GREAT FALLS — In the video above, Tim McGonigal talks with the three candidates for Montana House District 23 - Sandor Hopkins, Kevin Leatherbarrow, and Eric Tilleman. Below are details and extended interviews with all three candidates.
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The district covers an area south of 10th Avenue South from the Missouri River to just past 49th Street.
Republican Eric Tilleman is a fourth generation Montanan who grew up in Chinook, studied Agricultural Education at MSU, was the Ag teacher in Cascade for 16 years and now serves as the Ag Education Specialist for the State of Montana.
“One of the reasons why I wanted to run for office is I love giving back to the community,” said Tilleman. “I love serving my community. Being on the fire department, volunteering. I've coached a lot of sports to where I just love giving back.”
Democrat Sandor Hopkins is a native of Delaware and was a military child. His father’s service moved the family to several states, including Montana and even overseas to Turkey. He graduated from high school in Great Falls and then MSU with a degree in political science with a focus on international relations. He’s worked for the Cascade County planning department and now works for Morris Land Surveys based out of Choteau.
“I was a little bit disappointed with the way that the legislature handled themselves in the 23 session,” said Hopkins. “I was frustrated with my representative. Like I said, I thought I could do a better job, so I thought I'd take a stab at it.”
Libertarian Kevin Leatherbarrow is from Buffalo, New York and says as a child he always wanted to live in Montana. With a master’s degree in education and 20 years' experience in the field, he runs a small business that does tutoring and operates what’s called a pod school.
“So, I ran for Senate a little while back,” said Leatherbarrow. “I ran for state Superintendent of Public Instruction and I ran for the Great Falls Public School Board as well. And so I kind of got into politics a little while ago.”
Tilleman agrees property taxes are a big issue, but also believes a topic close to his heart must be addressed.
“The other one, I believe, is education,” said Tilleman. “Trying to retain teachers, trying to get teachers quality teachers helping the kids have quality education is a big thing.”
Hopkins says he understands the lure of Montana makes it a desirable place, but also makes that hard for the people who’ve lived here the longest.
“When I'm visiting people on the doors, I'm hearing concerns about property taxes, affordable housing,” said Hopkins. “I'm finding people who have young adult children who are in their late teens, early twenties, who are still living at home because they can't afford to move out.”
Like Tilleman, Leatherbarrow says he’s concerned about education in Montana.
“As far as the educational part, that seems to be a very big concern across Montana, not just here in Great Falls. Making sure our kids get to where they need to be,” said Leatherbarrow. “So I'm a big advocate of school vouchers that they had finally passed in the legislature and moving forward.”
You can watch the entire interviews with these candidates by clicking here.
Election Day is November 5 and Cascade County will send out ballots beginning October 11.
Sandor Hopkins
Kevin Leatherbarrow
Eric Tilleman
