Douglas Fischer (Mayor of Bozeman, Montana, candidate 2025)
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Douglas Fischer is running for election for Mayor of Bozeman in Montana. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 4, 2025.[source]
Fischer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. Click here to read the survey answers.
[1]Biography
Douglas Fischer provided the following biographical information via Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey on September 5, 2025:
- Birth date: August 4, 1970
- Birth place: syosset, New York
- High school: Tates Creek High School
- Bachelor's: Columbia University, 1992
- Gender: Male
- Religion: Unaffiliated
- Profession: Journalism
- Prior offices held:
- Schools Trustee (2015-2023)
- Incumbent officeholder: No
- Campaign slogan: A clear voice. A strong Bozeman.
- Campaign website
- Campaign endorsements
- Campaign Facebook
- Campaign Instagram
Elections
General election
The general election will occur on November 4, 2025.
General election for Mayor of Bozeman
Douglas Fischer, John Meyer, and Brendan O'Connor are running in the general election for Mayor of Bozeman on November 4, 2025.
Candidate | ||
Douglas Fischer (Nonpartisan)  | ||
| John Meyer (Nonpartisan) | ||
 | Brendan O'Connor (Nonpartisan) | |
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| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Endorsements
To view Fischer's endorsements as published by their campaign, click here. To send us an endorsement, click here.
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Douglas Fischer completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2025. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Fischer's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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I've lived in Bozeman for 15 years and married into a local family with deep agricultural roots. My wife, Stephanie, and I have raised a daughter and son who fell in love with clear streams and cold winters, and I moved from newcomer to in-between.
I spent eight years on the School Board and two years on the City Commission, where I learned to listen, build trust and forge consensus on tough issues. As a journalist and nonprofit leader, I've learned to cut through spin, ask hard questions, and manage partnerships to deliver results.
Bozeman is a special place. I love it.- Bozeman is an extraordinary place. I love it. I’m running for mayor because that specialness needs careful attention, and Bozeman is at a turning point. We need smart, accountable, focused leadership to foster it. My first promise to you: Affordability. I want my kids – and yours – to thrive here. Our housing needs to work for us, not just developers
- My second promise: Safety. That means our kids can walk to school. We feel safe downtown at night and in public spaces. Our traffic laws are enforced.
- My third promise: Community. Everyone should feel welcome in Bozeman. And as we grow, let’s build neighborhoods – not "housing" – where we can live, work, gather, shop and play.
I firmly believe local government works best when it listens – when leaders actively engage residents to shape policies that affect our lives.
And also, a moral compass. I want our elected officials clear they are working for all our community, to be a good ancestor, and to build up and bring together our community, rather than tear down and divide.
That means listening carefully, weighing trade-offs openly, and making choices that strengthen Bozeman for everyone, not just the loudest or most powerful voices. The core responsibility of a mayor is to safeguard the public’s confidence that government is working fairly, responsibly, and in the long-term interest of the community.
I loved the spending money it gave me. I bought a killer pair of downhill skis – red-white-and-blue K2s with Solomon 101 bindings – and my first ski pass.
A mayor must be both a convener and a problem-solver: someone who ensures government works transparently, builds trust across divides, and charts a path that keeps Bozeman livable and welcoming for all.
The mayor’s top priority is to ensure that vision – developed in collaboration with other commissioners – guides the work of the commission and city staff, so decisions are coordinated, transparent, and always focused on strengthening Bozeman for the long term.
I love that I can cross-country ski in town, or bike to the mountains. I love that a handful of people every year organize a cyclocross race series that draws hundreds of bikers. Or that thousands of people show up for the Run for the Pub, the Sweet Pea Run, the Run for your Life, the Santa Run.
I love that my wife can treat me to a fun dinner downtown. That I can hear amazing music at the symphony. That we have an extraordinary university with all sorts of lectures and sports and opportunities available to residents.
If we fail to manage it wisely, we risk losing affordability, straining water and infrastructure, and eroding the character that makes this community special.
For instance, we are entirely dependent on the Legislature for decisions on how we raise revenue to pay for essential services like police, fire and parks.
If we want to remove the burden from homeowners and tap the more than 4 million tourists who travel through Bozeman every year to contribute to the services they use, we need Helena's help. As mayor I will work with lawmakers to find policies that work for Bozeman - and by extension all of Montana.
We also have a strong economic relationship: Bozeman is home to 90+ percent of all Montana startups, and those are attracting Defense Department and other federal contracts. Montana State University research depends on federal grants and partnerships with national labs.
My job as mayor is to set clear expectations that policing be fair, transparent, and respectful, while also ensuring officers have the resources and training to serve well.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
See also
2025 Elections
External links
Footnotes
