Voters overwhelmingly chose incumbent Republican Pam Holmquist as the next Flathead County commissioner for District 2, defeating the Democratic challenger.
The race showed a large gap between the candidates in the early hours of the vote count, with Holmquist outpacing Democratic challenger Eileen Lowery from the initial absentee ballot count before any precincts had even reported, with about 65 percent of the absentee ballots voting for Holmquist and about 35 percent for Lowery.
By the time the long night was over, Holmquist sustained a significant lead, with 29,907 votes for the Republican, and 13,525 for Lowery, a political newcomer after a majority of votes were tallied.
“I’m just so thankful to be able to serve the people,” Holmquist said on the night of the election, before she was overcome with emotion.
A resident of Evergreen, Holmquist worked for 32 years at her family’s business, Rocky Mountain Marine, before she was elected to the commission. District 2 encompasses the southeast corner of the county, including Evergreen.
Holmquist said the campaign season felt long, but it wasn’t overly draining because Lowery ran a clean campaign.
“At the end of the day, I think both the primary and general (elections) were very cordial, it was just a good race and there were no negatives and I like that. It was just great to win on my merits,” Holmquist said. “I have great respect for anybody that runs for office, because you put yourself out there, and you put your family out there. I wish Eileen the best. It’s not easy to run for office.”
This will be Holmquist’s second term on the Flathead County Commission, where she has served for six years. She was originally elected in 2010, and took office in 2011. After then-Commissioner Jim Dupont’s death in 2012, Holmquist found herself the senior commissioner on the board. She became the chairperson of the board, and has held that title since.
Holmquist ran her second campaign much like the first, focusing on private property rights and her work on maintaining a healthy county budget, with $92 million in projected expenditures this year with a projected ending balance of $66.9 million.
The county’s capital improvement program expects to spend more than $10.4 million on projects this fiscal year; while it is a significant portion of the expenditures, Holmquist noted that it is more than $8 million less than the previous year’s budget. The county’s overcrowded jail will continue to be a main focus for the commission, Holmquist said.
Holmquist said she’s grateful to everyone who voted for her and helped her on her campaign, and that she plans on going on a two-week vacation with her husband in December, driving until they get to Arizona.
“I want to thank the voters and my family and everyone who helped on my campaign,” Holmquist said.