Baldwin lone GOP candidate in HD4

Republican Tim Baldwin is running for House District 4.

Baldwin’s name will be the only Republican candidate on the June primary ballot.

Walter Keathley of Kalispell also filed as a Republican in the race. However, his name has been removed after he did not complete the necessary forms to run, according to the Montana Office of Political Practices.

Two Democrats, Tom Muri and Ed Lieser, have also filed for the seat.

Baldwin, 32, is an attorney who has been running his private practice in the Flathead Valley for the last two years. Baldwin grew up in Pensacola, Fla., and graduated from Cumberland School of Law before working as a prosecuting attorney. He has written a political book called “Freedom For A Change,” in which he examines the expanding role of government and its alleged impacts to personal freedom.

He lives in Kalispell with his wife Jennifer and their two young children.

Baldwin said he has had a life-long interest in politics and his decision to obtain a law degree came specifically from that.

“Where I decided to go to school was based on my two desires — politics and music,” he said. “I decided that politics and law were more important for society. I figured I could sing on the side. It was a life-changing decision.”

Baldwin previously ran for an appointment to the Flathead Valley Community College trustee board. His run for HD 4 is his entrance into the political arena.

“I wanted to get into public office at some time,” he said. “There has been a lot of people asking me to run and I was looking for what might be the best place for me to run. This is a good time for me to run as a Republican in this seat.”

Baldwin has an interest in shaping the economy, taxes, state budget and education funding in the state.

He said improving the economy would take some precedent before other issues can be dealt with.

“The economy is on everybody’s mind,” he said. “It’s hard to think about other things when you can’t pay for things.”

Baldwin notes that HD 4 is unique in that it has a mix of wealthy and lower income residents. While it has a need for growth, he said, it must also be protected.

“I don’t think you can make Whitefish what Kalispell or Billings are,” he said. “We need to maintain our ambiance, but bring in business. We need to improve the quality of life and maintain our standards.”

Property taxes are an area of concern, he said. Tax appraisals that reflected only a peak in the market impacted owners unfairly, he said.

“I agree that the last appraisals were skewed,” he said. “It was disingenuous of the government. This should be addressed in the next session.”

Baldwin said he expects the state government to have fiscal responsibility, just as any individual would care for their family.

“We can’t act like we have a lot of money when we don’t,” he said. “We can’t just rely on money coming in. We have to plan for future generations.”

On education funding, Baldwin said that the state constitution sets out the right for a quality education.

“The tax system has to fund education adequately,” he said. “We need to look at our future and be competitive in the state and nation.”

Baldwin points out that technology is rapidly changing and that our education system needs to reflect that.