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A national organization focused on electing Democrats to state legislatures is “spotlighting” three Montana candidates, all of whom are running for the first time, in a bid to flip one current Republican seat and protect two competitive seats this November.
The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC) said this week it is supporting “promising” candidates who it believes will cut into the Republican supermajority from the 2023 Montana Legislature.
The DLCC is an official arm of the national Democratic Party with a mission to bring “national attention and investment” to statehouse races to move the “Democratic agenda forward” across the country.
The organization has supported winning Democrats in Montana in the past.
However, at least one Democrat said the DLCC’s support was more of an honor than financial boost in 2022. And a Republican legislative leader said the GOP regularly wins despite being outspent and expects to have a majority — and then some — in 2025.
This year, the DLCC announced it is backing Democrats in the following districts:
In Senate District 24, Democrat and retired Billings psychiatrist Mark Nicholson, running against Rep. Mike Yakawich, R-Billings;
In House District 4 in Columbia Falls, Democrat and crisis intervention therapist Lindsey Jordan, opposed by Republican Lyn Bennett; and
In House District 42, Democrat Sidney “Chip” Fitzpatrick on the Crow Indian Reservation, campaigning against Republican Bill Hodges.
“The DLCC is proud to spotlight these powerful Democratic candidates who are on the frontlines of chipping away at the Republican supermajorities in Montana and building defenses against MAGA extremism,” said DLCC President Heather Williams in a statement. “We’re thrilled to shine a light on these candidates who are putting in the work to build Democratic power as Montana Republicans continue to attack fundamental freedoms.”
The DLCC said it brings candidates nationwide attention and direct fundraising by listing them on its website, and it offers their campaigns early support. In 2022, the DLCC backed Senate Minority Leader Pat Flowers of Belgrade; former Great Falls Rep. Casey Schreiner; Rep. Sharon Stewart Peregoy, of Crow Agency; former Anaconda Rep. Sara Novak; and Sen. Willis Curdy, of Missoula.
In an interview, Flowers said his recognition in 2022 was a “great honor,” but it didn’t turn out to be a significant financial benefit for his campaign. He estimated it was maybe a few thousand dollars.
“It wasn’t tens of thousands of dollars; that’s for sure,” he said.
Nicholson said he appreciates the help, although he doesn’t know how much money will be coming his way.
The Montana Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (MDLCC), a wing of the Montana Democratic Party that provides candidate services for state house candidates, makes recommendations to the DLCC about which candidates to support.
Sheila Hogan, executive director with the Montana Democratic Party, said Thursday the candidates DLCC selected have strong roots and experience in their communities that will help the party achieve its goals next session.
“With new competitive, fair maps and strong candidates like Mark, Lindsey and Sidney, Democrats are poised to break the Republican supermajority and gain seats in November,” Hogan said in a statement.
Legislative redistricting finalized in 2023. Democrats have said the result better represents voters, but Republicans have said the new districts benefit their opponents.
Republican leadership isn’t fazed by the DLCC’s support, though. At least one legislator said he still thinks the GOP will likely win in most of these races with a healthy majority in the next session.
Senate Majority Leader Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls, said Friday he thought the Republicans would win in at least two of the three races, minus the HD 42 race in Bighorn County, which he attributed to redistricting shifts.
Fitzpatrick said he didn’t think it mattered how much money Democrats put into the race between Nicholson and Yakawich, because Yakawich is a hard worker with a good reputation around Billings.
“I think he’s gonna win that at the end of the day,” Fitzpatrick said.
He anticipates Republicans will likely lose their supermajority, but still have a majority of 31 or 32 seats in the Senate and 60 to 62 seats of 100 in the House.
And he said the headcount ebbs and flows through the years, but ultimately, he’s confident Republicans will remain competitive.
“We always are,” he said. “The ironic thing is that the Democratic party over the years really outspends us, and we still do much better.”
Senate District 24
Nicholson is facing incumbent legislator Yakawich in SD 24. Yakawich served his first legislative term in the House in the 2023 session and has been active in the Behavioral Health System for Future Generations Commission, which is tasked with giving recommendations to Gov. Greg Gianforte for how to spend $300 million towards behavioral health initiatives in the state.
Yakawich did not immediately respond to a voicemail left Thursday.
Nicholson is supporting affordable health care, public education, and tax policies that “don’t favor corporations and the wealthy over hard-working Montanans,” according to his website.
He told the Daily Montanan on Thursday he’s happy to have all the financial help he can get, as mailers can be expensive to send to voters. He said Yakawich is a good person who he just happens not to see eye to eye on issues with, but thinks his district is especially important for Democrats, as he said U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, a Democrat, will need to win Yellowstone County in his race against Republican businessman Tim Sheehy.
House District 4
Jordan is running in what used to be House Speaker and Kalispell Republican Matt Regier’s current district, but in redistricting the boundaries changed to include Whitefish and Columbia Falls. Bennett is the Republican running against her, who previously ran against Rep. Dave Fern, D-Whitefish, in 2022, losing by 23 percentage points.
Jordan will be championing Medicaid expansion in the upcoming legislative session, according to the DLCC release. If the legislature does not pass Medicaid expansion in the 2025 legislative session, the program will sunset.
Bennett said on her website she’s looking to address the housing crisis by decreasing government regulation, tax reform to address rising property taxes and prioritize funding for law enforcement, among other issues.
House District 42
Sidney “Chip” Fitzpatrick is Crow and has served on the Big Horn County Commission and the local sheriff’s department. He’s facing Republican Hodges in November, who is also running in his first race for the legislature.
Rep. Sharon Stewart Peregoy, D-Crow Agency, currently holds the seat in HD 42, but is termed out. Neither Fitzpatrick nor Hodges listed phone numbers on their candidate filing nor had campaign websites as of Friday.
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