Two Republican state senators — Brad Molnar of Laurel and Jeff Welborn of Dillon — have won primary elections for open seats on Montana’s utility board.
If elected in the general election in November, Molnar and Welborn will regulate monopoly utility companies to balance their financial health with the interests of ratepayers, who cannot secure power, water or garbage service from alternative providers.
On June 5, the Associated Press called the District 2 race for Molnar, who secured approximately 1,300 votes more than Kirk Bushman, a mechanical engineer from Billings.
The three-way primary for District 3 was decided by a couple hundred votes. On June 29, a spokesperson for the secretary of state’s office confirmed to Montana Free Press that Welborn secured a 240-vote win over his closest competitor, Suzzann Norwick, a metallurgical engineer from Walkerville. Rob Elwood, an IT professional from Harlowton, finished third.
DISTRICT 2
The Republican primary for District 2, which includes most of Billings and much of Bozeman, was notable for its two candidates’ experience: Molnar and Bushman have previously served on the commission.
Molnar, a businessman from Laurel who served on the commission from 2005 to 2012, said he decided to give up his seat in the Montana Senate to launch a bid for the PSC because he believes he can have the most impact there.
In a Wednesday morning conversation with Montana Free Press, Molnar noted the tightness of the race and commended Bushman for keeping his campaign positive.
“He’s a class act — he never went negative,” Molnar said.
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For his part, Bushman expressed a degree of stoicism regarding the race’s outcome.
“You win some, you lose some,” he said. “I have a job and I have four kids and a family. You have to prioritize your time and that can make it difficult to get out and campaign. We did everything we could.”
Molnar said he’s eager to reengage with the commission’s work, particularly regarding how the $250 million-plus gas plant NorthWestern Energy is building in Laurel may be incorporated into its electricity customers’ rates. Molnar argued that if elected, he would take a pragmatic, forward-looking approach to the commission’s regulatory work. He said he will strive to implement record-supported regulatory decisions that will stand up to judicial scrutiny.
In November, Molnar will face Susasn Bilo, a Bozeman resident who teaches courses on renewable energy systems and sustainability at Gallatin College.
Molnar said he is eager to meet Bilo and intends to request a debate with her in every county in District 2.
DISTRICT 3
The District 3 PSC seat, which includes all of Butte and parts of Bozeman and Helena, was the only statewide primary that the Associated Press did not call the week of the primary.
Current commission president and state auditor hopeful James Brown is vacating the District 3 seat after one term. Four individuals with varying degrees of political experience filed for the seat. Jeff Welborn, a termed-out state lawmaker from Dillon who owns a trailer dealership, has the most political experience of the three Republicans who campaigned for Brown’s seat.
The secretary of state released a final District 3 tally to MTFP on June 29, the day after the State Board of Canvassers completed its review of primary election results.
In campaign materials, Welborn said he would bring an agricultural voice to the commission and push to protect ratepayers from “unfair rate increases.” He’s said that he prefers an “all-of-the-above” approach to energy procurement. The commission has taken the right tack in going through a public comment process with a petition to initiate rulemaking to consider how the commission’s work regulating the power sector — one of the largest sources of greenhouse gas emissions in Montana — intersects with climate impacts, Welborn told MTFP in May. He hasn’t indicated whether he believes such rulemaking is merited.
“I’m most proud of the positive campaign we ran, focused on issues, focused on solutions, and focused on listening to ratepayers from Darby to Winnett,” Welborn wrote in an email to MTFP on July 8. “I plan to continue that same effort heading into the fall — meeting people where they are, hearing their concerns, and I also look forward to bringing their Montana brand of commonsense to the agency.”
Nordwick did not respond to MTFP’s request for comment.
Elwood said the race was tighter than he thought it would be and he wished Welborn well.
“I was pleased with how I did in some of the rural counties, but obviously not pleased with how I did in some of the counties that are not so rural,” he told MTFP on July 8. “If I ever do it again, I’m going to have to come up with a plan to do better in the more populous counties.”
Elwood said he plans to remain engaged with issues that may come under the commission’s purview, including efforts to ready the electricity grid for electric vehicles and advocating for emerging technologies that could provide utilities with reliable electricity such as nuclear and pumped hydro.Welborn will face Democrat Leonard “Lenny” Williams, an electrician and Butte-based labor organizer, in the general election.
This story was updated on July 8, 2024, to include the final results for district 3.
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