Missoula Conservatives Can Win — If We Show Up

As you may know, elections for Mayor, City Council, and the county’s infrastructure mill levy were held last week on Nov. 4th. While the tax increase was successfully defeated, none of the Missoula County Republican Central Committee (MCRCC) endorsed candidates were successful. Before digging into the results, I want to extend, on behalf of all County Republicans, a hearty thank-you to Shawn Knopp, Rebecca Dawson, and Sandra Vasecka for showing up and presenting conservative options to the Missoula electorate. 

While these results are disappointing, there are two positive developments that a redoubled conservative effort can build on.

First, the county’s infrastructure mill levy tax increase was firmly rejected by voters. This means that the growth of government and its spending is not unstoppable; Missoulians, including homeowners and renters, are clearly tired of paying more and getting less.

Second, while no conservative candidates succeeded in their bids for City Council, the elections remained close. Many Missoula conservatives have written Missoula off as a “liberal city” with no hope of turning things around—that attitude could not be more wrong. With a focused city- and county-wide registration and recruitment effort, we could see conservative candidates win in any ward in future elections. 

Let me be clear: Missoula is a purple City. In my short time as Chair, I have met many conservatives who are too quick to despair—too quick to quit—but the data shows that with an attitude change and some steady work, Missoula conservatives can make real, concrete gains for the betterment of our community. With local election turn-out as low as it is, and with races being won by only a few hundred votes, we don’t have to change minds—we just have to find people who already agree with us and get them active.

As we now look to next year’s elections, I want to extend a call to anyone within the conservative tent: We need candidates. If you have ever thought about running for office as a conservative, please reach out through any of our contact methods and we can help you prepare. We want Good Homes, Good Jobs, and Good Business for Missoula. If you agree with those goals, consider stepping up.

Finally, I want to encourage you—the reader—to attend one of our general meetings and find out how you can get involved to help make things better here in Missoula. We have much to discuss and are looking for everyone’s input.

Our next General Meeting will be on November 18, at 6:00 PM at St. Anthony’s Parish.