Nancy Ballance had been warned.  When Ballance was first elected to represent Hamilton in the state Legislature in 2012, certain members of her GOP caucus told her to avoid working with another Republican, a veteran legislator from Conrad named Llew Jones. But Ballance eventually found Jones un avoidable.  In the winter months of 2015, during what was then her second session, Ballance and Jones were busy crafting two competing versions of the state budget, a multi-billion-dollar political power struggle that plays out every two years. Jones was chair of the Senate Finance and Claims Committee. Ballance was chairing the powerful House Appropriations Committee where budget bills originate, to later be hashed out in the Legislature’s upper chamber.  With the budget bill passed out of the House, Jones held a meeting with roughly 20 senators to discuss it. Ballance, uninvited, walked into the room and sat down.  Lawmakers (from left) Rep. Llew Jones, Rep. Ryan Lynch, Rep. Carl Glimm, Sen. Ryan Osmundson, Rep. Nancy Ballance and Sen. Jon Sesso huddle in the closing days of the 2019 Legislative Session. Credit: Eric Dietrich / MTFP Jones was telling the senators how they were going to undo Ballance’s work. “They were going to rip my budget to shreds, rearrange it and vote on it,” Ballance remembers. And they did. The following session, in 2017, the two lawmakers were in the same leadership roles on their respective budget committees. That time, Ballance chose to collaborate with Jones rather than compete against him.  “I realized I kind of have two choices here: I can work with him, or I can have this happen again next time,” she said. “He will always win.” Ballance wasn’t the first or last Montana legislator who learned to come to terms with the seemingly immovable legislative force of Llew Jones. Over the course of more than two decades in the Legislature, Jones has steered billions of dollars worth of legislation, passed sweeping policy bills, assembled unlikely coalitions and made generations of political friends and enemies. “Some people refer to him as ‘the shadow governor,’” said Polson Republican Sen. Greg Hertz, one of Jones’ frequent political adversaries. “He has so much power that he can almost act like a governor at times.”  In more than 30 interviews with current and former lawmakers, lobbyists, colleagues and friends, Jones emerges as a figure who is revered by some and reviled by others.  “The greatest unwritten story of the Legislature is really Llew,” said Scott Sales, a former Speaker of the House and Senate president who was frequently at odds with Jones in the statehouse. “Llew is by far the most successful person I’ve seen in my time.” That success has now made Jones a target within his own political party. The GOP’s right flank has grown increasingly frustrated by Jones’ pragmatism and skill at passing laws by garnering the votes of Democrats and relatively centrist Republicans, effectively sidelining hardliners even during sessions with overwhelming Republican majorities in both chambers.  Today, Jones is facing the most formidable primary challenge of his political career from Wolf Creek Republican Rep. Zack Wirth. The result could extend Jones’ influence, or end his long legislative tenure. Either way, the June 2 primary election will have an outsized influence on the balance of power in the 2027 Legislature.  BECOMING A POWER BROKER In a series of interviews with MTFP, Jones, 64, says his legislative prowess isn’t driven by desire for power or even an appetite for success. Instead, he says, he’s motivated by a drive to make the state better for future generations. A longtime youth swimming and wrestling coach at home in Conrad, Jones says he often tells his young athletes, “You’re put on this earth with some abilities, some gifts, a song to sing. You need to sing it.”   Jones sings his song in the halls of the state Capitol.  “I felt I had the ability to make a difference there,” he said in an April interview.  Jones wasn’t known as a power broker when he entered his first legislative session in 2005. Multiple people who served with him at the time described him as “quiet.” In Jones’ telling, he was learning the ropes.  “I went there thinking, ‘Man, this is a place where, if you’re well prepared with a good argument, you win,’” Jones explained.  What he learned about legislative politicking, Jones said, was very different. “It’s a game of performance, of emotion, of leverage — you know, of fear,” he said. “So if this is the rules of engagement, I’m going to get better at this.” A sign bearing a quote from state Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, and his wife, Carole, hangs on the bleachers at the Conrad football stadium on April 23, 2026. The couple joined the rest of the community in raising money to build the new bleachers. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America It was not until his second session, in 2007, when the partisan balance in the Legislature was nearly even, and first-term Democrat Brian Schweitzer held the governor’s office, that Jones made a name for himself as a political force. That year, a stalemate led legislators to adjourn before passing a state budget — the Legislature’s constitutional mandate — forcing a special session to complete the budget work. What happened before that special session convened is still discussed among Montana politicos today. Before legislators gaveled back in, a handful of Schweitzer’s staff and a group of House Republicans, including Jones, met at a log cabin 20 miles west of Helena.  “The first call I made to try to put this together was Llew Jones,” Schweitzer recalled in an April interview, nearly two decades later. At the time, he said, he perceived Jones as a “reasonable” lawmaker who cared about key issues, especially education.  Schweitzer’s delegates and the GOP attendees found common ground on the state budget. The eventual agreement, and the GOP’s cooperation with the Democratic administration, sparked fervent backlash from hardline Republicans.  During that era, Jones said, he felt the hardliners didn’t have a functional plan to pass a budget, which soured him on the faction.  “Convince me it’s a good idea,” Jones said in an April interview, rhetorically responding to his party’s right-wing directives. “You’re not my mother, you’re not my God, you’re not anything. I don’t have to listen to you.” Since then, Jones has frequently been at odds with the right-most wing of the party for passing legislation with the help of Democrats when he can’t garner enough votes from the Republicans to his right.  “That was when Llew got his start,” Jeff Essmann, a former Republican lawmaker from Billings who was left out of the 2007 log-cabin negotiations, said in a 2026 interview.  Jones, Essman said, figured out that practical consensus in Helena is built on a simple equation: a majority of votes in both chambers — regardless of party affiliation — and approval from the governor.  “He learned a powerful lesson from that,” Essman said. “And he used it to his advantage.” ‘FAILURE HAS NEVER BEEN AN OPTION’ Observers say Jones’ political success can be traced to personal traits. Hard work and long hours top the list — a work ethic aided by the fact that ever since he was a young boy, Jones says, he’s needed only a few hours of sleep to function. “I believe in my whole heart that you can out-compete anyone with a sacrifice,” Jones repeatedly said in recent interviews with MTFP.  A newspaper ad promoting Jones’ 2014 candidacy included another frequent Jones motto: “Success = effort ÷ time.”  “The more you say and understand this motto the better you will understand Llew Jones,” the ad read. “Failure has never been an option for Llew. Tribulation breathes new life into Llew’s efforts.”  Carole and Llew Jones on their wedding day. Credit: Courtesy of Llew Jones The themes of hard work and embrace of sacrifice also track through Jones’ personal life. Born to a 15-year-old mother in Helena and adopted at three weeks old, Jones began working on the family sheep ranch outside Conrad when he was seven.  Jones met his wife, Carole, in high school. They married at 19 and 20, respectively, and raised four children. Their one daughter is the biological child of Jones’ sister, who was permanently disabled by incorrectly prescribed medication during childbirth and adopted by the Jones family as an infant.  All three sons started wrestling competitively before the age of 10. Driven in part by their early losses, Jones volunteered as an assistant coach of their team. All three later won high school state titles in the same year in their respective weight classes. All three also went on to wrestle at Ivy League colleges. “Anything below a B was an F,” Jones said during an interview after an April speaking engagement at Montana State University. Carole, sitting nearby, nodded in agreement.   Jones’ dedication to achievement extends beyond family and into community as well. He also coached swimming, where he built the program from 15 participants to nearly 70 with co-coach Craig Barringer. Jones says he can “barely” swim himself, but he “can get kids to swim fast.” “He’s one of the few people I’ve met who has a unique ability to focus in on anything he chooses,” Barringer said. State Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, pictured at the Conrad wrestling facility he and other community members helped raise money to build, on April 23, 2026. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America Jones’ allies and opponents agree that his combination of hard work and smarts makes him difficult to compete with on policy deals. Sales called the paired traits “dangerous-slash-effective, depending on your perspective.” “I have served with thousands of people over that 16 years … There’s tons of smart people, but I don’t know anyone that has the smarts and the work ethic that Llew has,” Sales said.  The combination manifests as preparation. Jones is a self-proclaimed “planning freak.”  Sales once poked his head into a Helena hotel room where Jones stayed when the Legislature was in session. Sales said Jones had “everything mapped out” on three large whiteboards, including multiple bills, dates and alternative plans to deploy if certain strategies failed.  Sales said the fact that Jones is constantly planning, sometimes behind people’s backs, is common knowledge among statehouse insiders.   “There’s two primary types of people that serve in the Legislature,” Sales said. “Those that work for Llew Jones, and those who work for Llew Jones and don’t know it.”  Llew Jones, pictured as FFA president in 1981. Credit: Courtesy of Llew Jones Jones’ dedication to planning was on display in the lead-up to the 2017 special session. Legislators had left Helena with a nearly $230 million budget shortfall, spurring then-Gov. Steve Bullock, a Democrat, to reconvene the Legislature in Helena later that year.  The special session wasn’t the only major event happening in Jones’ life at the time. In the days before the November special session, Carole was scheduled for a back surgery in Great Falls. Their eldest son — the deputy chief of surgery at the VA medical center in Denver — accompanied her to the procedure. Jones was busy crafting a political scheme to pass his preferred version of a state budget.  Jones wrote budget provisions while simultaneously adding language to other legislation that created interwoven links between the bills. If Gov. Bullock tried to veto any of Jones’ priorities, it would trigger a domino effect, collapsing the must-pass budget bill like a house of cards. Jones’ strategy, Ballance recalled, ended up “boxing the governor into a corner.”  (Reached by phone in April and May, Bullock said he doesn’t recall the specifics of the 2017 budget deal.)  ‘SOMETHING THEY REALLY WANT’ Rep. Steve Fitzpatrick, a Republican lawmaker from Great Falls, contends that Jones’ ability to build relationships has helped him as much as his intellect and policy chops.  As much as Jones infuriates the ultra-conservative wing of his party, Fitzpatrick said, Jones’ power is, in a way, “a creation of the far-right.” When right-wing Republicans use “intimidation and threatening” behavior to bully fellow Republicans into the party line, Fitzpatrick said, Jones often responds by taking the leaned-on legislators under his wing.  According to Sales, Jones’ skill at relationship-building has brought even some Montana politicians who previously opposed him into the orbit of his influence — including current Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte. Before Gianforte ran for office, when Sales was a state legislator, Sales said he helped guide the Bozeman tech company founder and his wife, Susan, about which legislative candidates to support with campaign donations.  A note from Gov. Greg Gianforte hangs in the home office of state Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, on April 23, 2026. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America According to Sales, the Gianfortes typically wanted to gauge a candidate’s conservative bona fides. One of Greg Gianforte’s first litmus-test questions, Sales said, was always: “There’s no way they’re going to be part of Llew’s crew?” But since Gianforte took office, the governor and Jones have become close collaborators on multiple major policy efforts, including property tax overhauls. And while Jones has demonstrated little interest in carrying hot-button culture-war bills himself, he has repeatedly voted in line with conservative Republicans on some social issues, including trans rights.    “They’ve come full circle with Llew,” Sales said of the Gianfortes. “I can’t explain why they’ve done that. But I think, again, it speaks to Llew’s ability to work the system to his success.”  Asked to comment on Sales’ story, a spokesperson for Gianforte said in an email that “the governor is happy to work with any legislator, whether they be Republican, Democrat, or Independent, to deliver meaningful results for Montana families, like he’s done his entire time in office.” Some lawmakers and lobbyists interviewed by MTFP admire Jones’ negotiation tactics, while others criticized his methods of marshaling votes as manipulative or transactional. Multiple lawmakers said that Jones will often threaten to harvest votes from one party if he can’t get them from the other — the implicit threat being that the resulting bill could end up more liberal, or more conservative, without the targeted caucus’ support and input.  Kim Abbott, a Helena Democrat and former House minority leader who served with Jones for several sessions, paraphrased one of his common tactics: “‘If you’re not going to vote for it, I’m just going to have to go buy [Republican].’”   “He’s a smart guy,” Abbott said in a July interview. “He’s a really manipulative guy.” One familiar Jones maneuver involves inserting tailor-made provisions into high-priority legislation to secure the support of specific lawmakers.  “I look at people. I look at what they need,” Jones said, describing the strategy as beneficial to lawmakers who might not otherwise see a path to forwarding their priorities. “Everybody has something they really want,” Jones said.  In 2015, Hertz, the Polson Republican, was in his second session. He said Jones would invite him to meetings with other lawmakers, which Hertz said felt like “recruitment” to Jones’ caucus. During one of the meetings, Hertz recalled, Jones asked him what he “needed,” saying he could get it into a bill. Hertz said he wasn’t interested in trading favors and didn’t take Jones up on it.  “That’s how he works and gets things done,” Hertz said. “He makes people feel like they’re important, especially if they have the ability to get things done for their district.”  ‘WHAT GOVERNMENT IS TO CONSERVATIVES’ Jones used that priority-bundling strategy to ensure that House Bill 924, a massive trust fund bill that touched a range of policy issues, passed in 2025. The bill established a savings account on a scale unlike anything the state had previously seen.  One of the bill’s provisions steers money to child care initiatives — a provision added to secure Democratic votes, according to Jones and Democratic lawmakers. Jones said the bill passed only because of his packaging of legislators’ priorities, acknowledging he could not have “passed the individual pieces.”  Senate President Matt Regier, a Kalispell Republican frequently at odds with Jones, said that tactic is a Jones hallmark.  “He loves leverage,” Regier said, adding that even as Senate president for the 2025 session, Jones’ political maneuvering made him feel “helpless.”  Between HB 924 and other bills, state funds that Jones has enacted are worth billions. In prior interviews, he’s referred to himself as the “king of reserves.” In 2017, Jones created the Budget Stabilization Reserve Account — a rainy day fund to help buffer the state budget during economic downturns. Midway through last year, the fund account had a $522 million balance.   But according to Jones and those around him, he’s most passionate about improving educational outcomes with investments of public funds. Kids can do anything “if they believe,” he often says. State Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, stands outside the first home he shared with his wife, Carole, near Conrad on April 23, 2026. The couple now lives in town, closer to their kids and grandkids. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America Jones spearheaded an incentive-based bill in 2013 that distributed millions of dollars to colleges that increase graduation rates and lower dropout rates. That same year, he sponsored an omnibus public school funding bill that made it easier for high school students to take college classes without their school districts losing state funding tied to enrollment.  Last year, Jones carried a bill that’s set to continually increase starting teacher pay in Montana, a metric in which the state has historically ranked last or near last in the nation. The bill increases state funding for districts that raise starting teacher salaries to a certain level — a policy Jones says is based on reward rather than punishment.  “I would prefer to use an incentive than a hammer,” Jones said.  Jones has cited HB 924, the education bills and reserve accounts as ways to make Montana better for his grandchildren. But to Republican opponents, including Regier, Jones’ creation of massive savings accounts is an example of the longtime lawmaker growing government instead of sending surpluses back to taxpayers. “We’re over-collecting then keeping the money so government can stay full and fat,” Regier said. “That doesn’t jibe with what government is to conservatives.” Jones said he believes it’s “disrespectful” to Montanans not to have reserves on hand to help avoid workforce or program cuts during times of economic hardship.  “The same people who are crucifying me over reserves are going to be goddamn happy we have them,” Jones said.  THE EFFORT TO OUST A ‘CAREER POLITICIAN’ Wirth, Jones’ 2026 primary competitor, told MTFP during an April interview in his Wolf Creek home that he first became interested in running against Jones toward the end of the 2025 session, after the veteran lawmaker sponsored the HB 924 trust fund bill. Wirth and some other conservatives believe the millions in the fund should be returned to taxpayers.  Wirth said he approached Regier to ask if the party had anyone to run against Jones, and Regier told him the party did not, explaining that “some people believe that nobody can win against Llew Jones.” “It disturbs me that … in 20 years I’m the most viable candidate they’ve ever had,” Wirth said. State Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad (right) and his primary election challenger Rep. Zack Wirth, R-Wolf Creek, answer questions at a 2026 Primary Election Forum at the Choteau Pavilion on April 23, 2026. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America Political observers say Jones’ most recent “competitive” primary was in 2014, when he beat a local geologist by 43 percentage points. “The thing that scares me the most is how many other legislators are desperate for him to win,” Wirth’s wife, Patty, called from another room.  Wirth and Jones are competing to represent Senate District 9. Currently, Jones and Wirth represent the two House districts encompassed within the Senate district.   The SD 9 race against Jones began heating up roughly a year ago, before Wirth had even declared his candidacy. Unidentified political groups started spending in the district, which runs from the Canadian border to the North Helena Valley and encompasses many of the Golden Triangle’s agricultural communities, just weeks after legislators adjourned in the spring of 2025. Some of that money turned up in the form of anti-Jones robocalls that began bombarding the phones of some of the district’s roughly 22,000 residents. Conrad resident Kiersta Sullivan said in mid-April that she gets two to three such phone calls per day. The calls and other campaign materials describe Jones as a “career politician,” impugn him for voting with “liberals” and lambast his support for Obamacare, the federal act passed in 2010 that allows states to expand Medicaid to low-income adults — an issue that continues to be at the core of heated policy disputes between the state Republican Party’s ideologically conservative and pragmatic wings.  Other robocalls accuse Jones of using his influence and power in the Capitol to coordinate personal financial benefits. Using federal stimulus funds steered to Montana during the 2008 financial crisis, Jones helped carve out a funding opportunity for an energy study. A couple of months later, an LLC incorporated by his wife applied for and won a $300,000 grant in a competitive bidding process. As the legislation authorizing the study was moving through the process, Jones inquired with legislative staff about a family member applying for the grant. An Associated Press article at the time reported that Jones was told it would “probably be legal.”  Some robocalls also criticize Jones for his purported involvement in a different round of federal stimulus dollars. During the COVID-19 pandemic, a Conrad John Deere equipment retailer in which Jones holds less than a 5% ownership stake received a $3 million federal loan. Jones said he wasn’t involved in arranging the loan, and provided MTFP with tax documents indicating the size of his minority stake in the company.  Essmann, the former Billings lawmaker who overlapped with Jones in the Legislature, echoed the robocalls’ criticisms to MTFP. “Using your position to advance your personal interest is the problem,” Essmann said. Even with the deluge of opposition advertising, Jones appears to maintain a strong position in his hometown of Conrad, population 2,318 — a small portion of the Senate district — headed into the June 2 primary. He won his last election, in 2024, by more than 40 percentage points.  State Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, seated, laughs with a neighbor at the Home Cafe in Conrad on April 23, 2026. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America Many lawmakers and lobbyists told MTFP that Jones “owns Conrad,” and that the community’s support of his political endeavors is set in stone. Over the years, Jones and his family have owned or partnered in multiple businesses, including the John Deere dealership, a motorcycle dealership, a Bigfork marina, a Ford dealership, a Radio Shack, numerous rental properties and a multigenerational farm.  As Jones drove around town during an April interview, passersby waved to him on nearly every block. Also on nearly every block, Jones pointed out a building he used to own, or still does.  “I think people who have been in Conrad a long time have already made up their minds about him,” said Pondera County Treasurer Shaunna Graham. “Everybody knows him here.” Many Conrad residents can recount ways in which Jones has personally helped and supported his neighbors in times of need. “There are lots and lots of good things that have happened in our community, and Llew has been one of the drivers to make things happen,” said Ted Kronebusch, one of Jones’ closest friends for 50 years.  But other Conrad residents declined to be interviewed about their longtime legislator. They said they don’t want to risk community backlash for making their opinions — positive or negative — known. Multiple state legislators and lobbyists also declined to be interviewed for this story for similar reasons.  THE NEXT LEGISLATURE, WITH OR WITHOUT JONES The only Montana legislator comparable to Jones in terms of influence and intimacy with the details of state finance, multiple people told MTFP, was Democrat Francis Bardanouve, who served in the state House for 18 consecutive sessions from 1958 to 1994. Like Jones, they say, Bardanouve had mastered the state budget and frequently served as chairman of the Appropriations Committee. Roughly a decade after Bardanouve’s death in 2002, the Legislature named the first floor of the east wing of the Capitol building after the longtime legislator from Harlem.   “I think someday we’ll have the Llew Jones wing at the Capitol,” Fitzpatrick said. Asked what the most noticeable change at the Legislature would be if Jones loses to Wirth in June, Regier said, “The biggest thing would be that individual legislators would have more of a voice.” A sign supporting state Sen. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, stands outside a Conrad business on April 23, 2026. Credit: Lauren Miller, Montana Free Press, CatchLight Local/Report for America But if Jones prevails next month, he will become even “stronger” and “more powerful” for surviving the backlash his influence has inspired, Fitzpatrick said.   “If you take a shot at someone, you better get them,” Fitzpatrick said.  Jones himself says it was no easy decision to run for office again. But ultimately, he said, “There’s always something to do.”  And anything worth doing, in Jones’ mind, is worth doing better. Recalling the 2017 budgetary shortfalls, Jones shed tears over what he still sees as his own failure to foresee and prepare for the crisis. Years later, he remains irritated with himself for failing to foresee the crisis. “You shouldn’t accept mediocrity in yourself, you know, because if you accept it, you are it,” he said. But Jones knows as well as anyone that professional standards can exact a personal price. For now, it’s a price he says he’s willing to pay.  “I can’t condemn people for not wanting the pressure — shit, it’ll probably kill me in time, but oh well. It’s okay. It’s just part of the dance,” he said. “Better to burn out than to fade away.”  The post How Republican Llew Jones became the most powerful legislator in Montana — and why the GOP wants him gone appeared first on Montana Free Press. ...read more read less