As election season heats up in Montana, a former wildlife commissioner said one issue deserves bipartisan attention: public lands.
The possibility of selling off public lands has become a divisive political issue in recent years.
Dan Vermillion, now vice president of Sweetwater Travel Company, which he co-owns with his brothers, grew up in Montana and served as the state's Fish and Wildlife Commissioner from 2007 to 2019. He said it is an issue uniting people in the state, regardless of political affiliation.
"Public lands are a fundamental piece of Montana. It's a fundamental piece of the Montana culture, and it's a foundational piece of our economy, whether you're a rancher or like me, somebody who's in the tourism business," Vermillion explained.
Vermillion feels public lands are threatened in Montana and the U.S. by politicians' efforts to transfer public land management to the private sector. Conservationists pointed to the Trump administration's rescission of the Public Lands Rule this spring, which means conservation is no longer on an equal level with other development uses on public lands.
Vermillion stressed Montanans have a chance to protect public lands at the ballot box this November. Vermillion encouraged voters in the state to look beyond rhetoric and consider how elected leaders and candidates have voted or spoken on public lands issues.
"When I look at the landscape and how the parties are talking about public lands, there's no question that for me, I'm going to pick the candidate that I think best represents my beliefs and will be the most effective advocate for sound, balanced management of our public lands," Vermillion emphasized.
Montanans will elect a new U.S. senator this year after Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., withdrew from the reelection campaign in March, saying he wants to spend more time with family. The state's 1st Congressional District will also elect a new representative after Rep. Ryan Zinke, R-Mont., said he would not run again due to health problems.