Levies met with mixed results in western Montana's largest districts.
Montana Public Radio / By Austin Amestoy
Levy results from Tuesday, May 7, school elections are in, and they present a mixed bag for some of western Montana’s largest districts.
Preliminary results in Missoula show voters approved three of four levies on the ballot. Kalispell voters rejected a high school general fund levy, and approved continued funding for technology in elementary schools. Helena Public Schools had five levies on the ballot, all of which voters rejected. A high school building safety levy in Butte may head to a recount after unofficial results showed a tie.
Some Montana schools pushed for levies this year to buoy their budgets as federal COVID-19 relief funding dries up and inflation drives expenses higher. Declining enrollment is also leading to state funding reductions in some districts.
Kalispell special election retains two City Council members
Montana Public Radio / By Aaron Bolton
Two Kalispell City Council members have retained their seats after election results from last fall were thrown out due to administrative errors.
Sam Nunnally and Kari Gabriel both were serving in an interim capacity while a judge-ordered re-run election was conducted after the Flathead County Elections Office accidentally sent out ballots to voters based on old voting districts.
Nunnally and Gabriel both handily won back their seats on the council, according to preliminary results from Tuesday’s special election.
