Several large-scale developments underway have the potential to generate momentum in one of Montana’s slowest-growing large cities.

Regional projects in various stages include large residential developments, a major commercial center, a growing higher education sector and a massive upgrade to Malmstrom’s missile field, all of which suggest that the long-awaited momentum is building.

An overview of the eight parties keen to shape the electricity rates NorthWestern Energy is developing to serve new data-center customers.

Medicaid expansion enrollees will not lose coverage for noncompliance with new “community engagement” standards until October, when the state begins enforcement.

Tribal nations celebrate 150th anniversary of victory at Greasy Grass.

Montana U.S. Sen. Tim Sheehy is claiming he sustained injuries from allegedly faulty ammunition he used in 2024. In a lawsuit filed against Freedom Munitions, Sheehy claims the Idaho manufacturer’s .308 caliber ammo misignited twice, damaging Sheehy’s firearms and causing him personal injury.

Can a well-financed independent candidate tap the state’s large reservoir of voters who claim to reject party labels? And can frustration with partisan gridlock shave off enough frustrated voters from both major parties to add up to a winning plurality? Seth Bodnar intends to find out.

From @ict-news.bsky.social: Over 10,000 people are expected this week at the Little Bighorn National Monument and surrounding area as Indigenous people celebrate not only their win against Custer but their resilience. https://bit.ly/3QWG2d2

Shane Charles, a co-owner with his wife, Tamara, of Carmel’s Sports Bar & Grill in Anaconda, was shot at the bar Saturday night and died after being transported to Community Hospital of Anaconda.

What should be done to help manage dozens of horses roaming the Miller Creek area on the south end of Missoula? That’s the question Missoula County is contemplating, along with plenty of public opinions about the animals.

Farmers and ranchers in southeastern Montana say a legacy of coal mining and methane drilling has polluted one of the most valuable resources they have: clean, plentiful water.

Montana added an estimated 7,137 residents between July 2024 and July 2025, according to new Census Bureau data. While statewide growth remained steady, gains slowed in many of the state’s largest cities, including Kalispell, Bozeman and Belgrade. https://bit.ly/3QnzNyJ

Daines-authored America the Beautiful Act clears committee, faces hurdles on foreign visitor surcharge, funding priorities. https://bit.ly/4aa9CSO

A proposal to explore for copper and other minerals on public land west of Helena has garnered pushback from environmental groups who say the timeline for the federal government’s review leaves limited opportunities for public engagement.

The Montana Lottery miscalculated its finances by $18.5 million over the last several years, according to a recent report from the state’s Legislative Audit Division. https://bit.ly/4oCmlno

Firefighters with the Helena Fire Department and the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation contained a fire on the north face of Mt. Helena Monday afternoon, according to a city press release.

Dan O'Malley discusses his son's Montana roots, UFC success and why the fighter views the White House event through the lens of sport, not politics.

The Democratic candidate benefited from a PAC surge in the Senate primary. Where will the money to compete come from now?

The city’s namesake creek has been subject to a network of tunnels and culverts below downtown for over a century. What if it wasn’t?

In rural states, hospitals may struggle to make specialty programs safe and lucrative.

A Clinton man pleaded not guilty Thursday to murdering two elderly women at a Missoula nursing home in 1990, a cold case reopened last year following new DNA analysis.

The Montana-based group promoting a ballot initiative that would make campaign finance more transparent obscures its own funding with a murky fundraising structure, according to publicly available campaign finance filings reviewed by Montana Free Press.

Roughly 19 tribes are involved in planning a week’s worth of festivities in Montana leading up to the anniversary. Tribal event organizers said they’re expecting roughly 1,000 horse riders, 500 motorcyclists and thousands of attendees.

Benefis brought a cutting-edge heart treatment to its Great Falls hospital. When doctors questioned how some patients were chosen, they said they were pushed aside.

More than 300,000 ballots were cast in the June primary, the highest raw vote total for a primary during a midterm election year in state history.

Conservation groups have filed at least three separate appeals seeking to halt the Trump administration’s decision to evict more than 900 bison from large swaths of federal land in central Montana.

The Anaconda Leader, a twice-weekly newspaper that had served its community in southwest Montana for more than half a century, announced Monday that it had closed. Its demise follows a nationwide trend of local outlets struggling to stay in business.

A state senator has suspended his property tax cap ballot initiative just two weeks before signatures come due, alluding to pushback from key stakeholders.

New faces advance, outside money exerts outsized influence, the continuing power of a Trump endorsement, and other key takeaways from Tuesday’s primary election.

What happens when a decades-old neighborhood school falls into disrepair? Helena residents aim to follow the lead of other Montana communities in finding a solution.

Crazy Mountain Ranch says it wants ‘day-to-day’ control of key diversion structure. But opponents fear the request could reshape how water is managed across Montana.

RML’s latest controversy arose this week when the U.S. Department of Justice arrested and charged two of its researchers with smuggling monkeypox virus samples into the United States and lying to investigators.

After months of hard-fought battles between two factions of the Montana Republican Party, it appears that each camp of the GOP won a significant number of races in Tuesday’s primary election, according to results from The Associated Press.

Smokejumper Sam Forstag, the Democratic nominee, and conservative radio talk show host Aaron Flint, the Republican, will face off in November for Montana’s Western District U.S. House seat. The Flint-Forstag matchup sets up Montana’s first non-baby boomer race for U.S. House in 30 years.

Republican Kurt Alme and Democrat Alani Bankhead scored decisive primary wins Tuesday to advance to Montana’s U.S. Senate race in November.

Aaron Flint, the conservative talk radio show host turned U.S. House candidate, has won Montana’s Republican Western District U.S. House primary, according to The Associated Press. https://bit.ly/4u9SGTu

Winners, notable outcomes and what comes next in races for Congress, the Montana Legislature and the Public Service Commission.

As voting comes to a close, candidates are watching results roll in, county election officials are tabulating ballots, and the secretary of state’s office is aggregating results. https://bit.ly/4uengvn

The decision marks a major setback for the young Americans seeking to reverse President Trump’s pro-fossil fuel agenda and reinstate the climate adaptations pursued by his predecessor. https://bit.ly/4ek151X

As of 5:07 p.m., election officials had received about 46% of all absentee ballots mailed to voters statewide, according to the Montana Secretary of State’s office. The office expects to release updated numbers for absentee returns at 7 p.m. Follow our election coverage live ⬇

The U.S. Senate voted along party lines Tuesday to confirm Bozeman attorney Katie Lane as a U.S. District Court judge for the District of Montana.

Bradley Seaman, Missoula County’s elections administrator, encouraged voters who mailed in their ballots to check their status on MyVoterPageMT.com. If the status does not say "accepted," absentee voters can vote provisionally at their polling place. Follow our election coverage live ⬇

Montanans are casting their ballots today, and our reporters are tracking the action in real time. We'll be updating this live blog throughout the day with news, insights and analysis from around the state.

Looking for a quick way to get informed before the polls close? Our election guide has race coverage and candidate Q&As on the issues Montana voters are weighing 👇

Nearly four years after the Montana Department of Environmental Quality levied a $516,567 fine against the current owner of a now-shuttered gold mine, the state’s environmental regulator has come to an agreement with the Bozeman man on the receiving end of the illegal mining penalty.

On Tuesday, June 2, a minority of registered Montanans will vote in dozens of primaries, deciding who’ll have a shot at — or in many cases a virtual lock on — seats in Congress, the state Public Service Commission and Montana’s Legislature.

Utility commissioner Brad Molnar is asking a federal court to end his state-imposed ban on entering his workplace — the Montana Public Service Commission building in Helena.

A letter endorsed by a supermajority of Montana’s 50 state senators called sexual abuse allegations against Windy Boy ‘disqualifying for anyone holding public office.’

New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez says Sam Forstag will support working-class Montanans, but his opponents question the timing and value of the last-minute stump speech.

Montana’s 2026 primary election is Tuesday, June 2. We’ve compiled everything you need to know about the offices and candidates on the primary ballot, and how you can still cast yours.