Supreme Court candidate stops in TFalls

Montana Supreme Court republican candidate Judge Nels Swandal stopped in Sanders County on Thursday to meet residents and speak on his candidacy at Thompson Falls High School.

Montana Supreme Court republican candidate Judge Nels Swandal stopped in Sanders County on Thursday to meet residents and speak on his candidacy at Thompson Falls High School.

The public forum was arranged by the Sanders County Conservatives to give residents a chance to hear from a candidate running for a lesser-discussed political seat.

"I believe it's one of the first Supreme Court candidates that has ever come to Sanders County. It's a neat thing and people would be able to talk to someone who is running for this position," said Judy Woolley, member of Sanders County Conservatives and co-organizer of the forum. "Unless you're on the wrong side of the law, most of us never get to hear about these people so I think it's a great opportunity for Sanders County."

Swandal and his wife Debra spent most of Thursday afternoon going up and down Main Street in Thompson Falls and Plains introducing themselves to business owners and inviting them to the open forum.

Swandal then headed to Thompson Falls High School to speak on his candidacy and answer questions for dozens of local residents. Swandal opened with a few choice jokes giving the forum a relaxed feel for the evening before continuing on with a brief history of his professional career.

Swandal grew up on his family ranch in Wilsall, Mont. Part of his campaign centers around his familiarity with a rural area and the importance of having a sense of rural living on the Supreme Court as he believes Mont. is still, in part, a rural state.

"I'm sure I'm the only candidate who had to feed calves and milk them before going to school in the morning," joked Swandal.

Swandal graduated from Montana State University for his undergraduate degree and graduated from the University of Montana School of Law. For the past 15 years, Judge Swandal has worked as the District Court Judge for Mont.'s 6th Judicial Court. He also served in the Army for 30 years and retired as a Colonel and State Staff Judge Advocate for the State of Mont. His interest in law began when Swandal worked with his mother at her law firm.

Although Supreme Court positions are non-partisan, Swandal is a conservative and holds conservative ideals, which were briefly touched on during the public forum.

After speaking on his judicial history, Swandal switched gears to speak on what it means to be a Supreme Court judge and that it is their job to interpret the law, not to legislate. With his background as a judge, Swandal said he feels he will bring some stability and balance to the court because of his background in law and in rural Mont.

"I can set aside my personal views to interpret the law to its plain meaning," said Swandal.

One question Swandal was asked from the public was whether or not he believes the constitution is a living, breathing document or the same as when it was first conceived. Swandal responded saying he feels the constitution is living in the sense that it may adapt to new situations using the First Amendment as example. The First Amendment had expanded from encompassing newspapers to now encompassing internet and e-mail.

"It lives and changes to enhance our rights not to take them away," said Swandal.

Swandal also spoke on his desire to be accessible to the public should he be elected. He said he would want to hear from people if they disagreed with a decision he has made and listen to those concerns from the public.