Montana
Montana's unending search for solutions in need of problems • Daily Montanan
How many times in the past, oh say, year or so have you found yourself saying: I wish there was more politics in my life?
For months now, we have been hearing parents call for politics to be taken out of the schools, whether that’s in school library book bans or conversations about who can use what bathrooms when. Politics has permeated churches, schools and even family gatherings — once considered off-limits for politics.
It’s grown to be such a toxic subject that family holiday meetings have turned from awkward to open warfare in some households, and both Democrats and Republicans can agree on one thing: If they don’t get your vote this election cycle, democracy is a goner.
That’s why it’s hard to imagine a more tone-deaf call than the cadre of Montana Freedom Caucus members who have triggered a poll to call state legislators back into session.
They want to bring all 150 lawmakers back together so that judges running for the state’s nonpartisan judiciary can declare their political parties, meaning that virtually no segment of the Treasure State government will be operating without the color of partisanship.
Not to be outdone, another dozen Republicans on Tuesday — the day after — called for a different special session, this time to deal with immigration and marijuana revenue.
It made us positively dread Wednesday to see what laughable scenario required the urgent attention of a legislative special session.
What Republicans risk, of course, is a painful and frustrating reminder of what isn’t getting done.
No one wants more politics in their life, and especially not at the state court level, which, despite temper tantrums by the Republican leadership in the legislature, continues to demonstrate itself as the adult in state government.
Keep in mind: A second legislative investigative committee, formed to come to the pre-determined conclusion that something is wrong in Montana courts, had to have what amounted to a day-long remedial civics lesson for some state Republican senators who seemed particularly aggrieved that the courts exist, let alone that they have been given power to review laws. Something about a whole system of checks and balances.
It’s telling that lawmakers who pride themselves on invoking the constitution, wearing flag pins and talking about the Founding Fathers seem to know so little about what those same founders created, including an independent, separate and co-equal judiciary.
At least I credit Senate President Jason Ellsworth, R-Hamilton, for trying to provide a basis for the legislative committee’s inquisition.
Now, lawmakers want to convene to also take what amounts to a third pass at divvying up the proceeds from marijuana tax revenue, with the excuse that the reason they didn’t override Gov. Greg Gianforte’s veto previously was out of deep concern about the separation of powers and judicial overreach.
Leaders expect us to believe that? This was the same group that seemed surprised by the 1803 case of Marbury vs. Madison, which established the concept of judicial review three years before Lewis and Clark came to Montana, 61 years before it became a territory and 86 years before statehood.
Lawmakers have also tucked the scare tactic of immigration into a call for the special session, after a single homeless immigrant family landed on the doorstep of the Flathead County Sheriff’s Department.
I get it: When Republican governors in other states like Florida and Texas send immigrant families to perceived liberal areas, it’s giving these snowflakes a taste of their own medicine. But when the immigrants arrive here, it’s the impetus for the entire legislature to meet.
Again, who are the snowflakes?
Maybe the most vexing thing is just how horribly out of touch these lawmakers are with what is actually happening in Montana. Few Montanans who aren’t in the Legislature are concerned with the possible partisan leanings of judges. And one homeless family, sadly, is just one more family in need of affordable housing in the Treasure State, regardless of where they came from.
The purpose of a special session isn’t property tax relief. It isn’t the unchecked housing problems run amok. It’s not even to discuss what could be a potentially dangerous fire season.
Yet, despite the Republican supermajority’s penchant for solving problems that don’t rate very high on a burgeoning list of Montanan concerns, maybe we should nonetheless thank our GOP leaders for reminding us of the large gulf that seems to separate the politicians from the people of Montana.
On Tuesday, school levies, including one for safety in the state’s largest district, largely failed at the ballot box — and failed spectacularly. Erwin Garcia-Velasquez, the superintendent of Billings Public Schools, told The Billings Gazette that it was property-tax fatigue.
Meanwhile, Republicans are worried about political leanings of judicial candidates?
Maybe come back when you have a plan to fix real problems, rather than shadow punching at the judiciary or explaining why counties, most of them Republican, can’t fix roads.
A restraining order has been issued that blocks the Montana Republican Party from enacting new bylaws intended to drive nonconformists…
A restraining order has been issued that blocks the Montana Republican Party from enacting new bylaws intended to drive nonconformists out of the party ranks.
Lewis and Clark County District Judge Michael F. McMahon issued the restraining order Wednesday morning. The order had been requested by county precinct committees and officers suing the state party organization over the new bylaws. The plaintiffs are the Yellowstone County Republican Central Committee, the Choteau County Republican Central Committee, and individual committee members Jeff Essmann, Ted Kronebusch, James Wilson and state Rep. Brad Barker, R-Red Lodge.
At issue are bylaws passed during MTGOP’s June platform convention that the litigating party members say amount to “fraudulent and corrupt practices.” The new bylaws require members to pay $20 in annual membership dues and pledge a loyalty oath, and subject members to removal from elected party positions for nonpayment of dues or for “conduct deemed inconsistent with party purposes,” as determined by executive party party officers. The new bylaws allow charges for removal to be brought by any 20 official Republican Party members.
Montana Republican Party Chairman Art Wittich, the only official spokesperson for the state party, has not responded to voicemails and texts sent to his cell phone Wednesday. Wittich, elected party chairman in June 2025, has long been emphatic about exposing “Democrats disguised as Republicans” — for Wittich a now decade-old battle that spun into a bitter multimillion-dollar war between party hardliners and relative centrists in this spring’s Republican legislative primaries.
The centrists drew the ire of the hardliners in 2025 by collaborating with Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte and legislative Democrats to pass a balanced state budget and key pieces of legislation, including increased taxes on second homes and property tax reductions for primary residences and small businesses.
What constitutes disqualifying conduct isn’t fully spelled out in the bylaws, but they do specify that “collaborating with Democrats” in the Legislature, the governor’s office, the courts, or elections can get members disciplined or removed.
The lawsuit alleges that “The 2026 bylaws empower a small group within the party to revoke Republican affiliation from candidates or office holders, undoing primary nominations by the electorate.”
The plaintiffs argue that Montana voters, not party bylaws, should determine who represents the Republican Party in general elections and who represents voting precincts on the publicly elected county-level Republican committees that coordinate local political activity.
The Montana Legislature in 2019 passed a bill protecting publicly elected party precinct committee officers from being arbitrarily removed from office and defined attempts to do so as “fraudulent and corrupt practices.” That law, sparked by Republican Party infighting 10 years ago, is the foundation of the current lawsuit.
There has been a surge of public interest in Republican precinct-level politics following a perceived lack of support by party hardliners for Republican candidates in conservative strongholds like Flathead County, where more than 60 new precinct committeemen and committeewomen were elected in June. That wave of new officers was preceded by Flathead County Republican Central Committee members considering an endorsement of Libertarian Sid Daoud for Kalispell mayor over Republican Kisa Davison in late 2025. The Kalispell mayor’s race is nonpartisan, but Republicans have gone to court to secure the party’s right to endorse candidates in nonpartisan races.
Wittich’s own campaign for precinct committeeman representing Whitefish was a casualty of that new wave of public interest. He lost to Republican Giuseppe “G-man” Caltabiano, who serves on the Whitefish City Council.
Caltabiano’s wife, Roxanne Ross, defeated Candace Wittich, wife of the Republican chair, in the same election.
State law gives precinct officers two-year terms and specifies that they can be removed only for death, written resignation or loss of residency. The new bylaws state that participation in party governance, including service as a precinct official, “is a privilege of association, not a right conferred by public office or candidacy. Members must act in good faith to support the Party’s purpose and must not engage in conduct materially inconsistent with the Party’s interests, including conduct that undermines its platform, policy positions, election operations, or internal governance.”
The recent changes to the party bylaws allow precinct officeholders to be suspended from voting in party matters and replaced by party leadership for noncompliance. Empty precinct seats can be filled by the Republican Party chair.
“Every Republican candidate sells their version of Republicanism to the people in a primary campaign, and the voter chooses which version to buy,” the lawsuit states. “The party cannot dictate what brands of Republicanism are on the market.”
Former MTGOP chair Jeff Essmann, a plaintiff who is also a long-serving precinct officer, said in his affidavit that members of the Republican State Central Committee weren’t given a required notification about attempts to amend the bylaws. He said he would have attended the platform convention and argued against amending the bylaws if he had known.
“The 2026 Bylaws empower any twenty members of the Party to recommend any other member of the Party for expulsion from the party, to be determined by the State Central Committee, even people who do not reside in Yellowstone County and who have never met me,” Essmann said in the affidavit.
Other central committee members produced pre-convention emails about potential changes to the bylaws, but no details about the amendments.
In issuing the order, McMahon indicated that Republicans challenging the bylaws are likely to succeed. He set a July 13 hearing on whether to make the order permanent.
“Plaintiffs have shown a likelihood of success on the merits of their claims that the challenged provisions are inconsistent with Montana election law and constitutional protections governing candidacy, nomination, speech, association, due process, and elected precinct committee representatives,” McMahon ruled.
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This story was originally published by Montana Free Press and distributed through a partnership with The Associated Press.
Copyright
© 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
The Montana Lottery offers multiple draw games for those aiming to win big.
Here’s a look at July 8, 2026, results for each game:
Winning Powerball numbers from July 8 drawing
12-29-37-43-55, Powerball: 18, Power Play: 4
Check Powerball payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Lotto America numbers from July 8 drawing
17-26-31-32-37, Star Ball: 01, ASB: 02
Check Lotto America payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Big Sky Bonus numbers from July 8 drawing
03-13-16-17, Bonus: 10
Check Big Sky Bonus payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Powerball Double Play numbers from July 8 drawing
06-27-33-44-69, Powerball: 23
Check Powerball Double Play payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Montana Cash numbers from July 8 drawing
08-16-17-22-27
Check Montana Cash payouts and previous drawings here.
Winning Millionaire for Life numbers from July 8 drawing
16-18-43-48-50, Bonus: 01
Check Millionaire for Life payouts and previous drawings here.
Feeling lucky? Explore the latest lottery news & results
When are the Montana Lottery drawings held?
- Powerball: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Mega Millions: 9 p.m. MT on Tuesday and Friday.
- Lucky For Life: 8:38 p.m. MT daily.
- Lotto America: 9 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday and Saturday.
- Big Sky Bonus: 7:30 p.m. MT daily.
- Powerball Double Play: 8:59 p.m. MT on Monday, Wednesday, and Saturday.
- Montana Cash: 8 p.m. MT on Wednesday and Saturday.
- Millionaire for Life: 9:15 p.m. MT daily.
Missed a draw? Peek at the past week’s winning numbers.
This results page was generated automatically using information from TinBu and a template written and reviewed by a Great Falls Tribune editor. You can send feedback using this form.
HELENA, Mont — Gov. Greg Gianforte is backing a new effort to keep data centers from driving up Montanans’ power bills.
This week, Gianforte announced Montana is signing on to the Ratepayer Protection Pledge — an initiative endorsed by President Trump.
Several major technology companies like Amazon, Google, Meta, Microsoft, OpenAI, Oracle, and XAI first signed the pledge back in March.
The pledge comes as data center development continues to grow — raising questions about how much new energy will be needed and who will pay for it.
NBC Montana spoke with Julia Haggerty, professor of geography and department head of earth sciences at Montana State University, about whether Montana’s power grid is ready for that growth.
“Not without resolution of significant transmission bottlenecks and massive amounts of new generation. So, while our grid is adequately, relatively adequately equipped to serve the needs of our current load base, it’s definitely not equipped to accommodate the new demands without a lot of expansion,” she said.
According to the pledge, data center developers will pay for new power generation, and infrastructure needed to support their operations.
“It does align with ongoing regulatory efforts to ensure that the cost of new generation associated with data centers is borne by the developers of those data centers and not customers,” Haggerty said.
The governor’s office says Gianforte’s support of the pledge is designed to encourage responsible data center investments while protecting Montana ratepayers from long-term costs.
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