Our endorsements - Helena/Butte areas

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Mary Ann Dunwell - House District 84 - East Helena

I'm serving to make sure all Montanans have equity of opportunity to prosper. It's an honor to work hard for Montanans.

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Kim Abbott - House District 83 - Helena

I moved to Montana when I was 23 to serve as an Americorps VISTA volunteer with the Montana Legal Services Association. Helena quickly became my home. After two years, I moved on to work as an organizer and advocate at Working for Equality and Economic Liberation before taking a position at the Montana Human Rights Network.  I have worked there for 14 years and am now Co-Director. In Helena, I’ve had the opportunity to serve on boards and volunteer for many Montana organizations with missions to protect vulnerable Montanans, make education accessible, or promote our clean air, water, and public lands.  

My partner Tara and I live in South Central Helena.  We love what our neighborhood and our city have to offer: walking to work, enjoying amazing arts, and kayaking on nearby lakes. Along with our neighbors, we’ve reaped the benefits of all this community and this state have to offer. We want to ensure that Helena and Montana continue to be great places where we can live, work, and take care of our friends and families.   

I feel incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to work on policy initiatives that have improved the lives of Montanans and strengthened our state. During my first two sessions representing House District 83 I have been proud to work on improving access and affordability of healthcare, helping to pass critical infrastructure policies, and making sure that essential programs and services are funded adequately for the health and safety of Helena and communities across the state. I’m currently serving on the Democratic Caucus leadership team as a House Minority Whip.  

I grew up on the west side of Cleveland, OH and earned my BA in Philosophy and Religion from the University of North Carolina Wilmington in 2001. I was the Business Operations Director for the Cleveland International Film Festival before moving to Montana in the summer of 2002. I’m happy to have called Helena my home for the last 17 years.

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Moffie Funk - House District 82 - Helena

Moffie is a dedicated teacher and political activist. Her priorities as she heads into a fourth term in the Montana House are education, labor, public lands, and health care.

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Catherine Scott - Senate District 40 - Helena and west of Helena

Catherine is a retired law enforcement officer with nearly 30 years in criminal justice and public service.  She is currently working toward her Ph.D. in Public Health and has a Master of Public Administration. Catherine has been married nearly 21 years and has two children in the Helena School District. 

She is advocating for:

  • Public Health Services 

  • Affordable Housing

  • Government Transparency

  • Social Justice 

  • Sustainable Energy 

  • Infrastructure

  • Public Education

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Bryher Herak - House District 75 - Boulder area

Bryher (rhymes with “fire”) is a Welsh name. Herak is Croatian. Bryher’s grandparents were Irish and Croatian immigrants who worked in mines in Butte and Anaconda. They moved to the Mission Valley north of Missoula, in the early 1900’s to farm and raise their families. Her parents continued that tradition and taught their nine children the value of hard work. 

After graduating from Carroll College and completing law school in Washington, DC, Bryher moved to Seattle, where she owned businesses and worked in civil and legal rights and mediation. In 1992 she was chosen as Seattle Woman of the Year. In 1994 the Greater Seattle Business Association selected her business as the Business of the Year. As a member of the Seattle Women’s Commission, she advised the mayor and city council on women’s issues. She worked with trade unions and contractors to increase women and minorities in trades and construction. 

Bryher moved to Basin in 2000 to be near her twin brother, George, a long-term resident of the Montana Developmental Center (MDC) in Boulder. She visited him often and eventually became involved in MDC’s Human Rights Committee. Governor Schweitzer appointed her Chair of the Governor’s Disability Advisory Council in 2005. She was at her brother’s side when he died in 2014. 

Bryher owned the High Note coffee shop and art gallery in Basin between 2004-2008. From 2008-2014 she worked as a mediator for the Montana Human Rights Bureau, helping small businesses across Montana resolve disputes and conflicts.

Bryher believes in small business and community. She knows how to make government work. She was a facilitator with the Boulder community circles that aided in establishing the Boulder growth plan She is a member of the Boulder Development Fund Board. She understands how laws are made and how compromises can be win-win. Bryher is an effective mediator. She has worked as a professional mediator for 20 years, helping families, communities, and businesses resolve conflicts and avoid lawyers, courts, and costly legal battles. She will work across the aisle to find common-sense solutions. Bryher listens and cares and she loves Jefferson County.

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Edie McClafferty - Senate District 38 - Butte

Edith 'Edie' McClafferty was born and raised in Butte, MT. She is married to Danny McClafferty and has three children and seven grandchildren. She has a Bachelor of Science in Elementary Education and minor in Special Education from Western Montana University, and a Masters of Education in Educational Leadership from Montana State University. Edie is a passionate educator, teaching at Hillcrest Elementary School in Butte. 

Edie McClafferty served in the Montana House of Representatives from 2009-2016. Edie was the House Minority Whip for the 2013 Legislative session. In addition to serving on numerous committees in the State House, she Edie served as the Vice Chair of the Education Committee, a position she holds to this day. In 2016, she was elected to the Montana State Senate. Currently she serves as Vice Chair of the Education and Cultural Resources Committee and is a member of the Fish and Game and Taxation Committees. 

Edie is running for Senate District 38 because she believes that the people need a strong voice. Edie is committed to public education, mental health, Veterans issues, Montana’s agriculture and farming communities, and preserving public lands. She will continue to fight for Montana families, and values.  She will work to protect any and all Montanan's against discrimination. Edie is proud of the accomplishments that she has been able to achieve working with both sides of the aisle. Edie is committed to Senate District 38.

  • Edie championed legislation relating to public education

  • Passed legislation to bring suicide awareness training to educators and school staff and worked to help bring mobile crisis units to communities in Montana.

  • Edie continues to work with sportsmen and women to  protect Montana public lands.   

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Sara Novak - House District 77 - Anaconda-Philipsburg-Drummond are

I am an educator who takes pride in earning all my degrees from right here in our Montana University System.  I have a B.S in education from UM Western and a Master of Education in Counseling from MSU Northern.  I went on to earn my Special Education Administration licensure from a collaboration between U of M and MSU Billings.  

I am the Special Education Director for Great Divide Education Services, based in Deer Lodge. I am a fierce advocate for Public Education and specifically for Special Education.  

I was born and raised in Butte, and live in Anaconda. My husband, Daren, and I have three children. SheaLee is 12 years old and our twins, Hunter and Gage, are 9. We enjoy spending our free time exploring our great state of Montana. We spend the majority of our summers in the mountains of southwest Montana, camping and fishing on our public lands. 

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Endorsed candidates - Flathead/northwest Montana

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Our endorsements - Bozeman area + Livingston