Trego's Mountain Ear

"Serving North Lincoln County"

Tag: Election

  • Third Party and Libertarians Votes High This Election

    Historically, independent voters, and voters for minor third parties, do not get a large percentage of votes. Often, they’re considered “spoiler” candidates, who lose the election for someone by dra4wing critical support away during a close race. Or their thought of as simply “protest candidates” with no chance of winning.

    In Montana, for the presidential race and senate race, there were very small percentages (0-2%) for third party candidates. But further down on the ticket, libertarians often carried 3-4% of the vote.

    And there were some interesting exceptions. In the race for public service commissioner of district four, the contest was between a republican and an independent. The independent carried 45% of the vote.

    This year, in the races for state senate, there were more contested elections than not. In the one race that had three parties (District 45- Mineral County), the independent carried 8%.

    State representative races were less consistently contested. Thirteen were uncontested, all republican. There were two instances of three party races, and one contest between a libertarian and a major party. In Yellowstone County, the Libertarian running against a republican carried 42% of the vote.

    As for Lincoln county, we had a higher percentage of votes for libertarian candidates at the state level, and a 28% vote for the independent public service commissioner of district four (significantly less than the 45% she carried across the district, but higher than the percentage usually won in our county by democrats in equivalent races).

    Interestingly, in the race for county commissioner, the democrat candidate took 14% of the vote, while the libertarian carried 20%. Noel Duram, republican, carried only 66% of the vote. A majority, but a substantially smaller one than republicans have typically enjoyed.

    This year, only three of our county positions were uncontested: Clerk of District Court, Clerk and Recorder, County Superintendent of Schools. Unfortunately, this is still a tremendous percentage considering how few county positions were up for election. These were the only partisan county elections, other than the race for county commissioner and state representatives.

  • Ballot Problems- Again

    It’s not every day that Lincoln County makes the news outside of our state. Our recent primary election did just that due to an error in ballot size, resulting in a hand-count that delayed results.

    Montana gained a new seat in the house of representatives- and the race to determine the republican nominee for that new seat was a tight one. Tight enough that Ryan Zinke and Al Olszewski had to wait until Lincoln County’s results were counted in order to know who had one (Zinke).

    This isn’t exactly the first time we’ve had trouble with the ballots in Lincoln County, though admittedly the last time didn’t leave such widespread headlines. Last year Trego residents incorrectly received ballots for the Eureka Elementary School Board Election, which complicated the counting a bit. Before that, during the last presidential election, an entire box of ballots was left in north county and not counted until days later (County Clerk Robin Benson, running unopposed for reappointment this November, described this as impeccable). Of course, we have been replacing our election administrator, so the trend belongs to the county and not the person. Still, this doesn’t exactly inspire faith for November.

    I’ve been complaining about the number of elections by acclamation in our county, but I think I have a new request. In addition to actually having an election, I’d like to have one where only the results made headlines. Hopefully November’s election runs more smoothly.

  • Error in Eureka Elementary School Board Election resulted in many extra ballots being mailed

    Error in Eureka Elementary School Board Election resulted in many extra ballots being mailed

    An error in the Eureka Elementary School Board Election resulted in many extra ballots being mailed. Registered voters in Trego, Fortine and Stryker recently received ballots for the Eureka Elementary School Board Election.

    While Trego, Fortine, and Stryker are part of the LCHS high school district, none of the three communities are part of the elementary district (Trego and Fortine both have their own elementary school districts- Stryker is part of Trego’s School District). Consequently, residents are not eligible to vote in Eureka Elementary district elections. With a large number of people ineligible to vote receiving ballots (some of which may already have been sent in), it seems likely that this year’s election is going to be a bit complicated.

    We don’t know yet how the district is going to handle this (if they’ve started opening the ballots they’ve gotten back, it’s going to be difficult to sort the valid votes from the invalid).

    How did we hear about this? We (Mike) asked:

    Greetings – I have received the official ballot for the school trustee election of May 4, 2021.  I would appreciate your assurance (your email is listed on the enclosure) that I am permitted to vote on the candidates for school district 13.

    As a Trego resident, the elementary district in which I vote (and serve as a board member) is 53.  I recognize that Marcie Butts represents my area in the LCHS district, and that her election is by acclamation.

    I may not understand (the explanation I recall is at least 50 years old) but before casting my ballot, I would like to know that I am doing so correctly.  I know that we don’t vote on Eureka elementary levies, so I would appreciate clarification – I can figure out justification both ways, but I suspect only one is correct.”

    Mike McCurry (email to Onna Escobar, Eureka Public Schools)

    What we’ve learned: This error originated with the county election department, which provided address labels to the Eureka School District. The error was not caused by the Eureka School District. (Eureka Public Schools and County Commissioner Josh Letcher were very helpful in providing information about the situation)

    What probably happened is that ballots were issued to the registered voters in the high school district, instead of just the Eureka elementary district.

    At any rate, we ought to learn more as the school decides where to go from here. In the meantime, we suspect that residents outside of the district can make life easier for the folks who have to handle this by not mailing in their (invalid) ballots.

    Part of the mail-in ballot we received (for an election we cannot vote in, because we live in the Trego Elementary District)

  • Bismarck’s Belief

    “There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.”   Otto von Bismarck, 1907

    Three fourths of my neighbors voted for Trump, and I figure even more believe that Biden won through some form of chicanery.  As I look at media comments, I see fears of what will happen – from tax increases to gun grabs to civil war.  There is comfort in Bismarck’s observation “There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.”  I recall that, a century ago, my country elected a president – Warren G. Harding – who was even slower than Joe Biden.  And Harding replaced Woodrow Wilson.  I can make a strong case that Woodrow Wilson was more racist than any American President, including Jefferson Davis.

    You might argue corruption, and cite the investigations finally underway on Hunter and James Biden.  Remember,  “There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.”  The history textbooks tell of Harding’s Secretary of the Interior and the Teapot Dome scandal.  Remember, Woodrow Wilson had a stroke in October 1919, paralyzing him, and that caused the greatest crisis about presidential disability, presidential incapability, in our country’s history.  According to whitehouse.gov, “Wilson returned to campaign for Senate approval of the peace treaty and the League of Nations Covenant. His health failed in September 1919; a stroke left him partly paralyzed. His constant attendant, Mrs. Wilson took over many routine duties and details of government. But she did not initiate programs or make major decisions, and she did not try to control the executive branch. She selected matters for her husband’s attention and let everything else go to the heads of departments or remain in abeyance. Her “stewardship,” she called this.”  That was 16 months with a non-functional president.  Joe may indeed be going into dementia – but we have Wilson’s example, with fewer problems for the nation after his stroke than before it.

    I have been unable to find any record of where Otto Von Bismarck really said “There is a Providence that protects idiots, drunkards, children and the United States of America.”  – but it is an optimistic way to look at any election.