8 October 2019 — 0348 mdt
Is a Regier legislative dynasty developing in the Flathead?
Yes.
Senate District 3
Republican Sen. Keith Regier, a deeply conservative man in his late sixties, is running for re-election in Senate District 3 (Whitefish and NW Kalispell; map). On 29 August, he filed his C-1 form, which allows him to begin raising money for his campaign. He’ll probably win re-election, as his strength in HD-6 heavily outweighs his weakness in HD-5. Keith Regier previously served in the MT House, and on the Kalispell school board.
House District 4
Regier’s son, Rep. Matt Regier, represents House District 4 (south of Columbia Falls; map). He has not yet filed a C-1 for the 2020 election. He filed his C-1 for the 2018 campaign on 19 December 2017. Senate District 2 is open in 2020, giving him the option of filing for a third term in HD-4 or going for the state senate seat, which is already coveted by Norman Nunally, the head of Montanans for Multiple Use, who filed his C-1 on 8 July. HD-4 is a safe seat for Republicans.
House District 6
Joining Keith and Matt in seeking legislative office is Keith’s daughter, Amy Regier, who filed her C-1 for House District 6 (NW Kalispell and north; map), an open seat in 2020 as the district’s current representative, Carl Glimm, is termed out.
Amy Regier’s 6 December 2018 letter to the Daily InterLake proves she share her brother’s and father’s deeply aggressive hostility to Medicaid and, presumably, all variants of we the people instead of them the private insurance companies health care systems. On 2 November 2018, MPR’s Nicky Ouellet reported:
…many people in the crowd in Whitefish, like Amy Regier, want Rosendale to champion the land transfer movement in Washington, D.C.
“Yes, I would like to see the control come back to the state,” Regier said. “I think Matt Rosendale supports that.”
HD-6 is deep red. If she receives a serious challenge, it will be in the Republican primary, not the general election.
Other Flathead filings
Reps. Frank Garner (R Kalispell, HD-7) and John Fuller (R-Kalispell, HD-8) have filed C-1 forms with COPP. Garner’s district used to be a swing district, but has not been represented by a Democrat since Cheryl Steenson defeated incumbent Republican Craig Witte by less than two dozen votes in 2008. Fuller’s district is solid red. In 2018, his only opponent on the ballot was a Libertarian. That could change next year, as I know of one Democrat who is seriously considering filing for the office.