Hear from Bozeman's mayoral candidates
The candidates running for Bozeman's mayoral seat are Douglas Fischer, John Meyer and Brendan O'Connor. Read on to hear their responses to the Exponent’s 2025 candidate questionnaire.
Candidates were given three weeks to respond to the questionnaire and were given word counts for each response. By no means is this an exhaustive account of all of the policy positions and ideas supported by each candidate in a particular race. It is the Exponent’s hope, however, that this concise guide to candidates’ ideas in their own words can serve as a useful resource for voters to decide who they want to vote for. All photos were provided by the candidates’ respective campaigns.
Douglas Fischer
Would you be able to provide a brief biography?
Fischer: I’ve spent 15 years making Bozeman home. I married into a local family with deep agricultural roots and raised two kids who fell in love with clear streams and cold winters. I’m a journalist, a city commissioner, a former schools trustee and a community volunteer.
What are your top three priorities if elected, and how do you plan to address them?
Fischer:
1. Affordability: We need to partner with MSU, Bozeman Schools, land trusts and builders to create a mix of housing, especially starter homes. We need to ensure good jobs exist in town so graduates of MSU and Gallatin College can build thriving careers. And we need to keep a lid on taxes, so we’re not pricing seniors and our neighbors on fixed incomes out of their homes.
2. Safety: I want our kids biking to school safely. You deserve to feel safe downtown and in our public spaces at night. And we need to better enforce our traffic laws.
3. Community: As we grow, let’s build communities where you can live, work, play, shop and gather. We need effective leadership that can guide growth toward distinctive, welcoming neighborhoods instead of one-size-fits-all subdivisions. We deserve a vibrant, vital town.
Why should MSU students, faculty and staff vote for you?
Fischer: I bring common-sense, effective leadership. As a journalist, I’m experienced asking tough questions. As a schools trustee, I learned to build consensus around tough issues. I’m the only candidate in the race who knows how to get snow plowed from our streets, to maintain — and expand! — our parks or to balance a budget to provide essential services without raising taxes.
I know the value of protecting our environment and streams. I’ve spent 10 years working in this community to keep Bozeman vibrant and vital for future generations. I’m a results-based leader who will put in the time and energy to bring people out of their corners and into the center of the room, where together we can find solutions that work for this amazing town.
John Meyer
Would you be able to provide a brief biography?
Meyer: John Meyer is the founder of Cottonwood Environmental Law Center. He is best known as the guy suing the Yellowstone Club for Clean Water Act violations.
What are your top three priorities if elected, and how do you plan to address them?
Meyer:
1. Build affordable housing by creating a public housing authority.
2. Expand Public transportation, including a direct bus line from MSU to the airport.
3. Hostile takeover of Northwestern Energy — issue revenue bonds to purchase the utility.
Why should MSU students, faculty and staff vote for you?
Meyer: I have a proven track record of raising MSU voices by providing internships to undergrads and jobs to graduates. The organization I run works with MSU professors in Clean Water Act litigation.
Brendan O'Connor
Would you be able to provide a brief biography?
O’Connor: I’m Brendan O’Connor, a Bozeman native and MSU custodian running for mayor. My priorities are affordable housing, family-friendly community spaces and making city government more transparent and accessible.
What are your top three priorities if elected, and how do you plan to address them?
O’Connor: My first priority is affordable housing. Bozeman’s growth has left many students, workers, and families struggling to stay here. I want to reform Tax Increment Financing so that public dollars are tied directly to affordability benchmarks. On top of that, I believe Bozeman needs a local housing authority to coordinate resources, set standards and make sure our housing policies actually deliver for residents. With both stronger incentives and a housing authority to oversee them, we can ensure developers provide housing that everyday people can afford.
Second, I want to create more family-friendly and student-friendly community spaces. Right now, there are limited options for affordable indoor entertainment in Bozeman. Through public-private partnerships, I’d like to see spaces like roller rinks, bowling alleys and other third-places return. These venues aren’t just for recreation, they also strengthen local economic development by contracting with Bozeman businesses for cleaning, floor care, sound systems, performers and concessions. That keeps money circulating locally, creates opportunities for small businesses and supports a more resilient economy.
Finally, I’m committed to transparency and accessibility in city government. Too often, city hall feels like a maze that only insiders can navigate. I want to simplify record-keeping, make public information easier to find and ensure residents can understand how decisions are made. Students and citizens alike should be able to track where their money goes and how policies are shaping the future of Bozeman.
Why should MSU students, faculty and staff vote for you?
O’Connor: I work nights as a custodian at MSU, so I know firsthand the challenges students and staff face in Bozeman — from rising rents to the sense that city hall doesn’t listen to everyday people. My campaign is about making Bozeman livable for the very people who keep it running: students, workers and families. I’ll fight for housing policies that give young people a chance to stay here after graduation, not be priced out. I’ll support creating more affordable indoor spaces to gather, study or just have fun. And I’ll push for transparency in government so MSU voices are heard in city decisions. If you want a mayor who understands your daily reality, who rides the same bus routes and works the same night shifts you do, I’m that candidate.
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