Crowley wins, Lauman leads for commissioner

It looks as if Dale Lauman and Mark Crowley will square off in November to decide who will replace Bob Watne as Flathead County commissioner.

Watne is not seeking re-election after two terms in office.

With 41 of 42 precincts in, Lauman was leading eight other Republican candidates with 2,540 votes, or 22.1 percent. Retired businessman Gerry Banzet was in second place with 2,145 votes, or 18.9 percent, and businesswoman Pam Holmquist was running a tight third with 2,111 votes, or 18.6 percent.

However, those results didn't include about 2,400 absentee ballots, which hadn't been counted as of midnight. That could shift the totals substantially if either campaign had organized an absentee vote effort.

Lauman is a retired postmaster and past president of the Lakeside Community Council. He is currently chairman of the Lakeside County Water and Sewer District board.

Crowley was well ahead of the other two Democrats in the field. He had 55 percent of the primary vote, compared to 23 percent for businessman Don Hines and 21 percent for former county administrator Don Avery.

Crowley currently works as construction manager in the Kalispell Public Works Department. He also worked for several years as a land-use planner with the Flathead County Planning Office and the Tri-City Planning Office. He is a former volunteer with Smith Valley Fire Department and has been a board member with Flathead Rails to Trails since 2000.

In terms of the number of candidates, this year's commissioner race was probably a record, attracting an even dozen applicants.

No single reason seemed to account for the packed field, other than that many people see this as a critical time in the valley's history, with conflicting views regarding how to handle a variety of growth- and budget-related concerns.

Despite the number of candidates, there was very little of the negative advertising, mud-slinging or behind-the-back "whispering" that characterized some of the other local races, particularly for Flathead County sheriff. The commissioner's race was focused largely on the issues, with candidates discussing what they would do to improve the future of the valley and bring its occasionally divisive residents together.

The primary winners will face off in the Nov. 7 general election. Final primary returns will be published in the Thursday Inter Lake, if available.