GOP presents list of candidates for Senate seat

The Republican central committees from four counties have advanced a list of three candidates to take the seat in Senate District 14 to replace Sen. Kris Hansen, R-Havre, who announced she is leaving her position to start as chief legal counsel for incoming state Auditor Matt Rosendale.

Hill County Republican Central Committee Chair Andrew Brekke said the joint committee comprising members of Cascade, Chouteau, Hill and Liberty counties’ committees selected Brad Lotton of Hill County, Russ Tempel of Liberty County and Darrold Hutchinson of Hill County as their nominees.

Brekke said the list was in order of the highest number of votes received.

The Hill County Commission said in a statement released Wednesday afternoon that the commission will attend a meeting at 2 p.m. Friday in the Chouteau County Courthouse in Fort Benton to select Hansen’s replacement.

Hansen defeated former Sen. Greg Jergeson in the 2014 election to win the seat, after serving two terms in the state House of Representatives.

She announced this month she had accepted the position in the Auditor’s Office. Hansen will take the place of chief legal counsel Jesse Laslovich, who lost the election for auditor this year to state Sen. Matt Rosendale, R-Glendive.

Laslovich and Rosendale, who lost the primary in the 2014 race for U.S. representative to Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., were running to take the place of Auditor Monica Lindeen, a Democrat who could not run due to term limits.

Lotton, owner of Lotton Construction of Havre, is a long-time GOP activist and former Hill County Republican Central Committee Chair. An early supporter of President-elect Donald Trump, he was one of Montana’s delegates to the Republican National Convention in June where Trump was nominated as the Republican presidential candidate.

Tempel is a county commissioner in Liberty County representing District One in the county.

Hutchinson is a pilot who farms north of Hingham in Hill County who has made two runs for the state Legislature. He lost to James O’Hara of Chouteau County, who went on to win the general election, in this year’s primary in House District 27.

Hutchinson lost the primary to Rep. Roy Hollandsworth, R-Brady, in the 2014 primary. Hollandsworth won the 2014 general election but could not run again due to term limits.

The county commissions of the four counties will vote on the three nominees Friday, with their votes weighted depending on what percentage of the votes that gave Hansen the win in 2014 came from their county.

Brekke said at a Pachyderm Club meeting in Havre last Friday that Hill County’s vote will count for 46.76 percent of the vote, with Chouteau County making up 32.5 percent, Liberty 14.24 percent and Cascade 6.5 percent.

Incoming Secretary of State Corey Stapleton also officially announced this week that he is taking a Havre lawmaker as a member of his staff.

Stapleton, who defeated Lindeen in the race for Secretary for State, said Rep. Stephanie Hess, R-Havre, will serve as his chief policy adviser.

Hess defeated Democrat Janet Trethewey in the race for House District 28 in 2014. She lost this fall to 18-year-old Democrat Jacob Bachmeier.