Gov. Bullock's mask mandate becomes a political football with one conservative commentator predicting "mass civil disobedience.” Office of Public Instruction Superintendent Elsie Arntzen gets into a public feud with the governor over school reopenings. And new fundraising numbers and polls show Montana's top races up for grabs. Listen now on Campaign Beat , with Sally Mauk, Rob Saldin and Holly Michels.

Montana Office of Public Instruction Superintendent Elsie Arntzen says Gov. Steve Bullock has not included her office in discussions about the state’s coronavirus response involving education. Hours after Gov. Bullock announced an update on relief dollars for K-12 schools, Superintendent Arntzen, who is running for reelection, criticized the governor in a tweet .

Montana's U.S. Senate race is now rated a toss-up. New ads highlight health care as a top issue in that race and in the race for governor. President Trump's waning approval could also impact Montana's down ballot candidates. And a former Republican candidate for governor disavows his party and its top candidates running for high office. Listen now on Campaign Beat , with Sally Mauk, Rob Saldin and Holly Michels.

The Governor’s Office and the Office of Public Instruction put out two separate plans earlier this month providing guidance to school districts as they try to hash out what K-12 education might look like in the fall. Districts say both plans are by and large the same, but lack some specifics.

A state legislative committee this week voted to formally object to a Montana health department proposal permanently banning the sale of almost all flavored e-cigarette products.

A group seeking to legalize recreational marijuana in Montana says it has gathered enough signatures to put the question to voters in November's election.

The state health department wants to resurrect a ban on flavored e-cigarette sales in Montana. A temporary ban enacted late last year expired several months ago , and now the agency wants to permanently ban the sale of almost all flavored e-cigarette products. Some Montana vape retailers are vowing to push back hard on the idea, leading to what may be the next legal battleground between those retailers and the administration of Gov. Steve Bullock.

The U.S. Senate on Wednesday passed a landmark bill to permanently fund public lands management programs and maintenance in national parks.

Favorites in the top races won their primaries but the general election may not be as predictable. President Trump plans to campaign in Montana for his favorite Steve. And hard-line conservatives celebrate legislative primary victories. Listen now on Campaign Beat , with Sally Mauk, Rob Saldin and Holly Michels.

06/03/20, 5:30 p.m. Montanans cast a record number of votes for Tuesday's primary election, conducted by an all mail-in ballot. The most recent available data show more than 389,000 ballots have been returned. That blows past the 293,000 votes cast in the 2016 primary election, the last time major executive offices were up for grabs. Listen to the audio above as MTPR's Corin Cates-Carney and YPR's Nicky Ouellet recap the statewide races.