Page 14 - Flathead Beacon // 8.20.14

14 | AUGUST 20, 2014 NEWS FLATHEADBEACON.COM Commissioner Crosses Party Lines to Endorse Democratic Candidate
Cal Scott’s endorsement
of Stacey Schnebel
adds new layer to
upcoming election
By MOLLY PRIDDY of the Beacon
In a move that surprised both Demo-
crats and Republicans, Commissioner Cal Scott, a Republican, has endorsed the Democrat candidate vying for his seat instead of the Republican challeng- er.
Scott stood and spoke about his en- dorsement for Stacey Schnebel at a re- cent meeting with the Flathead Demo- cratic Central Committee after Schneb- el discussed her campaign.
Scott lost the primary election to Re- publican Phil Mitchell in June, mean- ing he will see out the rest of his term as the commissioner for District 1 – which covers the county’s north end – and be replaced by whoever wins the Novem- ber election. Mitchell earned about 71 percent of the vote, with 9,260 votes to Scott’s 3,778.
In an interview last week, Schnebel said she appreciated the endorsement, and though the way Scott did it was out of the ordinary, the sentiment shows her cross-aisle appeal.
Cal Scott GREG LINDSTROM | FLATHEAD BEACON
showed up to my speech and endorsed
me? I was surprised. I’m happy to re- ceive that endorsement,” she said. “I think that I’m a candidate who appeals to voters on both sides of the spectrum.”
For his part, Scott said he wanted to make an endorsement not based on political party, but on who he thought would be best suited for the job. Scott said that before he decided to file for the upcoming election, he wanted to see who was running for the Republican Party.
decided after that to throw his own hat back into the ring.
“I got a sense that perhaps that was not the best choice for the county,” Scott said, referencing what he called was a “gross overstatement” of Mitchell’s pre- paredness for the county seat, as well as his consistency and participation in public meetings.
After losing in the primary, Scott said he decided to endorse Schnebel be- cause of her work ethic and the time she has already spent with county depart- ment heads trying to get to know the county government.
“My personal determination was that she would be far better for the coun- ty in looking at all the people’s needs,” Scott said.
In an Aug. 15 interview, Mitchell said Scott’s endorsement of the Democrat candidate has been on his radar,
“I think the voters said what they said about Cal when he and I were run- ning against each other,” Mitchell said.
Turner Askew, a councilor in White- fish for eight years, said in an interview that Mitchell was a well-prepared coun- cilor who rarely missed meetings.
Mitchell also emailed a statement to the Beacon on the matter, which said, “It is too bad that Cal must get personal af- ter he lost the primary election. With the general election approaching, I plan to
that my opponent is an Obama Demo- crat, we will have lots of opportunities to contrast our views.”
Before running for commissioner, Mitchell served on the Whitefish City Council from 2010 to 2013 and on the Whitefish School Board from 2002 to 2007.
Schnebel, who owns the Stonefly Lounge in Coram as well as UnderCur- rent Web, said Scott’s endorsement shows that the county commission seat shouldn’t be about party politics, but rather about who is a better fit to repre- sent county residents.
Since the June primary, Schnebel said she has been meeting with county department heads and management, learning “about the nuts and bolts of how the county works,” and has been im- pressed with what she’s found.
“There’s a great team working for the taxpayers in our county,” she said.
August will be devoted to fundrais- ing and scheduling, she said, and Sep- tember will be about hitting the cam- paign trail harder and meeting more people in the valley.
Mitchell said he took a month off to be with his family and enjoy the sum- mer, but plans on ramping up his cam- paign for the election in the coming weeks.
The general election is Nov. 4.
“Was it a surprise that Cal Scott He met with Mitchell for a talk, and focus on issues and philosophies. Given [email protected]
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