Recall petitions target Helena mayor, commissioners over manager hiring

Petitions are circulating in Helena that could drag the mayor and two city commissioners into another recall fight over how the city handled its interim city manager hiring, turning a personnel decision into a test of trust at City Hall.

The push centers on the claim that the hiring was not transparent enough. For critics, the issue is bigger than one vote or one appointment: it is about whether Helena’s top elected leaders explained enough, early enough, before making a decision that shaped the city’s direction.

Helena has been through this before. In June 2020, recall supporters targeted Mayor Wilmot Collins, Commissioner Andres Haladay and Commissioner Heather O’Loughlin over the same basic allegation, that the commission did not handle the interim manager hiring in a sufficiently open way. The flashpoint was the March 9, 2020 vote in which Collins, Haladay and O’Loughlin approved a contract making Melinda Reed the interim city manager.

The legal fight quickly became about public access and the meaning of openness under Montana law. Critics said residents did not have a reasonable opportunity to watch the deliberations or comment before the vote. The city countered that public comment had been taken at the meeting and that no hidden deliberations took place before the final decision. Lewis and Clark County District Court Judge Mike Menahan stopped the recall effort on September 1, 2020.

Montana law sets a steep bar for municipal recall petitions. They must gather signatures equal to 20% of the registered voters in the municipality. In Helena’s 2020 effort, that meant about 4,300 valid signatures within 90 days. That threshold matters because it shows how quickly a petition drive must move if it is to force the question beyond the courthouse and onto the ballot.

The fight also goes to the structure of Helena government itself. The Helena City Commission is a five-member body that includes the mayor, with two seats filled at each general election for four-year terms. The city describes the commission as the legislative and policy-determining body of Helena, which makes a recall threat aimed at the mayor and two commissioners a direct challenge to the way city government is run.

The manager post remains central to that debate. Helena’s current city manager, Alana Lake, was selected in December 2025 after a recruitment process the city opened on October 10, 2025, with first review of applications set for November 5, 2025. The position oversees 11 departments, about 380 full-time employees and a Fiscal Year 2026 budget of $113.25 million. In Helena, the recall drive is not just about one appointment. It is about who gets to decide, and how much the public is allowed to see.