Two-term Republican state Rep. Braxton Mitchell faces a youthful, independent challenger in House District 5 this year — 18-year-old Colton Little.

Mitchell, a 23-year-old from Columbia Falls, has balanced carrying bills benefiting his district with bolstering his culture war bonafides. During the 2023 session, he secured a future veterans cemetery for Flathead County, but received the most recognition for a bill restricting drag shows and banning drag reading events in the state. 

The latter piece of legislation, though signed into law by Gov. Greg Gianforte, is on hold while legal challenges work through the court system. 

“I have been effective,” Mitchell said this week, expressing confidence in his eventual reelection. “I think my voters will again support my candidacy.” 

House District 5, after redistricting in 2023, includes Helena Flats, Hungry Horse and Coram. Mitchell represented House District 3 in the 2021 and 2023 Legislative sessions, which included Columbia Falls at the time. 

Columbia Falls has since moved into House District 4. There are currently two candidates filed for the seat: Republican Lyn Bennett and Democrat Lindsey Jordan.

Little, an 18-year-old student at Columbia Falls High School and Flathead Valley Community College, is challenging Mitchell as an independent. He is in the process of filing his verified petition signatures, a requirement to run as a minor party candidate.

He is running to give constituents a different option, one that is committed to representing the needs and wants of his district, he said.

“I think overall we could use better candidates, more options as well. Regardless of who wins, it's important that there are multiple options so that people can see themselves represented and feel like they have a place within our democracy,” Little said this week.

Little said his priorities include affordable housing, quality education, school staffing and addressing budget deficits. 

Mitchell, who was 20 years old when he served in his first legislative session, said that while he is “all about young people running,” he questions the legitimacy of Little’s candidacy. Mitchell accused Little of hiding his true politics, serving as a liberal plant for Forward Montana, which bills itself as a nonprofit, nonpartisan group aimed at engaging youth in politics. 

Mitchell accused the nonprofit of supporting “men and women sex changes” and the sometimes violent protests in 2020 that occurred after George Floyd “died of a fentanyl overdose,” with Mitchell repeating a debunked conspiracy theory.

Floyd, whose death at the hands of Minneapolis police officers galvanized the Black Lives Matter movement, died of “cardiopulmonary arrest,” according to the autopsy report completed by the Hennepin County Medical Examiner’s Office. 

The autopsy found fentanyl and methamphetamine in Floyd’s system when he died, according to the Associated Press. The report concluded that Floyd’s death was caused by “law enforcement subdual, restraint, and neck compression.”

A jury found former Minneapolis Police officer Derek Chauvin guilty of multiple criminal charges, including second-degree unintentional murder, for killing Floyd in 2021. 

Little said he has no connection to Forward Montana outside of participating in a program to help run voter registration in schools through the Democracy Project at Humanities Montana, a nonpartisan public affairs nonprofit.

In response to Mitchell’s allegations, Little said that he is committed to working with Democrats, Republicans, Libertarians and whoever else wants to create solutions. 

“I decided I didn't want to be playing partisan, I want to be able to work with both sides and work with people who are going to actually create legislation that helps their constituents,” Little said. “... I think running as an independent means that I get to listen to both sides, I don't have to listen to a party platform, and that's really the biggest part of it.”

Mitchell, a Montana House Freedom Caucus member, former Turning Point USA ambassador and National Rifle Association member, is a reliable conservative, voting with his fellow Republicans 90% of the time during the previous legislative session. He said he expects his track record to aid him on the campaign trail.

“I don't think an independent candidate has won in a long time in Montana … and when they do, the districts they do compete in are not 70%, 80% Republican,” Mitchell said, underscoring the Flathead Valley’s reputation as a conservative bastion. 

During the 2023 Legislative session, every representative elected from the Flathead Valley was a Republican with the exception of Rep. Dave Fern, D-Whitefish. 

Mitchell successfully carried nine of his 10 bills last session, including implementing financial literacy requirements in schools and allowing electronic hunting tags, among others. 

Mitchell said he remains focused on expounding upon financial literacy, working with constituents to address drunk driving and mental health, lowering property taxes and assisting auxiliary officers. 

“Just look at the district, the makeup … Republicans are going to dominate the state, and in districts like this it's clear as day,” Mitchell said.

Reporter Kate Heston can be reached at kheston@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.

    Colton Little, Columbia Falls resident, is running for State House District 5 as an independent in 2024, hoping to oust Rep. Braxton Mitchell, R-Columbia Falls, who has served on two sessions. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)
  

    Rep. Braxton Mitchell, R-Columbia Falls, is seen before a Montana House Session on Jan, 19, 2023. (Kate Heston/Daily Inter Lake)