Democrat gets rare win in GOP-strong Flathead County
KALISPELL Democrats picked up a state legislative seat in the GOP stronghold of Flathead County on Tuesday, when a veteran Republican legislator narrowly lost his re-election bid.
Zac Perry defeated Jerry ONeil, a former two-term state senator who was seeking his third term in the Montana House of Representatives, 1,541 to 1,494 in House District 3, which includes Columbia Falls.
ONeil is known for unsuccessfully demanding the state pay his legislator salary in gold and silver after his 2012 re-election, and introducing a bill in 2013 that would have allowed convicted criminals to substitute corporal punishment for prison time.
Perry, who got 48.6 percent of the vote to ONeils 47.1 percent, may have been aided by the presence of a Libertarian candidate. Chris Colvin collected 136 votes in a race decided by 47 votes.
Democrat Ed Lieser also won re-election in HD5 with 55 percent of the vote, downing Doug Adams 2,133 to 1,753 but that was the end of the good news for the Democrats.
Republicans dominated the rest of the dozen legislative districts that are in or part of Flathead County, and in the lone countywide contest where the Democrats put up a candidate, recorded a 2-to-1 win.
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That would be a county commissioner race that turned nasty at times. Republican Phil Mitchell, who ousted the GOP incumbent in the June primary, collected 66 percent of the vote and beat Democrat Stacey Schnebel 20,471 to 10,400.
Most of the other races were similarly lopsided in the GOPs favor, and the closest ballot issue was one concerning the creation of a special emergency communication district to fund the countys 9-1-1 dispatch center.
That was headed toward a potential recount after unofficial results had it failing by just 72 votes out of more than 30,000 cast. Percentagewise, it was 50.12 percent against, and 49.88 percent in favor.
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Democrat gets rare win in GOP-strong Flathead County