← Election Series · All statewide races

Our verdict

LiberalMind endorses Jeff Pattison

Election Day is November 3. District 1 — the biggest Montana Public Service Commission district by land, covering much of eastern Montana — is an open seat, because incumbent Randy Pinocci is termed out. Jeff Pattison, a former state representative, farmer and rancher, won the Republican primary with two-thirds of the vote. Angeline Cheek, an Indigenous advocate from the Fort Peck Indian Reservation, is running on lower power bills and transparency. No polling and no money figures for any candidate in this race were located in the research — we say so plainly below, rather than guess. LiberalMind endorses Jeff Pattison. Read the research, and see why.

How Montana got here

First, a Montana fact that frames both PSC articles: Montana elects its principal statewide executive offices on a four-year cycle coinciding with the presidential election (2024, 2028). Governor, Lieutenant Governor, Secretary of State, Attorney General, Auditor, and Superintendent of Public Instruction are not on the November 3, 2026 ballot. The only state executive offices on Montana's 2026 ballot are two seats on the Public Service Commission, elected by district for four-year terms.

The PSC, in Montana Public Radio's summary, regulates "monopoly utilities like NorthWestern Energy," must ensure rates are "'just and reasonable,'" and also handles railroad and pipeline inspections and garbage hauling. There are five commissioners, elected by district, and right now all of them are Republican. No Democrat has won a PSC seat since 2012, per Generation180's ballot guide.

District 1 "is the biggest in the state by land and covers much of eastern Montana, from the Rocky Boy's Reservation to Glendive and Miles City," extending west "as far west as parts of Great Falls and Cascade County" (MTPR). Incumbent Randy Pinocci (R) is termed out, declined to run for the PSC seat, and is running for state senate.

The June 2, 2026 primaries, from the primary table citing the Montana Secretary of State: Pattison won the Republican primary 22,077 (66.6%) to Jeremy Trebas's 11,076 (33.4%), total 33,153. Cheek won the Democratic primary unopposed, 12,294 (100.0%). The general-election roster — Pattison (R) and Cheek (D) — is corroborated by a published Richland County November 3, 2026 publication ballot and by MTPR. No third-party or independent candidate for District 1 appears in any compilation checked. One compilation's general-election table spells Cheek's surname "Creek"; its primary table, MTPR, the county ballot, and her own campaign reporting all spell it "Cheek" — we print Cheek, and treat "Creek" as a compilation typo, not a second candidate.

Competitiveness, at exactly the strength sourced: MTPR and the Daily Montanan assessed on October 8, 2026 that "it looks like it's an uphill battle for Angeline Cheek. This is a Republican district. Angeline Cheek won 12,000 votes in an uncontested primary. In contrast, 33,000 Republicans voted the Republican primary ballot, and Jeff Pattison alone won more than 22,000 of those." No public poll of District 1 was located, and no money figures for any Montana PSC candidate were located in the research — no Montana Commissioner of Political Practices filing totals were pulled for Pattison or Cheek. We print no rating and no money comparison rather than invent either.

Jeff Pattison (Republican) — the former legislator running on reliable oversight and fair rates

Background and service: From Glasgow; "a third generation farmer and rancher and a small business owner"; he served "in the Montana Legislature before, in the House in 2001 and 2003" (MTPR; the compiled summary gives "former state representative (2001–2003)"). A campaign-announcement compilation adds that he was elected to the Montana House in 2000, chaired the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Natural Resources, chaired the Legislative Audit Committee, served as chief of staff to the House Speaker, sat on the Environmental Quality Council, and co-owns the Glasgow Stockyards — printed here as a campaign-side source, recorded as such.

His record case and platform, as reported: He is "running on reliable oversight and fair rates. He wants data centers to 'pay to play' or pay their own way"; he backs "modernizing hydro and coal infrastructure and planning for future nuclear options like small modular reactors" and protecting farms and ranches from blackouts. In his own quoted words: "Coal, gas, and hydro built this state. Clean coal, advanced gas, modern hydro, and smarter integration will rebuild it" (MTPR; Liberty Bell compilation).

Pros: Proven in elected office — a former state representative with appropriations, audit, and natural-resources committee work that maps directly onto a regulator's oversight job. His platform is concrete and district-specific: data centers paying their own way, reliable baseload power, and no blackouts for farms and ranches. He won a contested Republican primary decisively, 66.6% to 33.4%.

Cons: His legislative service is more than two decades old (2001–2003), and he has never served on the PSC itself — this office would be new to him. No campaign-finance figure for him was located, so his funding cannot be inspected here.

The flaw, plainly: None proven in service on this record. No scandal or verification failure for Pattison was located in the sources searched — that is "none located," not a proved negative. His exposure is staleness of service, not proven conduct.

Angeline Cheek (Democratic) — the Indigenous advocate running on lower bills and transparency

Background and service: "From the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in eastern Montana. She has spent 18 years in Indigenous advocacy and community organizing, and she has a degree in criminal justice" (MTPR). Campaign reporting adds that she is working toward a master's in psychology and is close to a bachelor's in elementary education (Northern Plains Independent, May 7, 2026). Prior elected office: none documented in the sources searched; her record is advocacy and organizing, stated explicitly.

Her platform, as reported: Three pillars in campaign reporting — (1) lowering utility costs and fighting "unfair rate hikes"; (2) transparency and ethics, with deliberations "open, ethical and free from corporate overreach"; (3) tribal and rural advocacy. MTPR's summary: she wants to "'lower your power bill,'" wants rules for data centers before approval, and wants transparency on filings currently "blacked out as proprietary," arguing utilities must prove increases are needed so low-income households do not absorb them.

The Manchin-test fact, stated plainly: No in-service break by Cheek with her party on Constitution, free-market, or freedom values was located in this research — she has no elected service in which such a break could be documented, and no vote, filing, or documented act is sourced.

Pros: Eighteen years of advocacy and community organizing in the district she seeks to represent, a criminal-justice degree, and a platform aimed at the two things District 1 voters feel directly — the size of the power bill and whether rate filings can be read in full. Her data-center point (rules before approval) overlaps her opponent's (pay their own way) more than either campaign advertises.

Cons: No prior elected office is documented, and no record of regulating a utility, reading a rate case, or voting on energy policy exists in this file to inspect. She won 12,294 votes unopposed in a district where 33,153 Republicans voted in their primary. No campaign-finance figure for her was located.

The flaw, plainly: No proven flaw in service was located — and no proven exception case either. Under our doctrine an enabler is not an extremist, and Cheek is not priced as one; she is a Democrat with no sourced in-service break from her party on our values, which is the standing reason the exception is not earned.

The minor candidates, briefly

There are none in any compilation checked for District 1. A standing check found no pedophile-association material meeting the proven standard for either candidate — absence noted, nothing implied.

OUR CALL

LiberalMind endorses Jeff Pattison.

Pattison is the in-tent candidate with proven, relevant legislative service — appropriations, audit, and natural-resources work — a concrete platform on reliable power and data centers paying their own way, and no proven flaw in service located in this file. Cheek is a credible advocate with no elected record to inspect and no documented Manchin-test break. The primary-turnout facts and MTPR's "uphill battle" assessment describe the electorate; the doctrine decides the call: endorse the proven conservative, and print the absence of polling and money figures honestly rather than fill it in.

For the complete Election 2026 breakdown — every race, claim by claim — see the full coverage on our website.

Vote early. Research your candidates. Choose the best moderates, whatever their party — no extremism from either side. And encourage your friends and family to do the same.

Sources

Election result — November 4, 2026

Result pending. No verified call (Associated Press or official) as of November 4, 2026. This page will be updated when the race is called or certified. The original article above is unchanged.

AI-assisted article — but the sources are human, and the facts are very real.

← Back to the Election Series