Incumbent Democrat Thedis Crowe of Heart Butte takes on Ralph Foster of St. Ignatius again for Montana’s House District 15 seat.

The two faced off in 2024 for the same seat, with Crowe winning by just over 3%. The district straddles the Blackfeet and Flathead reservations, spanning from St. Ignatius to Browning and Heart Butte.

Thedis Crowe

Crowe is 65 years old and was born and raised on the Blackfeet Reservation, where she and her husband operate a family ranch. 

She attended Montana State University, where she earned a bachelor's degree in land resources science and a master's in Native American studies, with a minor in management and public administration. 

Professionally, Crowe worked for multiple federal agencies, starting as a conservation specialist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture for 19 years, then serving as superintendent of the Blackfeet Agency, Bureau of Indian Affairs, for 14 years. 

When asked what voters should know about her or the race, Crowe stated that as a state legislator, she served on the Appropriations Committee and brings a unique skill set and years of experience in strategically managing federal budgets. She added that her skills include evaluating, prioritizing and strategically planning for funding cycles, as well as addressing fund integrity and accountability. 

Crowe’s top priorities, if elected, are tax reform, affordability and protecting Medicaid funding for critical care access hospitals and nursing homes statewide.

She explained that earlier this summer, the Gianforte Administration declined to implement a Medicaid provider rate increase approved by a bipartisan majority. She added that the move “poses a serious threat to health care access in Montana.” She also said Democratic legislators will continue to push bipartisan legislation to protect access to quality health care services and to “fully” use federal Medicaid funds. 

She stated that these funds influence and stabilize local economies in rural communities, as the “majority” of Montana hospitals are located in rural towns and communities throughout the state. 

When asked where the state is spending too much money, Crowe cited the Department of Corrections, which accounted for nearly $500 million of the state’s $6.5 billion general fund. 

In response to the Leader’s question about what changes, if any, the Legislature should make to public school funding, Crowe stated that legislatures should take a serious look at the existing data and information. 

She cited House District 79 Rep. Luke Muszkiewicz’s op-ed addressing findings from the School Funding Interim Commission, which found that “Montana is significantly underfunding” its public schools. Crowe explained that to close that gap, the commission recommended several meaningful improvements, including support for students living in poverty, increased support for special education, improved facility funding, better inflation adjustments, support for Indian Education and more. 

She added that these recommendations would affect every school district in Montana, but most importantly, those in House District 15. 

On housing affordability, Crowe served on the caucus subcommittee evaluating affordability statewide and stated the lack of affordable housing is an “epidemic.” The committee is preparing proposed Legislation to introduce during the 2027 session. 

When asked what changes she would support to address rising property taxes, Crowe stated she does not support the proposed flat tax option because it shifts the higher tax burden onto low- and middle-income owners and elderly property owners.    Thedis Crowe

Ralph Foster

Foster is 63 years old, married to Phyllis Haynes and has two grown boys.

He received his education in Kansas, attending Fort Hays State University, Kansas City Kansas Community College, and the University of Kansas. He later attended the University of Kansas School of Medicine and the Menninger Foundation. Professionally, Foster became a mortician before attending Friends University in Kansas. 

He later returned to Montana and has been a mortician for 40 years, living and practicing funeral services on or near the reservation for over 34 years. 

He and his wife have owned Foster Funeral Home & Crematory in St. Ignatius and Browning for over 30 years and recently sold their Browning location. Foster stated that they are among the few Native American-owned funeral homes in the United States. 

He’s served on the St. Ignatius city boards and previously served on the Montana Funeral Directors Association, where he helped draft preneed rules for Montana Medicaid recipients. Foster has also served in the Masonic Lodge in all the chairs and has been involved in all his family's activities.

When asked what voters should know about him or the race, Foster explained that many voters do not realize this is a “gerrymandered district” that was “designed to have a Democrat representative from the Blackfeet Reservation.” He also claimed the district has a history of “voting box tampering issues,” including during the last election, and alleged that provisional votes are “mysteriously found when needed.”

(Editor’s note: The Leader’s reporting found one incident where an individual was “apparently trying to loosen” a ballot box in Glacier County during the 2024 election. According to ABC 13 News, the county election administrator identified the individual as a “Laslo with the MT Dem Party” and described it as “highly suspicious and concerning.” No details were reported about “mysteriously found” votes.) 

When addressing Foster’s claims, Crowe stated that she was not aware of any issues that surfaced during the 2024 election and will follow up with the election coordinators in each county. 

Foster stated the district's Democratic voting habits give the Blackfeet Reservation a second representative in the House. This “basically” leaves the Swan and Mission Valleys without representation even though he contends the population is "over five times" greater in those areas than on the Blackfeet Reservation. 

Foster’s top priorities, if elected, include closely examining sovereignty and treaty rights to ensure they are followed and interpreted as written; examining why the cost of living has risen and what can be done about it; and comparing the level of services provided to the tax rate. 

When asked where the state spends too much money, Foster stated he believes the government spends too much running itself. He added that too much of “our money” stays in Helena and a few big cities, while rural people rarely see the benefit. To address where the state should spend more money, he stated it should go to infrastructure. 

When asked what changes, if any, the Legislature should make to public school funding, Foster explained that he believes school funding should be based on the number of students living within a district. He stated that, in this area, that would provide more funding to schools, regardless of whether students attend out of district or in a private capacity. 

To address housing affordability, he recommended incentivizing employers to develop housing for their employees. He added that colleges should also ensure they provide enough housing for students, so students aren’t taking housing opportunities from families in the area. 

When asked what changes he would support regarding property taxes, he stated he would try to implement a tax ceiling based on the year of construction. He added that this would allow an older home to pay less than a newer one. 

To address the Leader’s question about how the Legislature could improve rural health care, Foster explained he would improve services by building a cooperative with larger nonprofit health care organizations. 

He also stated that they need to examine why the federal government has failed to deliver on its promises and why there is no Indian Health Service hospital on this reservation.    Ralph Foster and his wife Phyllis Haynes.