Militia Party Formed At Boys State Youths’ Exercise In Montana Government Reflects The Times

At the Boys State session here each year, participants are divided into the Pioneer Party and the Frontier Party. This year, there’s a new one: the Militia of Boys State.

“They went through the procedure to form a third party, and the third party was OK’d,” Ralph Kroon, public relations manager for Boys State, said Friday.

Boys State is an American Legionsponsored program intended to help boys understand how government works as they prepare to become high school seniors. A mock government is set up, with elections, lawmaking and other activities.

Although militia groups have been drawing criticism that they are volatile, anti-government organizations, Kroon said formation of the Boys State militia party was not worrisome. The boys probably were reacting to the militia’s prominence in the news, he said.

“We’ve always had a third-party movement,” Kroon said.

Boys State participants are assigned parties when they arrive for the annual weeklong session, and some object because they consider the assignments arbitrary, he said.

The militia candidates for Boys State governor and lieutenant governor did not fare well in the election on Thursday. They ran as a team and got 14 votes, compared to the winning team’s 316.

Kroon said 446 boys from throughout Montana participated in Boys State, which began last Sunday and ends today.Mazurek “spoke about being good, involved citizens” and “voiced his concern about the militia movement in Montana,” according to a Boys State news release. He also talked about crime and capital punishment, and administered oaths to those elected to Boys State offices.

Delegates elected Aaron Mosdal of Broadview governor, and Ethan Eyestone of Fairfield lieutenant governor.

Others elected included Gary Townsend of Baker, secretary of state; Troy Gomes of Choteau, attorney general; Wesley Stops of Crow Agency, auditor; Damion Jabionski of Ronan, superintendent of public instruction; and Jim Lowe of Hardin, clerk of court.

Lee Moua of Missoula was elected chief justice of the Supreme Court, serving with associate justices Pat Brush of Billings; Andy Holder of Missoula; Tim Ash of Huntley Project; John Holman of Red Lodge; Sam Louden of Kalispell; and Aaron Schumacher of Hamilton.

Elected to the Public Service Commission were Nick Cantreraz and Matt Vogel of Billings; Michael Downs of Helena; Tyler Vogele of Roberts; and Jack Lee of Missoula.

Mock legislation handled by the delegates included a cigarette-tax increase, elimination of tenure for state university faculty, and a bill for “hard labor” in the prison system. The measures passed and were signed by the Boys State governor.