Democrats Target North Valley Legislative Races as Potential Pickups

Following a decennial redistricting process that reshaped Montana’s legislative boundaries, Democrats are optimistic about scoring wins in three competitive districts in northern Flathead County, which they hope will allow the party to build a rare legislative coalition in the deep-red corner of the state.

Through the Big Sky Victory Campaign, a coordinated effort by the Montana Democratic Party to support U.S. Sen. Jon Tester and Democrats down the ballot, the state party is channeling resources towards the campaigns of Flathead Valley candidates Dave Fern, Lindsey Jordan and Debo Powers.

Fern, who is running for Senate, has served in the state House for four terms and is currently the lone Democratic lawmaker from the Flathead Valley. Jordan is a first-time candidate and Columbia Falls social worker. Powers, of Polebridge, is making her second run for office after a brief stint filling in for a legislator who stepped down at the end of the 2019 legislative session.

Fern is facing a challenge from Doug Adams, a Republican businessman and library board trustee who drew ire from Flathead County Libraries staff and community members over perceived overreach and censorship of materials pertaining to LGBTQ+ identities. Jordan is running against Lyn Bennett, president of the Glacier Country Pachyderm who has described herself as “pro-family, pro-life and pro-parental rights.” Powers is set to challenge Cathy Mitchell, a nurse practitioner at Greater Valley Health Clinic and the Pachyderm treasurer, who hopes to limit “big government” and “bring back economic opportunity” to Montana.

Democrats are optimistic about Montana’s newly drawn legislative districts, which came out of a years-long process in which Montana’s Redistricting Commission Chair Maylinn Smith broke with Democrats to approve a map last February.

The Big Sky Victory Campaign has included the hiring of dozens of dedicated organizers across the state, as well as the opening of local offices and the implementation of voter protection and ballot access efforts. A Big Sky Victory Campaign office opened in Kalispell in June. Democratic officials have also called the program “the most robust voter outreach program in Indian Country that Montana has ever seen.”

In a red state with scattered blue pockets, the competitive nature of the north Flathead districts is rare and presents an opportunity for Democrats to score once elusive wins in the area.

Under the new map, House District 3, which includes parts of Whitefish and the rural north Flathead Valley, is split 53% Democratic to 45% Republican, making it an electoral “toss up.” House District 4, which covers downtown Whitefish and Columbia Falls, is split 47% Democratic to 50% Republican. Senate District 2, which encompasses both north valley House districts, is split 50% Democratic to 47% Republican.

On average, Flathead County’s House districts split 34% Democratic to 64% Republican.

The Flathead Valley legislative races have become some of the most expensive in northwest Montana, with Democrats outraising their Republican counterparts, in some cases by wide margins. Fern as of last month had $16,470 in campaign funds on hand, compared to Adams’ $10,148. Jordan had $14,490 to the Bennett’s $3,302. Powers had $8,625 to Mitchell’s $2,769.

“There is a strong and growing Democratic presence here,” Scott McNeil, director of the Montana Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee, said of the Flathead, adding that the new map gives the party “a great opportunity” in northwest Montana.

McNeil lauded the local roots of the area’s Democratic candidates while painting their Republican competitors as extremists who are out of touch with the districts’ voters.

“Dave, Lindsey and Debo all have those deep ties, and I think that’s the difference between winning and losing,” he said.

McNeil said Adams “has established the reputation as an extremist” on the library board. He also criticized Bennett and Mitchell for their ties to the Glacier Country Pachyderm, which he said “wants to ban abortion and take away our freedoms of privacy.”

Mitchell told the Beacon earlier this year that she believes “every unborn has the right to life.” Bennett has said that abortion should be an issue left to the states and that she believes in “protecting life.”

As Democratic power wanes in Montana, the party is betting on abortion rights to bolster its candidates across the state. Tester last week rallied with Planned Parenthood Action Fund President and CEO Alexis McGill Johnson, voicing his support for a constitutional initiative to protect abortion access that will be on the ballot in November.

“It’s a good time to be running as a Democrat,” Jordan said.

According to Jordan, who has spent months knocking doors with the support of Big Sky Victory, voters are frustrated with increased property taxes, school funding issues and encroachments on abortion access.  

“I think people in our community are pretty fired up.”

Yet the candidates will face an uphill battle as they attempt to bolster Democratic turnout while selling their message to persuadable independents and Republicans.

While Fern handily won four elections in Democratic Whitefish, he’ll have to earn votes in conservative-leaning Columbia Falls to secure a spot in the Senate. So will Jordan. And while Montana voters have long boasted an independent streak — voting for Democrats and Republicans down the ballot — increased nationalization of local politics has hurt the party’s candidates, who have attempted to distance themselves from the party apparatus in order to court swing voters.

Read more about the candidates running for Legislature in the Flathead and Tobacco valleys here.

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