Dist. 3 commissioner, clerk and recorder seats up for grabs

Mar. 19—The June 4 primary election in Lincoln County is shaping up to be an interesting one.

There are four candidates seeking the District 3 county Commissioner seat. Two Republicans, one Democrat and one Independent filed to run for the six-year term.

Incumbent Josh Letcher has held the seat since being elected in 2018. He collected 2,479 votes to beat Mike Cole by 233.

He'll be opposed by Noel Duram in the primary.

In the Democratic primary, Doug Davies, a Eureka City Council member, is running unopposed.

Brian Phillips is running as an Independent.

For the two-year term of Clerk and Recorder, two Troy residents, Corrina Brown and Lorrene Henson, have filed to run in the Republican primary. No Democrats filed to run.

Brown is the incumbent. She was appointed to the position after Robin Benson resigned in late March 2023. Henson works in the county's Justice Court.

Libby Republican Tricia Brooks was the only person to file for the four-year term of Clerk of Court. She is the incumbent after first being elected in 2016 and then again in 2020.

Libby resident Suzy Rios filed for Superintendent of Schools, a post she was appointed to and currently holds. The term is for two years.

Write-in candidates may still file and the deadline is April 1.

In addition, the question of whether a library district will be formed will also be on the ballot.

At a special meeting on Monday, March 11, Commissioners Josh Letcher, Brent Teske and Jim Hammons voted to put the question of forming a separate library district on the June 4 primary election ballot.

Voters who support the creation of the district will be approving 13.49 mills of property tax to operate the district.

Other county office positions that are open include one two-year term and two four-year terms for Conservation District Supervisor.

Incumbent Donald Crawford filed to run on the Democratic ticket for a four-year term. He was the only person to file for any of the seats.

Filing for two-year Republican precinct committee person openings were the following:

Men, Precinct 2: Lee Eggebroten and Matt Charlton; Precinct 4: Neil Duram; Precinct 7: Mark Cratty; Precinct 8: John Boyke; Precinct 11: Mike France; Precinct 15: John L. Stoken.

Women, Precinct 1: Jennifer Curtiss; Precinct 2: Kristine Eggebroten; Precinct 8: Rhoda Cargill; Precinct 10: Christie Silva; Precinct 11: Katrina Newton; Precinct 15: Bobbie Stoken; Precinct 16: Lani Glasscock.

For school trustee positions, there are three openings for a three-year term in Libby, two openings for a three-year term in Troy, one for a three-year seat in the Yaak and one three-year seat in McCormick.

In Eureka, there are two openings for a three-year term for Eureka High School/Elementary School, and a three-year seat for Trego at Eureka High School.

Candidate filing for school elections ends at 5 p.m. Thursday, March 28.

Election Administrator Melanie Howell said it's a good time for registered voters to update their information.

Those that have moved or had a name change need to update their driver's license to a Real ID. If it's been more than five years since filling out a voter registration form, they are asked to update their voter registration immediately.

Election judges are also being sought. Some of the requirements include being registered to vote in Lincoln County, not be related to a candidate on the ballot and be able to work a 15-hour day (half-day shifts may be available).

Potential judges must attend one training session, 3-hour minimum, provided by local election officials. Commit to working both the primary (June 4) and general elections (Nov. 5).

For more information, contact Howell at 283-2302 or at mhowell@libby.org or Elections Assistant Sierra Gustin at 283-2304 or at sgustin@libby.org between the hours of 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Other election information may be obtained at https://lincolncountymt.us/elections-homepage/.