Edward O'Brien

Montana's judicial elections are nonpartisan. An initiative to permanently keep it that way will appear on November's ballot. Republican state legislators have tried unsuccessfully to make judicial elections partisan during recent legislative sessions.

For the first time this election season, all four of Montana's U.S. Senate candidates shared a debate stage. The candidates fielded reporters' questions for a mostly fireworks-free hour-and-a-half at Bozeman's Field and Stream Lodge.

Western Montana's temperatures have been unseasonably warm over the past couple of weeks, hovering up to 20 degrees above normal, but a major change is right around the corner.

Fourteen black bears were killed last week following an investigation at a Bozeman-area home. Game wardens say the bears had stopped relying on natural foods and were completely unafraid of humans.

State wildlife officials Tuesday released more information on Montana's latest bear attack. According to Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks, evidence collected at the site of the incident confirms a hunter was attacked by a grizzly bear Monday morning.

The search is on for a bear in the Columbia Falls-area that attacked a woman Monday. Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks and U.S. Forest Service investigators say a woman who was walking her dog sustained significant injuries following the attack.

The suspect accused of shooting and killing four people in an Anaconda bar last week is now in police custody.

The Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forests will soon enact restrictions on two popular hot springs along the western Montana border with Idaho. Officials say the regulations are the result of mounting public health, safety and natural resource damage concerns.

Sen. Jon Tester says he has not yet made up his mind on running again in 2024. The three-term Democrat says he needs to talk it over with his wife, Sharla, first.

According to the American Lung Association, only 5% of eligible Montana residents have been screened for the disease. Experts say screening is key to early diagnosis, which saves lives.