Democrat Jim Lockwood wants to improve health care services in the county

Democrat Jim Lockwood places health care at the top of his priority list in his run for Flathead County commissioner.  

Lockwood, who retired to Whitefish in 2007, was born and raised in Montana.  

This is Lockwood’s first foray into running for office. He is challenging incumbent Republican Commissioner Randy Brodehl in the general election on Nov. 5.   

“The county commissioners have devoted money to sheriff’s deputies and deputy county attorneys and for a new county jail,” he said. “I don’t think that’s the priority for young people anywhere and that’s not the priority certainly for young people in Montana.”  

He attended Montana State University on a wrestling scholarship, and served as a U.S. Army combat engineer and is a Vietnam veteran.  

Lockwood graduated from Syracuse University Law School and was a member of the New York Bar from 1974 to 2010. He spent 35 years working as an in-house Fortune 500 contracts attorney drafting and negotiating contracts for state and local infrastructure projects. 

He has been a volunteer for several nonprofits including serving for nine years as president of the Whitefish Animal Group. He has two sons and five grandchildren. 

Lockwood said he would support spending county funds on working to improve the health care system here to assist with drug and alcohol treatment and depression. He would also like to see funds diverted to assisting homeless individuals.  

“My top priority is health care instead of building a jail,” he said. “We can make a difference if we address those areas, and we can work with nonprofits to address that.”  

The county earlier this year purchased 114 acres south of Kalispell as a potential location for a future jail. Preliminary estimates for a facility put the project between $115 and $134 million.  

Lockwood says this is the wrong move and the county should be diverting the funds to public health. He supports recommendations from the state Behavioral Health System for Future Generations Commission that includes improving behavior health case management and expanding services and workforce recruitment, along with expanding access to services.  

“We need to make this a better place for everyone, and many Republicans can agree with that,” he said.  

Besides filling a spot on the ballot because “voters should have a choice" even in a county that skews Republican, Lockwood says he was prompted to run because of a letter issued by county commissioners in January addressing homelessness in the community.  

Commissioners in January 2023 issued a letter criticizing homeless services organizations and asking the community to stop aiding the “homeless lifestyle.”  

“I thought that was appalling and it was embarrassing,” Lockwood said. “That stuck in my mind. And all three commissioners signed that letter. That was incentive for me to run.”  

The commissioners for many years have taken an approach of holding the line when it comes to the county budget and not levying the total mills available to the county.  

Lockwood disagrees.  

“I’d spend every penny with great pride,” he said. “The commissioners are being a reactive government when we need a proactive government.”  

He admits this position won’t likely gain him favor with Republican voters but says it’s the right decision to handling the county’s money.

“It’s there to make Flathead County a better place for everyone to live,” he said. “You have a budget because that means you can’t go over it, but [commissioners] take great pride in coming in under when they shouldn’t.”  

In terms of infrastructure in the county, Lockwood says he would support proposals to improve roads and bridges while reducing traffic and increasing safety. He supports improving county and state roads to accommodate pedestrians and extending infrastructure to adjoining communities through shared use paths.  

If elected, Lockwood would also focus on affordable housing, saying he supports increasing the inventory of market-priced and deed-restricted affordable workforce housing.  

Regarding the cleanup of the Columbia Falls Aluminum Company Superfund Site, he supports a more comprehensive cleanup that is being proposed to ensure a cost-effective and science-based cleanup.  

Deputy Editor Heidi Desch may be reached at 758-4421 or hdesch@dailyinterlake.com.  

Jim Lockwood  

Age: Undisclosed  

Family: Two sons, five grandchildren 

Occupation: Retired contracts attorney 

Education: Montana State University graduate, Syracuse University Law School graduate 

Community involvement: U.S. Army Combat Engineer, Vietnam veteran, and former president of the Whitefish Animal Group that built the Wag dog park.  

Website: https://lockwood4cc.com.