2026 Primary Election: Incumbent Challenged for Republican Nomination in House District 13

The Republican primary in House District 13, featuring incumbent three-term Rep. Linda Reksten and her challenger, college student Finley Warden, has been at the center of Republican Party conflicts that have defined much of the primary cycle.

Reksten, a more-moderately calibrated legislator who voted with Democrats in the last session for property tax reform, Medicaid expansion and against nonpartisan courts, has been rebuked by the state GOP for her involvement with Fireweed Campaigns, Inc., a campaign consulting firm in Helena. The GOP also put out a press release April 20 rescinding her recognition as a Republican. Those actions from the state party arm come in addition to the state GOP and the local party both opting to back Warden’s bid for election over Reksten’s.

Reksten previously told the Beacon the cycle has been “crazy,” defended her votes on some issues as the best ones for her district and said she felt “left behind” by her own party.

Warden, for his part, told the Beacon after he was selected for the state GOP’s new honor roll that it symbolized his position as the “true Republican” in the primary. He said he feels he’s running against a Democrat in the primary, rather than a Republican.

The two candidates running in House District 13 — a swath of land encompassing part of Lake County, which includes the city of Polson, along with several small towns along Flathead Lake’s southern shoreline — each answered questionnaires from the Beacon ahead of the June 2 primary election. Ballots were mailed out to absentee voters May 8. Voters can check their registration status here: https://voterportal.mt.gov/WhereToVote.aspx, and find their legislative district here: https://www.legmt.gov/districts/.

Candidate questions

1. Why did you decide to run for the legislature, and what makes you a strong candidate?
2. What do you think will be the most pressing issue facing the legislature in 2027, and how would you propose tackling that issue?
3. During the last legislative session, property taxes emerged as a flashpoint issue, and the consequences of the legislature’s property tax reform has been a topic rife for debate since. What are your thoughts on the property tax reform passed during the last session?
4. How might the state continue to work on this issue?
5. One prominent storyline in the state over the course of the past two years has been divisions within your party. How do you view the state of the Montana GOP, and where do you hope to see it move in the future?

NAME: Linda Reksten

AGE: 74

HOMETOWN: Born and raised in Polson

EDUCATION LEVEL: Bachelor of Science in Biology with a Chemistry minor; Master of Arts in Christian Education; Master of Arts in Education Administration; Doctor of Education in Teaching Studies from University of California — Los Angeles

OCCUPATION: Retired educator of 35 years, including serving as former superintendent of Butte and Polson schools

PREVIOUSLY HELD POLITICAL OFFICES: Three-term representative for House District 13

1. After spending 35 years in public education, including Superintendent for both Butte and Polson School Districts, I ran for the legislature to bring conservative common sense values to Helena and serve my constituents, including helping Montana build stronger, more efficient and effective public schools. I have consistently voted on behalf of House District 13, from voting to lower property and income taxes and keeping our rural hospitals open to helping the Mission Valley Ice Arena Association secure a $2.75 million Department of Commerce grant for their new building project that will strengthen our local economy. I believe in keeping government spending low while protecting critical services that are especially important to rural communities. I believe my track record speaks for itself and I will always keep my promise to put Lake County first.

2. We must continue to rein in spending and make Montana more affordable for families to live and work here. That involves protecting Governor [Greg] Gianforte’s property tax reforms that lowered taxes for over 90% of Montana homeowners while finding ways to bring down property taxes for other residents and businesses. We will also need to look closely at our state budget and school funding formula to ensure Montana continues to be a State that balances our budget and remains debt-free.

3. I am proud to have voted with Governor Gianforte and a majority of my Republican colleagues to pass property tax reform that lowered property taxes for over 80% of families in Lake County. Due to resistance from some Republican legislators, the bill didn’t pass until the final days of session, so we need to look for ways to expand property tax relief so more Montana homeowners and businesses benefit.

4. We need to start by listening and working together for common sense solutions for all Montanans, dropping the caustic rhetoric that inhibits good policy from being developed.

5. I am a proud Republican, but my loyalty is first and foremost to my constituents in Lake County who elected me and to the citizens of Montana. I am proud of my consistent conservative voting record, and I will continue to prioritize fiscal responsibility, making sure critical services for rural Montana remain intact while lowering taxes and keeping the Montana budget balanced. I know voters in my District don’t want the legislature to repeal their property tax relief or see their rural hospitals close. I believe the majority of Republicans in Montana agree with these common-sense conservative principles and are asking us to work together to make life more affordable for all Montanans, regardless.

NAME: Finley Warden

AGE: 20

HOMETOWN: Polson

EDUCATION LEVEL: Senior in college

OCCUPATION: Student

PREVIOUSLY HELD POLITICAL OFFICES: None

1. I decided to run for the state legislature because Lake County needs a new generation of strong conservative leadership that will actually fight for Montana values. I am a sixth generation Montanan, and my family has lived in Polson for three generations. I refuse to sit back and watch our state become unaffordable for working families while fake Republicans continue siding with Democrats in Helena.

Property taxes are skyrocketing, the cost of living keeps rising, and left-wing ideology has infiltrated our public schools. After going through Montana’s school system myself, I saw firsthand how political indoctrination is being pushed in classrooms instead of focusing on academics and traditional values. That is what first got me involved in politics.

I worked as an aide for Governor [Greg] Gianforte during the 2023 legislative session, and in 2025 I advocated for legislation to remove left wing political activism from our schools. I decided to run after watching our current representative repeatedly side with Democrats against conservative legislation.

What makes me a strong candidate is that I will stand firm on conservative principles and fight for the people of Lake County, not the political establishment. I am running to defend our freedoms, protect our values, and make Montana affordable again for the next generation.

2. I believe the most pressing issue facing the legislature in 2027 will be affordability and the cost of living for Montana residents. Too many Montana families are being crushed by rising property taxes, high energy costs, inflation, and an ever-growing government that continues to waste taxpayer dollars.

We need to make Montana more affordable again by cutting property taxes, eliminating waste, fraud, and abuse in state government, and shrinking bureaucracy instead of growing it. We also need policies that expand homeownership opportunities for the next generation and protect seniors and those on fixed incomes from being taxed out of their homes.

Montana should also fully embrace energy development and expand drilling and production here at home to help lower gas prices and reduce energy costs for working families. I will support conservative policies that put Montana taxpayers first and make it easier to live, work, and raise a family in our state.

3. Lake County was disproportionately harmed by the property tax changes passed last session. Middle class homeowners, small businesses, farmers, and ranchers are seeing significant increases driven by runaway property valuations. Longtime residents are being priced out of their homes, and homeownership is becoming harder for the next generation.

The reform passed last session failed to deliver real, lasting property tax relief and did not address the core problem: government spending and valuation growth that keeps pushing taxes higher.

4. Montana is continuing to run a budget surplus of over a billion dollars, and that money should be returned directly to taxpayers through meaningful property tax relief. Families, farmers, and small businesses are being overtaxed while state government continues to sit on excess revenue instead of delivering relief.

S[enate] B[ill] 90 from the 2025 session was a strong conservative solution. It would have taken existing tax revenue generated largely from out of state visitors through lodging and rental car taxes and returned it to counties to fund property tax credits on local bills. In effect, it would have made Montana’s tourism industry help pay the property taxes of local residents who are struggling to afford to live here, without raising taxes on Montanans. My opponent opposed SB 90, choosing to protect the status quo instead of standing with Montana taxpayers who need relief.

5. There is not a true division within the Republican Party. The divide is between conservatives who are fighting for Republican values and Democrats masquerading as Republicans in order to get elected in conservative districts. Montana voters are tired of politicians who campaign as Republicans at election time, then govern like Democrats once they get to Helena.

I appreciate that the Montana GOP is no longer afraid to draw a clear line and hold those individuals accountable. The party has every right to support strong conservative Republicans in primary elections and oppose candidates who consistently side with Democrats while hiding behind the Republican label.

The future of the Montana GOP is strong. I believe Montana Republicans are more united than ever around conservative principles like lower taxes, limited government, opposing illegal immigration, and defending our constitutional freedoms. I look forward to helping continue that momentum and ensuring the Republican Party remains a conservative party that truly represents Montana values.

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