Jerry Bennett: County Commissioner candidate
<p>Rep. Jerry Bennett HD1 (Paul Sievers/TWN)</p>
As election season approaches, one political candidate has already built a name for himself as a long-running politician.
Jerry Bennett, candidate for Lincoln County Troy District representative, looks to utilize his experience on the state and local level to provide unity, economic stability and infrastructure to the county.
Bennett, 60, has lived in Lincoln County nearly all of his life and graduated from Libby High School. As a conservative Republican who’s served four terms in the Montana House of Representatives, he said his longevity and experience set him apart from the other candidate. He also wants to unite Libby, Troy and Eureka with the county, to work together as a team.
“I believe that the county commissioners that we have currently are doing a really good job,” Bennett said. “I would just like to see a real unity developed between the three cities to foster good working relationships to work together on issues within the framework of the budget. We may be three separate entities, but there has to be some work together.”
Bennett said he also wants to improve the county commissioners by looking at long-term goals with the county economy and infrastructure. He desires to look at state and federal regulations to utilize the county’s resources, such as logging, mining and tourism.
On the local level, Bennett said he has fostered many relationships by working on numerous boards and committees. He said he aims to work more closely with committees and boards as a commissioner.
On top of his years spent in local and state government, he said his years of experience as a private business owner give him a solid background in financial knowledge, which will help when it comes to the county budget.
“Having been in business, you learn to sacrifice and use what you have rather than spending money you don’t have,” Bennett said. “When you look at where the county is at, we have $12 million left in our account. The budget is always the biggest thing, and the economic conditions within the county. That is going to be a major priority.”