He may be a political newcomer but he’s no stranger to the valley.

Luca Welle, a 23-year-old Democrat, is running for House District 5.

Welle is a sixth-generation Montanan. He graduated from Whitefish High School in 2021 and has bachelor’s degrees in environmental studies and sustainability, science and practice from the University of Montana. He currently lives in the district.

He managed to graduate debt-free through scholarships, working and family help, he said.

He just finished his second season as a raft guide with Glacier Guides/Montana Raft Co. and he also substitute teaches.

On property taxes he said the changes made in the last legislative session were good progress but more needs to be done. He noted many second homes are owned by Montana families. The law should be refined to tax homes that are obvious income makers like short-term rentals, he noted.

On the subject of repeat DUI offenders he would like to see more done on the transportation side of things, by offering more public transportation. He’s like to see more walking and bike path options as well as more mental health and addiction treatment.

On the legal side, he said there should be a penalty and treatment depending on the case.

On the three initiatives on the ballot, he supported all of them. He supports 1-132 which requires non-partisan judicial elections. He supports I-194, which prohibits “artificial persons” from contributing to political campaigns and he supports I-133 which further protects the ballot and initiative process.

He said one of his biggest passions is the environment. He said he would uphold the constitutional right to a clean and healthful environment.

He said he was against the sale or transfer of public lands.

He was also concerned about cost of the living and the affordability crisis in Montana.

“Everyone is feeling the squeeze one way or another,” he said.

He said he supports access to affordable healthcare, which can be difficult to find, especially in rural areas.

He said he’s also seek ways to keep energy costs down, such as allowing solar users to run their excess power back into the grid. On data canters, he was not completely opposed to them, but they needed to be regulated correctly, he said. He said there needs to be more accountability in the industry.