Rating:

0.0 (0 votes)

Candidates began trickling into the Flathead County Elections Department to file their paperwork to run in the 2010 elections starting at 8 a.m. on Thursday morning.

Flathead County Sheriff Mike Meehan's first term is up this year, but he's determined to hold his post as sheriff. He arrived at the election department early Thursday to file for re-election, telling us he always intended to be in it for the long haul.

"I have a great interest in this community. This community means an awful lot to me" Meehan said. "The sheriff's office means a lot to me and I'm very concerned about public safety. I want to continue to provide the best law enforcement services we have."

Meehan added that there are many things he loves about being sheriff. "Over the years there have been many rewarding things. I truly enjoy serving the families in the role as coroner, and also working on the street with the guys just serving the public."

But Meehan has competition as former Flathead County Undersheriff, and 25 year law enforcement veteran, Chuck Curry is throwing his hat into the race.

"I spent 25 years in the sheriff's office, retired from there a few years ago, and was ready to retire when I did, but I've had a nice break. I'm ready to face the challenges of the job of sheriff/coroner, and I think I have a lot to offer that department still" Curry told us.

He added that elected as sheriff, he'd focus not just on law enforcement, but on overall public safety.

"Sheriff Meehan is a friend of mine, he worked for me for many years, but indeed I think we have different management styles. My tack on how I would manage the sheriff's office and manage the programs is much more integrated to the entire public safety realm."

But both men are confident and excited for the race, and only time will tell who will take the sheriff reigns come November.

Meanwhile, people lined up on Thursday morning at the Montana Secretary of State's office in Helena to file applications for public office.

Secretary of State Linda McCulloch says running for public office is a fundamental right, and she says her office is working to ensure candidate filing goes smoothly. She noted, "One of the most important things we do as citizens of Montana, of the United States, is to vote and there's many things you can do. You can be a candidate, but you can also volunteer for candidates or for issues that folks are interested in, and of course voting is the basis for all that."

Citizens wanting to file have several options: they can show up at the Secretary of State's office, mail in the forms, and even file online. But even with the convenience of filing online, some candidates still enjoy the excitement of filing in person.

Mary Caferro, running for Senate District 40, said, "I love this day, I love filing for office. And I think its really amazing that someone like me, a real common person, a single mother with four kids struggling to make ends meet can actually file for office, run for office, and hold office."

Don Judge, running for House District 80, stated, "I've been encouraging people to run for office for over 35 years and supporting them, (but) this is the first time I've stepped up to do it and it was pretty easy to do."

Democratic candidate Dennis McDonald filed to become Montana's U.S. Representative, and said of the filing process, "It was smooth, and for me a humbling experience."

Candidates can file for State Legislature, Supreme Court Justice, District Court Judge, Public Service Commissioner and US Representative. By the end of the day, more than 100 people had already filed with the Secretary of State's office.

The deadline to file is March 15th at 5:00 p.m. For more information, visit the Secretary of State's website.