Montana Public Radio is gathering information on all statewide primary candidates to publish as a resource for our audience. We asked all the statewide candidates to respond to the following questions via email, limiting their answers to 300 words per question. These are their unedited responses.
Secretary of State candidate Bowen Greenwood:
What is your full name as it will appear on ballots?
Bowen Greenwood
What is your age?
48
Where do you live?
Helena
What is your education background?
Bachelor's degree from Georgetown University, Billings West High School
What is your current occupation?
Clerk of the Montana Supreme Court.
Why are you running for this particular public office?
Montana’s Secretary of State is our chief elections official, and I care deeply about election law. I worked in the Secretary of State’s office in 2006, and I had the chance to see up close what a poorly-thought-out change to election law can do. I want to make sure election law is administered without undue advantage to one side.
What makes you qualified to hold this position?
From 2006 to early 2009, I was the press secretary in the Secretary of State’s office. I’ve been there, I know how it works. I can walk in and start making effective change on day one. As Montana’s elected, Republican Clerk of the Montana Supreme Court, I’ve been administering a state agency under budget while delivering results. I have a record of fiscally conservative governing. I’m also a fourth generation Montanan, a former small business owner, a former reporter and a writer.
What are three policy issues that distinguish you from your opponent(s)?
I strongly support President Trump’s position that we need voter ID. I will always defend Montanans' right to vote in person at the polling place on election day. I propose reinstating the Secretary of State’s voter registration efforts. I propose hiring an election integrity officer whose job is to listen to Montanans complaints about irregularities in the administration of election laws.
What are the greatest issues facing Montana that have gone unsolved by elected officials and how would you address them?
One of the biggest issues we’re going to have to deal with going forward is the economic fallout from the coronavirus crisis. The Secretary of State is a member of Montana’s Board of Land Commissioners; in that position, I’d like to make sure we’re using our natural resources in the best way to create good paying jobs and help Montanans get back to work in the healthiest, safest way possible.
