Penny Ronning for U.S. Congress

06/16/2026

Why was a wealthy white businessman presumed to be the more serious candidate than a woman with a proven record of public service who achieved nearly the same result while spending less than one third as much?

I have thought about that question often since Montana's 2022 congressional race.

In that election, I ran against two white male millionaires. One was the Republican incumbent. The other was an Independent candidate backed by many of Montana's political and business elites. During the campaign, I was repeatedly pressured to step aside and support the Independent candidate. The pressure did not come from Republicans. It did not come from Independents. It came from Democrats who had convinced themselves that a wealthy businessman was the more electable choice.

I refused.

At the end of the race, the Independent candidate spent more than three times what I did to achieve essentially the same result.

Before running for Congress, I had spent years in public service, effectively working across local, state, and federal levels to pass policies that strengthened public safety, improved government accountability, and made our communities safer. I had earned my place on that debate stage.

Montanans say we value independence, hard work, and people who roll up their sleeves to solve problems. We pride ourselves on common sense and reject the idea that someone else knows better than we do.

At least, that is what we say.

Because when it comes time to choose our leaders, we often defer to wealth, status, and the people who assure us they know who is electable. We say we value grit over pedigree and service over privilege. Yet too often, our politics rewards the opposite.

Women are often asked to prove they belong. Wealthy men are often assumed to.

Working-class Montanans deserved authentic representation from someone who understood their lives through lived experience rather than political manipulation.

We still do.

The candidate names have changed since 2022. The manipulators' playbook has not.

In 2022, I refused to step aside because little girls deserved to see a woman on that debate stage and working-class Montanans deserved a candidate who understood their lives through lived experience.

I have never regretted that decision.

The next time someone tells Montanans who the "serious" candidates are, we should ask a simple question: Serious for whom?

Because too often, what political elites call electability is simply familiarity with power.

And every time we accept that equation without question, we make the circle of leadership smaller than it ought to be.

06/02/2026

05/29/2026

I am the former City Council member who brought forward the initiative to create and implement the Citizen Police Advisory Board (CPAB).

The CPAB did not originate because of George Floyd or events elsewhere in the country, though those events absolutely influenced the timing. The Billings Police Department had already implemented 8 Can’t Wait policies years earlier. During the George Floyd demonstrations, I served on the Billings City Council and worked directly to open communication between the Billings Police Department and rally organizers. That communication mattered. The result was a peaceful and nationally recognized demonstration where many differing groups gathered safely, while BPD maintained a strong but measured presence. Communication and preparation prevented escalation and created a legal event that ran smoothly and powerfully.

But the reason I pushed for the CPAB was Billings, not Minneapolis.

I ran for City Council because when we started the Yellowstone Human Trafficking Task Force in 2016, the only law enforcement agency unable to participate was the Billings Police Department due to staffing shortages. As a CASA volunteer, I had already seen firsthand how limited resources were for missing and runaway children in a city our size. That was unacceptable to me.

Once elected, I saw the fuller picture. I saw the growing demands placed on public safety, the financial strain, the staffing shortages, and the long-term consequences of years of inadequate investment. Billings was experiencing some of the highest rates in Montana for domestic violence, child abuse and neglect, stolen vehicles, police-involved shootings, and mental health crisis calls. BPD was also dealing with disciplinary issues and lawsuits. Then the pandemic intensified violence against children and families in ways that were devastating.

Like communities across this country, Billings was experiencing trauma.

As a former first responder, I understand the value of communication, training, and public trust during high stress periods. We could remain reactive, or we could become proactive. The CPAB was designed to help create better communication between the public, City leadership, and law enforcement so we could identify problems earlier, improve transparency, strengthen trust in government, and better address public safety needs together.

Today, members of the Billings City Council are attempting to dismantle one of the very tools designed to increase public engagement and communication in government.

That is deeply concerning.

You cannot claim to care about issues like domestic violence, mental health, addiction, public safety, or community trust while simultaneously shutting down avenues for direct public participation and communication. Advisory boards exist so citizens can participate in their own government. They are one of the clearest expressions of “We the People.”

Leadership begins with the City Council understanding the purpose, function, and value of its own advisory boards, because public engagement only works when leaders understand and support the structures designed to foster it.

“Efficiency” should never become an excuse to reduce public participation or restrict the public’s voice in its own government.

Good government does not fear public participation. Good government invites it.

To all who have served on the City of Billings Advisory Boards and Commissions, thank you.

A citizen police advisory board created in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death could soon be eliminated as Billings city leaders push to streamline government committees.

05/25/2026

On this Memorial Day, I’m thinking of those who gave their lives in service to our country and the families who carry their memory forward.

In the language of flowers, begonias symbolize appreciation and “I’m thinking of you.” Today in my garden, this orange begonia stands as a quiet tribute to the courage, sacrifice, and lives that made our freedoms possible.

05/19/2026

One year ago today, I was at the White House for the signing of the TAKE IT DOWN Act into federal law. Today, the law is fully in effect nationwide.

This law matters because victims of exploitation, abuse, trafficking, sextortion, and AI generated sexual deepfakes have too often been left to fight alone while intimate images spread online for days, months, or even years.

The TAKE IT DOWN Act makes it a federal crime to knowingly publish or threaten to publish nonconsensual intimate images, including AI generated or digitally altered sexual images. It also requires online platforms to remove reported content within 48 hours.

If you or someone you know becomes a victim, here are critical steps to take immediately:

• DO NOT delete messages, screenshots, usernames, profiles, links, payment demands, or threats
• Take screenshots of everything, including dates, usernames, URLs, and conversations
• Report the content directly on the platform and specifically reference the TAKE IT DOWN Act and nonconsensual intimate imagery
• File reports with law enforcement and ask for a case number
• Report to the FBI at ic3.gov if there are threats, extortion, trafficking, organized exploitation, or interstate activity
• If a minor is involved, report immediately to the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children at CyberTipline.org or 1-800-THE-LOST and, if in Montana, submit a tip to the Montana Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force by calling (406) 438-2354 or emailing [email protected]
• Preserve evidence even if the content is later removed

Victims need to know this clearly: being victimized online is not your shame to carry. The shame belongs to those exploiting, distributing, profiting from, or weaponizing another human being’s image and trauma.

This law exists because survivors spoke up and advocates refused to stay silent. The fight against exploitation is far from over but today marks an important step toward protecting victims in the digital age.

05/11/2026

History is rolling back through Montana.

The historic 1914 “Suffrage Car” is coming to Missoula, Bozeman, and Billings on May 12 and 13 as part of the national Driving the Vote for Equality Tour supporting recognition of the Equal Rights Amendment as the 28th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.

The restored 1914 Saxon Roadster honors the historic 1916 journey of suffragists Alice Burke and Nell Richardson, who drove more than 10,500 miles across the country demanding women’s right to vote.

Traveling with the tour are national ERA leaders and advocates including former U.S. Representative Carolyn Maloney, author Jeryl Schriever, and Ms. Magazine writer Kathy Bonk.

These Montana events will include mayoral proclamations supporting the ERA, public programs on the history of the suffrage movement and the continuing fight for constitutional equality, opportunities to meet advocates and candidates, voter engagement ahead of the June primary election, and calls to action supporting national recognition of the ERA.

Community members will also have opportunities to see and photograph the historic suffrage car, hear the story of the original 1916 campaign through Montana, and learn how to support the national effort to collect one million signatures for the ERA petition by Election Day 2026.

• Missoula — May 12 at 3:15 p.m. at the Florence Building
• Bozeman — May 13 beginning at 8:30 a.m. at the Extreme History Project with Mayor Joey Morrison
• Billings — May 13 at 2:30 p.m. at Billings City Hall with Mayor Mike Nelson

More than 100 years after women fought for the right to vote, women still do not have full constitutional equality under the law.

Join MT NOW as history, activism, and the fight for equality drive through Montana once again.

04/23/2026

Billings area: TONIGHT!

04/18/2026

Billings friends, quick question:

Do you live within the SD2 boundary (yellow area)?

If yes, please vote for Mark Taylor for SD2 School Board. Ballots are out now.

Mark is a retired school psychologist who spent 30 years serving students and families in Billings area schools. He understands our kids, our classrooms, and the real challenges schools are facing.

Ballots have been sent. Don’t set it aside. Vote.

Learn more about Mark:
https://www.mark4schoolboard.com/