mike Hebert are vying for the House District 11 seat, with the winner advancing to face Democrat Kim Fleming.
In House District 13, which includes the Marion and Kila areas, Democrats Weylin Achatz and Gerald Cuvillier and Republicans Katy Walton and Bob Brown are running to advance to the general election.
There’s a three-way race for the District 5 public service commissioner on the Republican ticket, including Brad Johnson, Derek Skees and John M. Campbell. The winner faces Democrat Galen Hollenbaugh in the general election.
There’s a two-way race for the nonpartisan state Supreme Court Justice No. 1 seat between Jim Rice and W. David Herbert. In the Supreme Court Justice No. 2 race, Mike Wheat and Lawrence VanDyke are running against each other.
On the statewide level, voters will decide who advances for the U.S. senator and U.S. representative seats.
In the Senate race, Democrat John Walsh, who was appointed to fill Max Baucus’ seat after he resigned to become an ambassador to China, faces opposition from John Bohlinger and Dirk Adams.
Republican contenders for the Senate seat include Champ Edmunds, Susan Cundiff and Steve Daines. Daines is the current U.S. representative for Montana.
The U.S. House race is a five-way contest involving Republican candidates Elsie Arntzen, Matt Rosendale, Corey Stapleton, Drew Turiano and Ryan Zinke.
John Driscoll and John Lewis are seeking the Democratic nomination for U.S. House.
For complete election information, go to www.dailyinterlake.com/news/local_elections.
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