Hinkle returns to senate

The new state Senator for District 7 is no stranger to the job. Greg Hinkle of Thompson Falls last week was appointed to serve the remainder of Bob Brown's term in the state senate. Hinkle previously served as Senator in the district from 2009 through 2012.

Commissioners from Missoula, Flathead, Mineral and Sanders counties voted almost unanimously last week to appoint Hinkle to Brown's open Senate seat. Gov. Greg Gianforte appointed Brown director of the Montana Lottery earlier this year. Hinkle received 86.95% of the county commissioner votes, while Tom Millett of Marion received 13.05% of the vote.

"I'm here to stand for the people and I'm here to offer solutions," Hinkle said after the commissioners voted in Thompson Falls last Wednesday. "The problems are there. I want to be looking for positive solutions."

Because Senate District 7 includes parts of all four counties, commissioners from all counties were able to vote on Brown's replacement. "Having four counties makes it a challenge logistically," Commissioner Dan Rowan said before commissioners voted on Wednesday. The votes were weighted based on the number of voters in each county's portion of the district. Sanders County has 59.23% of the voters in SD 7, so commissioners' votes accounted for 59.23% of the votes for the appointee. All three county commissioners - Rowan, Tony Cox and John Holland - voted for Hinkle to replace Brown. Flathead County has 19.57% of the vote, with two of the three commissioners voting for Millett and one voting for Hinkle. Mineral County had 17.86% of the vote, with all votes going to Hinkle, and Missoula County commissioners, with 3.34% of the vote, all voted for Hinkle. The third choice for commissioners was Steven Delisle of Alberton.

Hinkle expressed his appreciation to his supporters. "I will do my best to support the people of this district. You know the principles I stand for and I will work hard while I'm here for this short time," he told the commissioners.

Commissioner Tony Cox said it made sense to appoint Hinkle because he is not running for another office. Millett is currently running for Representative in District 2 and Delisle is a candidate for Representative in District 90. "It's fair and he has the experience. It's important for the citizens of Sanders County as well," Cox stated.

Paul Fielder of Thompson Falls, the chairman of the Sanders County Republican Central Committee, said that the Republican committees in each of the affected counties brought forth potential names for a person to fill the Senate position, and the committees then collaborated to bring three names to the county commissioners. Fielder said Hinkle volunteered as a potential replacement.

As the county with the greatest percentage of the vote, the Sanders County commissioners coordinated the proceedings for choosing a replacement for Brown. Fielder said this has never before happened in Sanders County. Rowan said the next step in the process was to notify the Secretary of State. Hinkle will serve until January 2025, then the winner of this year's general election will take the office. Greg Hertz and Craig Pablo, both of Polson, are running for the position.