A cohort of newcomers seized control over the Flathead County Republican Central Committee at a Sept. 17 convention, following months of strife between the local GOP group's old and new guards.

A quorum selected Whitefish City Councilman Giuseppe Caltabiano to chair the committee's executive board after former congressional and gubernatorial candidate Al Olszewski bowed out of the role a few months before his term expired. The handoff marks a flex point for an organization recently besieged by infighting. 

"As of Thursday, I'm the former chair. It's a great title to have," Olszewski told the Inter Lake following the convention. 

"We always want the new leadership to do better than the current leadership. We have a large new passionate group and it's important for them to be able to elect their leaders," he added. 

The passion Olszewski referenced was largely stirred by Kalispell's 2025 mayoral election, which saw the Republican-favored candidate Kisa Davison bested by former city councilman Ryan Hunter. While the race was nonpartisan, some local Republicans blamed Davison's defeat on lukewarm support from the county central committee.  

They sought recourse through representation, successfully adding a surge of new voting members into the county central committee during the 2026 primary election. The new majority quickly locked horns with more longtime members over the committee's approach to endorsements, interpretations of state bylaws and overall leadership ethics. 

Several members, including then-chair Olszewski, walked out of the committee's July meeting. A quorum, mostly consisting of newly elected voting members, then boycotted the August meeting, successfully barring the group from taking action on any agenda items. 

Olszewski said the conflict was nothing more than "a family spat." Other members described it as a civil war and a microcosm of the fissures opening within the state GOP.  

Whatever the characterization, last week's convention marked a solid victory for the sect of incoming precinct leaders, which nominated each of the nine members voted onto the executive board.  

Secretary Jakoby Isles will be the only member reprising an executive role. Four members, including Caltabiano, vice chair Catherine Potter, state committeewoman Kisa Davison and state committeeman Bill Mosely were first elected as precinct captains in June 2026.  

The executive board also includes finance chair Skyler Rieke, treasurer Tyron Byers, congressional committeewoman Julie Perchy and congressional committeeman John Thomas. Of the four, only Perchy holds an elected precinct leader position; the only requirement to serve on the executive board is an active voter registration in Flathead County, according to the central committee's bylaws. 

All executive board members serve two-year terms. 

"I don't see it as a transition of power," Caltabiano said of the leadership overhaul. "I see it as growth. When there's growth, there's change."   

He already has plans to introduce several technological changes to the committee meetings, including remote attendance options and a more streamlined vote-counting system, but the biggest organizational shifts may come in the form of ideology. 

At a time when the state GOP is narrowing its definition of conservative values and rooting out more moderate Republicans, Caltabiano said his focus was on expanding local party participation. Some divergence was acceptable and even encouraged, he said, so long as members committed to shared principles of "freedom, liberty, family, community and opportunity." 

"If there is a 5% disagreement, that's human," Caltabiano said. "I would be terrified if we all agreed." 

Reporter Hailey Smalley can be reached at 406-758-4433 or [email protected]. If you value local journalism, pledge your support at dailyinterlake.com/support.