Cory Swanson for Chief Justice of the Montana Supreme Court
Tough on Crime County Attorney
Dedicated Military Officer
Judicial Conservative
As a tough-on-crime prosecutor, Cory Swanson, protected the community he serves. And as Deputy Attorney General, Swanson was the lead counsel in some of the biggest cases affecting Montana.
No other candidate has more Montana state courtroom experience than Cory Swanson.
About Cory Swanson
Cory Swanson is a fourth generation Montanan who grew up on the Hi-Line before graduating from high school in Manhattan, Montana. He comes from a large family with roots in the military, the ministry and blue-collar work.
Swanson studied farm and ranch management at Montana State University in Bozeman before transferring to Carroll College in Helena, graduating with distinction in 2000. Swanson graduated from the University of Montana School of Law with honors in 2004.
During these school years, Swanson became an accomplished public speaker. He was a leader of the 1999 Carroll College National Champion Debate Team and won the 2000 award for the most speech victories of all college competitors in Montana, Idaho, Washington, Oregon and Alaska.
Swanson joined the Montana Army National Guard in June 1997 and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in August 1998. Swanson had three deployments to the Middle East with the Montana National Guard’s 1-163rd Mechanized Infantry / Combined Arms Battalion. He commanded the 1-163 Combined Arms Battalion twice, including on its overseas deployment for Operation Spartan Shield to the Middle East in 2022. He is currently a Colonel nearing retirement from the Montana Army National Guard. He has been awarded the Bronze Star Medal, the Meritorious Service Medal, and the Army Commendation Medal.
After his first deployment, Swanson joined and then became partner in a law firm in Helena, Montana. His practice focused on government affairs, federal and state environmental litigation, election law, land use, water and administrative law. He worked actively to oppose environmental closures to public lands and to protect private property rights.
In January 2013, Swanson was hired as a Deputy Attorney General in the Montana Department of Justice for Attorney General Tim Fox. In that role, he was the lead in-house counsel and a lead trial counsel for the Montana v. Wyoming water case before a Special Master of the United States Supreme Court, which was the longest Montana DOJ trial in recent years.
In November 2014, Swanson was elected the Broadwater County Attorney. His office prosecutes approximately 50 felonies and 300 misdemeanors per year, everything from speeding tickets to homicides. He was re-elected without opposition in 2018 and 2022. Swanson is the Vice President of the Montana County Attorneys Association.
Cory married Julie Platisha of Manhattan, Montana in July 2007. He and Julie reside in Townsend with their son Caleb and daughter Claire. He helps coach youth sports, and the family is active in 4-H and their church. Julie is a Speech Language Pathologist and has a private practice providing speech therapy to children in the Townsend-Toston-White Sulphur Springs area.
