Sign up for the free Great Falls This Week newsletter and stay in the loop on Great Falls city government, public school meetings, business news and upcoming entertainment and events. Sign up 3/09/2026 Several primary races will pit two factions of GOP against one another The filing deadline for the 2026 elections closed last week, teeing up contested Republican primaries for Cascade County’s open Senate seats. The races give Cascade County voters a choice between the two factions of Montana’s Republican Party, a division that manifested during the 2025 legislative session when moderates compromised with Democrats and undermined more conservative legislators.  North of the Missouri River in Senate District 11, moderate Rep. Ed Buttrey will face conservative former legislator Steven Galloway for a seat left open by Sen. Daniel Emrich, who chose not to seek reelection. Cascade County Republican Central Committee Chair Republican Eric Hinebauch, who also serves on the county commission, told Montana Free Press that “you couldn’t have a more clear representation of the two [Republican] factions than those two candidates.” Galloway called renewed Medicaid expansion, which Buttrey sponsored and helped become law in 2025, “excessive government spending.” “Ed’s a nice guy, but he’s not exactly conservative,” Galloway told MTFP.  Buttrey said he’s always been a Republican who “tries to ensure government is only there for the people that need it most and that we’re doing the best to serve our citizens.” “I feel like it’s better to leave session having done something than to sit around screaming about some ideology and not serving your constituents,” Buttrey said.  A similar ideological struggle will play out in Senate District 12, where Sen. Wendy McKamey decided not to run for reelection. Moderate, two-time legislator Rep. George Nikolakakos, R-Great Falls, will face former Public Service Commissioner Randy Pinocci, who contends that he is the real Republican in the race.  “Pinocci will keep one eye on the party platform with every decision he makes,” Pinocci told MTFP.  Nikolakakos told MTFP he has been a Republican his entire life. “People like me, and people like many of the folks in the Montana and the Great Falls delegation, are traditional Republicans and traditional conservatives,” Nikolakakos said. “And this freedom caucus breed of Republican is, I would say, anything but conservative. They’re very radical.” Senate District 10, which encompasses much of downtown Great Falls, is another open seat as Sen. Jeremy Trebas’ decided to run for the Public Service Commission.  Rep. Steve Fitzpatrick, R-Great Falls, said the seat will likely be the most competitive race in Cascade County’s general election in November.  The Republican primary between Jessica Dyrdahl, a veteran who said she is running “for the children and families of Montana” in an interview with The Big Sky Standard, and Maximus Dascoulias, a member of the Montana Air National Guard, will decide who runs against Democratic businesswoman Margaret Mitchell in the general election. Sen. Josh Kassmeir, who represents portions of rural Cascade County, was one of nine moderate Senate Republicans who collaborated with Democrats in 2025. He is not up for reelection until 2028. Special significance in new Little Shell center Little Shell First Vice Chairman Clarence “Clancy” Sivertsen stands inside the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians’ new ceremonial center March 5, 2026. Credit: Zeke Lloyd/MTFP The Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians’ new ceremonial building, which features a 4,000-square-foot gathering space, holds a special significance for a tribe that operated for centuries without federally designated land, according to the tribe’s First Vice Chairman Clarence “Clancy” Sivertsen.  “Finally, we’ve got a facility that we can have events and have our people have a nice place to come into,” Sivertsten told Montana Free Press. The center, which opened on Feb. 28, can hold up to 200 people, enabling the tribe to phase out its current center as its main gathering space. The new building will be used for ceremonies, community gatherings and meetings with government officials. The facility also includes a full kitchen for programs like the weekly elders’ luncheon. The tribe will also rent out the space. Sivertsen said a majority of the $4 million budgeted for the project was made available through the American Rescue Plan Act.  The Little Shell refused a 19th-century reservation treaty in North Dakota, resulting in a lack of federal recognition until 2019. The tribe has roughly 7,300 enrolled citizens across 50 states, according to Sivertsen. About 1,800 live in Great Falls.  The new building adds to the tribes’ existing structures in Great Falls, including a health clinic, an administrative building, a program office, an elder center and a food distribution warehouse.  “After centuries of fighting with the federal government to get our recognition restored, we have our building of our nation,” Sivertsen said.  Next on the docket, according to tribal leaders, is an 18-acre housing development planned next to the center. The tribe hopes to break ground on the development this summer.  Following up on ARPA The city is wrapping up projects funded by the 2021 American Rescue Plan Act, a federal infrastructure package that injected about $19.5 million into Great Falls. As of March 3, the city has spent about 95% of the funding it received, according to city grant administrator Tom Hazen. Strict federal guardrails meant the money had to address the public health and economic impacts of COVID, replace lost government revenue, provide pay to essential workers or make investments in water, sewer, housing and broadband. Those rules came with reporting requirements for local governments. The city allocated most of that funding, about 83%, to large-scale renovation and construction, including improvements to the fire station and the civic center. It plans to finish a new police department evidence building in May.  The city commission also allocated $2.8 million to 14 smaller projects, nine of which have been completed. Completed programs include $375,000 for Peace Place, which converted a commercial building into a facility for children with developmental disabilities, and $600,000 to repair Centene Stadium, the home field of the Great Falls Voyagers. The stadium is owned by the city and leased to the team. Photo Op A crew erects part of a memorial swinging bench dedicated to Josy McLean, who taught science for 28 years at C.M. Russell High School before her unexpected death on Jan. 4, 2026. Great Falls Trails Director A.J. Smovir said he expects the project to be completed by March 13. Credit: Zeke Lloyd/MTFP Strong winds east of the Rocky Mountain front The roof of Lincoln Elementary School in Great Falls blew off midday Sunday during a windstorm with gusts topping 70 miles per hour in Cascade County. There have been no reported injuries, according to Great Falls police. Other parts of the region — Carbon, Stillwater, Park, Wheatland and Sweet Grass counties — also saw winds as high as 70 mph Sunday, according to the National Weather Service. READ MORE Five things to know in Great Falls Jeremy Virts was selected last week as the new chief of the Great Falls fire department. His predecessor, Jeremy Jones, vacated the role after City Manager Greg Doyon tapped him to serve as the deputy city manager late in 2025. Virts has worked in public safety for more than two decades, including stints with the Great Falls Police Department and Great Falls Fire Rescue.  A slew of changes to downtown parking took effect last week, including a rate increase of $1 to $1.50 per hour on Central Avenue. These updates “are intended to maintain consistent enforcement and support short-term stabilization of the parking program while longer-term solutions are developed,” according to a city press release. Proposals for a permanent parking plan are expected to come before the city commission this spring. The Montana Department of Transportation and construction company Battle Ridge Builders will close parts of Montana Highway 21 until June to replace existing structures near where the road meets U.S. 287. Work will block traffic at Hogan Slough through late March, according to a MDT press release. Elk Creek and Elk Creek Overflow will become impassable from late March through late June.  About 29% of Montana’s registered voters believe that Great Falls is located in eastern Montana, according to a recent Montana Free Press-Eagleton poll. The survey focused on public policy and elected officials’ favorability but also included broader questions. About 18% of respondents believe eastern Montana starts at the Continental Divide, and another 11% selected Great Falls as the dividing line. The city commission last week appointed Michael Bicsak, Leah Jerome and Wayne Klind to fill vacancies on the Planning/Zoning Commission, a seven-member group that advises the city on development, zoning, land subdivision and transportation planning. Calling all photographers: Submit a photo for Great Falls This Week to [email protected]. The post Hardline Republicans look to block moderates in Cascade County appeared first on Montana Free Press. ...read more read less