Politics & Government
The Daily Inter Lake’s Politics & Government section delivers updated local and national political coverage, featuring legislative developments, elections, policy debates, and government actions shaping Montana.
Counting machines add vote of confidence to elections security
The conference room of the Flathead County Elections Department whirred with noise. Volunteers rattled off strings…
Daines gains federal support to strip wilderness potential from Montana sites
Senator Steve Daines received federal agency backing on Thursday for his bill to downgrade three remote Montana landscapes from potential wilderness to regular…
Trump nominates a hospitality executive to lead the National Park Service
President Donald Trump has nominated for director of the National Park Service an executive from a hospitality company that holds extensive contracts with the …
State to investigate Helena over noncooperation with federal immigration agents
Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen said he will investigate the city of Helena for stating that it will not assist U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcemen…
Daines, Zinke start election year with plenty of cash on hand
Initial campaign finance filings show Montana’s incumbents with a hefty lead on the competition heading into the 2026 congressional race.
Sheehy joins birthright citizenship battle with fellow Congressmen
U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy, the Treasure State’s junior senator, has signed onto a friend-of-the-court brief filed at the United States Supreme Court that argues aga…
Zinke calls Trump’s focus on Greenland ‘distracting’
As President Donald Trump was in Davos, Switzerland, last week attempting to bluster Europe into conceding the annexation of Greenland to the United States, Mo…
Bill containing funding for Mission sewer and police headed to president’s desk
The U.S. Senate passed a $12.2 million funding bill that included federal appropriations for both the town of St. Ignatius and the St. Ignatius Police Department, which was pushed by U.S. Senator Tim Sheehy.
Lawsuit challenges Montana's second-home tax
Three prominent Republicans filed a lawsuit Wednesday asking a judge to invalidate one of the two bipartisan bills that reduced 2025 property taxes for many Mo…
Montana lawmakers look to regulate kratom ahead of 2027 session
State lawmakers are seeking ways to regulate kratom ahead of the 2027 legislative session, arguing that synthetic concoctions of the drug are too dangerous to …
Initial review of state voter rolls IDs 23 potential noncitizens
The Montana Secretary of State’s Office has identified 23 potential noncitizens on Montana’s voter rolls, most of which appear to have made their way onto the …
All eyes on western Montana as 2026 midterms approach
Midterm elections are still months away, but the race for Montana’s western congressional district is already heating up.
State adopts controversial immigration database to purge voter rolls
State election officials may soon use a controversial U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services database to trim voter registration lists.
Zinke, Downing tight-lipped on how they will vote on bill releasing Epstein files
Montana Congressmen Ryan Zinke and Troy Downing are keeping their cards close to the chest ahead of Tuesday's expected vote on the release of the Epstein files.
Gianforte signs law cracking down on illegal hiring during stop in Evergreen
During a stop in Evergreen on Wednesday, Gov. Greg Gianforte signed into law a bill that expands the state’s authority to police illegal hiring practices.
Legislative session ends with varied success for local lawmakers
Despite public fissures among the state GOP, multiple investigations into lawmakers’ financial practices and a slew of bitter political debates, lawmakers from…