Mark Thane

From Ballotpedia
Mark Thane
Candidate, Montana House of Representatives District 89
Montana House of Representatives District 89
Tenure
2025 - Present
Term ends
2027
Years in position
1
Prior offices:
Montana House of Representatives District 99
Years in office: 2021 - 2025
Predecessor:Marilyn Ryan (D)
Compensation
Base salary
$128.86/legislative day
Per diem
$206/day
Elections and appointments
Last election
November 5, 2024
Next election
June 2, 2026
Education
Bachelor's
University of Montana, 1980
Graduate
University of Montana, 1985
Personal
Birthplace
Missoula, MT
Religion
Christian: Catholic
Profession
Educator
Contact

Mark Thane (Democratic Party) is a member of theMontana House of Representatives, representingDistrict 89. He assumed office on January 6, 2025. His current term ends on January 4, 2027.

Thane (Democratic Party) is running for re-election to theMontana House of Representatives to representDistrict 89. He declared candidacy for the Democratic primary scheduled onJune 2, 2026.

Biography

Mark Thane was born in Missoula, Montana. He earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Montana in 1980 and a master's degree from the University of Montana in 1985. Thane's career experience includes working as a teacher and administrator. He has been a member of the Montana Federation of Public Employees and the School Administrators of Montana.[1]

Committee assignments

2025-2026

Thane was assigned to the following committees:

2023-2024

Thane was assigned to the following committees:

2021-2022

Thane was assigned to the following committees:

Sponsored legislation

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according toBillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.


Elections

2026

See also: Montana House of Representatives elections, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on June 2, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89

IncumbentMark Thane is running in the Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89 on June 2, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane

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Incumbents arebolded and underlined.

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Endorsements

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2024

See also: Montana House of Representatives elections, 2024

General election

General election for Montana House of Representatives District 89

IncumbentMark Thane defeated incumbentLyn Hellegaard in the general election for Montana House of Representatives District 89 on November 5, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane (D)
 
55.6
 
3,590
Image of Lyn Hellegaard
Lyn Hellegaard (R) Candidate Connection
 
44.4
 
2,868

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 6,458
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89

IncumbentMark Thane advanced from the Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89 on June 4, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane
 
100.0
 
1,488

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,488
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Republican primary election

Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89

IncumbentLyn Hellegaard advanced from the Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 89 on June 4, 2024.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Lyn Hellegaard
Lyn Hellegaard Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
1,252

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,252
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Endorsements

Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Thane in this election.

2022

See also: Montana House of Representatives elections, 2022

General election

General election for Montana House of Representatives District 99

IncumbentMark Thane defeatedRyan Darling in the general election for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane (D)
 
66.0
 
3,417
Image of Ryan Darling
Ryan Darling (R)
 
34.0
 
1,761

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 5,178
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99

IncumbentMark Thane advanced from the Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane
 
100.0
 
1,786

Ballotpedia Logo

Incumbents arebolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,786
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99

Ryan Darling advanced from the Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ryan Darling
Ryan Darling
 
100.0
 
966

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 966
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

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2020

See also: Montana House of Representatives elections, 2020

General election

General election for Montana House of Representatives District 99

Mark Thane defeatedDavid Moore in the general election for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane (D) Candidate Connection
 
64.3
 
4,088
Image of David Moore
David Moore (R)
 
35.7
 
2,265

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 6,353
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99

Mark Thane advanced from the Democratic primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Mark Thane
Mark Thane Candidate Connection
 
100.0
 
2,211

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 2,211
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99

David Moore advanced from the Republican primary for Montana House of Representatives District 99 on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of David Moore
David Moore
 
100.0
 
1,312

Ballotpedia Logo

There were noincumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 1,312
Candidate Connection = candidate completed theBallotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you,complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data?Contact our sales team.

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also:Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Mark Thane has not yet completedBallotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.Send a message to Mark Thane asking him to fill out the survey. If you are Mark Thane,click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?

Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's Ballotpedia profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for.  More than 25,000 candidates have taken Ballotpedia's candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the surveyhere.

You can ask Mark Thane to fill out this survey by using the button below or emailing thaneforMT@gmail.com.

Email

2024

Mark Thane did not completeBallotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.

2022

Mark Thane did not completeBallotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Candidate Connection

Mark Thane completedBallotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2020. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Thane's responses.

Expand all |Collapse all

I am a Missoula native, University of Montana graduate and recently completed a thirty-nine year career in Missoula's public schools. My wife Mary and I are the proud parents of two adult daughters, Lindsay and Emilie. I currently serve on the board of directors for Partnership Health Center (Missoula) and the United Way of Missoula County. Previous board service includes the Missoula Economic Partnership, Missoula Family YMCA, SPARK! Arts Missoula, Missoula Education Foundation and Young Audiences of Western Montana. My campaign for House District 99 has been endorsed by the PAC of the Montana Federation of Public Employees as well as the PAC of Missoula Firefighters Local 271.
  • As a member of the Montana House I will advocate for affordable and accessible healthcare and case management services.
  • I support a high-quality K-12 public school system and the Montana University System, including our two-year colleges and workforce development programs (certificate programs, apprenticeships, trades).
  • Public lands and waterways are a great asset and significant driver of economic activity in Montana and access must be defended.
As a career educator, I am passionate about high-quality education from pre-K through the university system. Workforce development is critical in order to continue to advance Montana's economy. I will advocate for and support apprenticeships, certificate programs and the trades in addition to K-12 programs and the Montana University System.

Affordable and accessible healthcare and case management services are quality of life issues. I support Medicaid expansion and will advocate for the restoration of the positions which have been cut from the Department of Public Health and Human Services (DPHHS). Early intervention and appropriate case management will save significant resources in the long term.

Our Montana heritage includes complete access to our public lands and waterways for hunting, fishing and other recreational pursuits. Montana's outdoor recreation economy supports over 71,000 jobs and generates more than $7.1 billion in annual economic activity. Access to our public lands must be defended.
Servant leadership is an important attribute in an elected official. One must be an active listener, seeking to fully understand the issue before attempting to formulate a solution. Elected officials must be willing to take advantage of the collective capacity of colleagues and constituents to find the most reasonable solutions to problems.
I consider myself to be a collaborative problem solver. I listen well and am willing to invest the necessary time to study the issues. I am approachable and have always maintained an open door policy. I am committed to serve all citizens, but particularly the most vulnerable and underserved members of society.
All legislators must be responsible to fully invest themselves in the process, do their homework and commit to serving the best interests of the state and its citizens. Legislators must be attentive and discerning when listening to testimony and must utilize the best available data to inform decision making.
I want to be regarded as a person of integrity who recognized the "big picture" and effectively served the best interests of the state and its citizens.
Throughout my early childhood I recall watching the launch of a number of missions in the space program leading up to the moon landing in July of 1969 (when I was ten years old). I marvel at the capacity of our nation to rally around an event that required such amazing commitment, planning and technological advancement. I believe the display of unity, national pride and collective commitment to the project is instructive for us today. While we currently face a number of significant issues, climate change is one such issue that I believe can be successfully addressed if we are able develop the collective will and apply our scientific and intellectual capacity to seek solutions. The effort will require committed leadership and a level of personal sacrifice; however, the accomplishment will be one of the greatest feats in our history
Call of the Wild by Jack London is my favorite novel. The basic struggle, the fierce commitment and the power of the writing impacted me. (I have read it multiple times.)
The shorter terms in the house cause representatives to be more responsive to the electorate. The two year election cycle result in legislators returning to the district to attend meetings/functions and to meet to voters through door-to-door campaign efforts. The longer terms state senate guarantee the preservation of a certain level of institutional knowledge. To enact legislation requires approval of the house, senate and the governor. Having three "checks" in the system affords us greater opportunity to be certain legislation is in the best interest of all of our citizens.
While it is important to have some level of institutional knowledge preserved in the legislature from session to session, I believe infusion of new personalities, new ideas and fresh perspective is healthy for state government. I believe it is critical to have a true "citizen's legislature".
One of the great challenges facing the state of Montana will be continuing to support the state budget in the era of declining revenue from taxes on resource extraction, particularly coal. Property tax and state income tax cannot sustain the budget given the loss of revenue from resource extraction. Revision of the state tax structure will be a significant challenge over the next decade.
The governor and legislature must work collaboratively in order to produce the best legislation to serve the people of the state of Montana. While there may be ideological differences between those charged with the responsibility to govern, all parties must be willing to seek solutions that are in the best interest of the stae and its citizens. Having your say doesn't necessarily mean getting your way. The ability to navigate the political minefields and find room to compromise/collaborate is the mark of good leadership.
Developing relationships with other legislators is necessary in order to establish credibility and foster healthy dialog. It is difficult to collaborate if you don't have established relationships. The collective capacity of the legislature is enhanced if its members have established relationships founded on mutual respect.
My preference would be to serve on the appropriations committee. Dedicating the appropriate resources to support the priorities of the state and its citizens is a challenging but essential function of the legislature. As a career educator, the education committee is naturally a significant interest.
As a first-time legislator my intent would be to immerse myself in the process and learn as much as possible during my first session. I certainly aspire to leadership; however, I recognize that I have a significant learning curve as a new legislator.
There are attribute I have seen in a number of legislator which I would hope to evidence in my role. I would practice active listening, seeking first to understand then be understood. I value being collaborative and solution-oriented.
I have been impacted by the testimony offered by constituents from a number of Montana's rural communities that special education services are significantly hampered by the lack of funding to support special education cooperatives. In a rural school there may be a small number of students who require physical therapy, for example, due to a disabling condition. The school district doesn't have enough demand to hire a full time therapist, so they depend of a cooperative that serves multiple schools/communities. These cooperatives; however, are woefully underfunded and are in jeopardy because of budget deficits. Service to some of our most vulnerable students may be lost unless a solution is identified and supported.

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Campaign finance summary

Ballotpedia LogoNote: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf.Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at theFEC website. Clickhere for more on federal campaign finance law andhere for more on state campaign finance law.

Mark Thane campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2024Montana House of Representatives District 89Won general$41,044 $0
2022Montana House of Representatives District 99Won general$5,961 $0
2020Montana House of Representatives District 99Won general$11,177 N/A**
Grand total$58,182 N/A**
Sources:OpenSecrets, Federal Elections Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also:State legislative scorecards andState legislative scorecards in Montana

Ascorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states.  To contribute to the list of Montana scorecards, email suggestions toeditor@ballotpedia.org.


2024

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show].   

In 2024, theMontana State Legislature was not in session.


2023

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show].   

In 2023, theMontana State Legislature was in session from January 2 to May 2.

Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on economic issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on labor issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to property owners' interests.


2022

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show].   

In 2022, theMontana State Legislature was not in session.


2021

To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show].   

In 2021, theMontana State Legislature was in session from January 4 to April 29.

Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to economic issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on economic issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on environmental issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to agriculture.
Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on social issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills supported or opposed by the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills supported or opposed by the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on labor issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on a variety of issues of interest to the organization.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to business issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on conservative issues.
Legislators are scored on their votes on bills related to property owners' interests.










See also


External links

Candidate

Montana House of Representatives District 89

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    Montana House of Representatives District 89

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    • Footnotes

    1. ↑Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on May 13, 2020

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    -    		Montana House of Representatives District 89
    2025-Present    		Succeeded by
    -
    Preceded by
    Marilyn Ryan (D)    		Montana House of Representatives District 99
    2021-2025    		Succeeded by
    -


    Current members of theMontana House of Representatives
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    Speaker of the House:Brandon Ler
    Majority Leader:Steve Fitzpatrick
    Minority Leader:Katie Sullivan
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