United States Senate election in Montana, 2020

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U.S. Senate, Montana
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Democratic primary
Republican primary
General election
Election details
Filing deadline: March 9, 2020
Primary: June 2, 2020
General: November 3, 2020
Pre-election incumbent:
Steve Daines (Republican)
How to vote
Poll times: 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Voting in Montana
Race ratings
Cook Political Report: Toss-up
Inside Elections: Toss-up
Sabato's Crystal Ball: Lean Republican
Ballotpedia analysis
U.S. Senate battlegrounds
U.S. House battlegrounds
Federal and state primary competitiveness
Ballotpedia's Election Analysis Hub, 2020
See also
U.S. Senate, Montana
U.S. Senate • At-large
Montana elections, 2020
U.S. Congress elections, 2020
U.S. Senate elections, 2020
U.S. House elections, 2020

Incumbent Steve Daines (R) defeated Steve Bullock (D) in the November 3, 2020, general election for United States Senate in Montana.

Daines was first elected in 2014 with 58% of the vote. Prior to his election, the seat had been held by a Democrat since 1913. In 2018, Jon Tester (D) won his Senate election in Montana 50% to 47%.

Bullock was first elected Governor of Montana in 2012 with 49% of the vote to his opponent's 47%. His margin increased in 2016 when he won 50% to 46%. That same year, Donald Trump (R) won Montana in the presidential election with 56% of the vote to Hillary Clinton's (D) 36%.

Both the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Senate Majority PAC, a Democratic PAC, targeted the race.[1][2]

Independent race rating outlets expected the race to be competitive. The outcome of this race affected partisan control of the U.S. Senate. Thirty-five of 100 seats were up for election, including two special elections. At the time of the election, Republicans had a 53-45 majority over Democrats in the Senate. Independents who caucus with the Democrats held the two remaining seats. Republicans faced greater partisan risk in the election. They defended 23 seats while Democrats defended 12. Both parties had two incumbents representing states the opposite party's presidential nominee won in 2016.

This race was one of 89 congressional races that were decided by 10 percent or less in 2020.

Democratic Party For more information about the Democratic primary, click here.
Republican Party For more information about the Republican primary, click here.

Election procedure changes in 2020

See also: Changes to election dates, procedures, and administration in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, 2020

Ballotpedia provided comprehensive coverage of how election dates and procedures changed in 2020. While the majority of changes occurred as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, some changes occurred for other reasons.

Montana modified its absentee/mail-in voting procedures for the November 3, 2020, general election as follows:

  • Absentee/mail-in voting: Counties were authorized to conduct the general election entirely by mail.

For a full timeline about election modifications made in response to the COVID-19 outbreak, click here.

Candidates and election results

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Steve Daines defeated Steve Bullock in the general election for U.S. Senate Montana on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Steve Daines
Steve Daines (R)
 
55.0
 
333,174
Image of Steve Bullock
Steve Bullock (D)
 
45.0
 
272,463

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 605,637
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Steve Bullock defeated John Mues and Mike Knoles (Unofficially withdrew) in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Steve Bullock
Steve Bullock
 
95.5
 
144,949
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
John Mues
 
2.5
 
3,740
Image of Mike Knoles
Mike Knoles (Unofficially withdrew) Candidate Connection
 
2.1
 
3,165

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 151,854
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Steve Daines defeated John B. Driscoll and Daniel Larson in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Steve Daines
Steve Daines
 
88.0
 
192,942
Image of John B. Driscoll
John B. Driscoll Candidate Connection
 
6.4
 
13,944
Image of Daniel Larson
Daniel Larson
 
5.6
 
12,319

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 219,205
Candidate Connection = 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.

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Watch the Candidate Conversation for this race!

Green primary election

Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Wendie Fredrickson defeated Dennis Daneke in the Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 2, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Wendie Fredrickson
Wendie Fredrickson
 
66.4
 
504
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Dennis Daneke
 
33.6
 
255

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 759
Candidate Connection = 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.

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Libertarian primary election

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Candidate profiles

This section includes candidate profiles created in one of two ways. Either the candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey or Ballotpedia staff created a profile after identifying the candidate as noteworthy.[3] Ballotpedia staff compiled profiles based on campaign websites, advertisements, and public statements.

Steve Daines

Image of Steve Daines

WebsiteFacebookTwitterYouTube

Party: Republican Party

Incumbent: Yes

Political Office: 

Biography:  Daines received a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Montana State University. His professional experience included working in management at Procter & Gamble and RightNow Technologies, a start-up software business that went public in 2004.


Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Daines said he created jobs during his time in Congress, and that his experience in the private sector informed his support for increasing American manufacturing and coronavirus small business loans.

Daines said he worked across the aisle to pass conservation bills in Congress to preserve Montana’s public lands.

Daines described Steve Bullock as too liberal for Montana and said Bullock would side with national Democrats on issues like healthcare, environmental regulation, and firearm regulation.

Show sources

Sources: YouTube, "Backbone," June 9, 2020; YouTube, "Outdoors," September 8, 2020; YouTube, "Far Left," September, 8, 2020; Steve Daines' 2020 campaign website, "Meet Steve Daines," accessed September 16, 2020

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. Senate Montana in 2020.

Steve Bullock

Image of Steve Bullock

WebsiteFacebookTwitterYouTube

Party: Democratic Party

Incumbent: No

Political Office: 

Biography:  Bullock received a bachelor’s degree from Claremont McKenna College in 1988 and a law degree from Columbia University Law School. His professional experience included working as a lawyer for Montana’s secretary of state, for the state’s attorney general’s office, and in his own private practice.


Key Messages

The following key messages were curated by Ballotpedia staff. For more on how we identify key messages, click here.

Bullock said as governor he was able to work across the aisle to expand Medicaid and support rural hospitals.

Bullock said he had been a defender of access to public lands as governor and would continue to do so in Congress.

Bullock said he would strengthen Montana’s economy by expanding access to apprenticeships, encouraging new business growth, and investing in infrastructure.

Show sources

Sources: YouTube, "Cares," July 8, 2020; YouTube, "Infrastructure," September 6, 2020; YouTube, "Every One of Us," August 19, 2020; Steve Bullock's 2020 campaign website, "Economy and Jobs," accessed September 16, 2020; Ballotpedia, "Steve Bullock," accessed September 15, 2020

This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. Senate Montana in 2020.

Polls

See also: Ballotpedia's approach to covering polls
U.S. Senate election in Montana: General election polls
Poll Date Republican Party Daines Democratic Party Bullock Other Margin of error Sample size Sponsor
Montana State University Billings Oct. 19-24 47% 48% 5% ±4.2 546 --
Public Policy Polling Oct. 26-27 47% 48% 6% ±3.3 886 Protect Our Care
The New York Times/Siena College Oct. 18-20 49% 46% 6% ±4.4 758 --
NBC Montana/Strategies 360 Oct. 15-20 48% 47% 5% ±4.4 500 --
RMG Research Oct. 15-18 49% 47% 5% ±3.5 800 Political IQ



Campaign finance

This section contains campaign finance figures from the Federal Election Commission covering all candidate fundraising and spending in this election.[4] It does not include information on fundraising before the current campaign cycle or on spending by satellite groups. The numbers in this section are updated as candidates file new campaign finance reports. Candidates for Congress are required to file financial reports on a quarterly basis, as well as two weeks before any primary, runoff, or general election in which they will be on the ballot and upon the termination of any campaign committees.[5]

Name Party Receipts* Disbursements** Cash on hand Date
Steve Daines Republican Party $33,324,451 $34,075,789 $107,783 As of December 31, 2020
Steve Bullock Democratic Party $49,522,120 $48,572,770 $949,350 As of December 31, 2020

Source: Federal Elections Commission, "Campaign finance data," 2020. This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).

* According to the FEC, "Receipts are anything of value (money, goods, services or property) received by a political committee."
** According to the FEC, a disbursement "is a purchase, payment, distribution, loan, advance, deposit or gift of money or anything of value to influence a federal election," plus other kinds of payments not made to influence a federal election.


Race ratings

See also: Race rating definitions and methods

Ballotpedia provides race ratings from four outlets: The Cook Political Report, Inside Elections, Sabato's Crystal Ball, and DDHQ/The Hill. Each race rating indicates if one party is perceived to have an advantage in the race and, if so, the degree of advantage:

  • Safe and Solid ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge and the race is not competitive.
  • Likely ratings indicate that one party has a clear edge, but an upset is possible.
  • Lean ratings indicate that one party has a small edge, but the race is competitive.[6]
  • Toss-up ratings indicate that neither party has an advantage.

Race ratings are informed by a number of factors, including polling, candidate quality, and election result history in the race's district or state.[7][8][9]

Race ratings: U.S. Senate election in Montana, 2020
Race trackerRace ratings
November 3, 2020October 27, 2020October 20, 2020October 13, 2020
The Cook Political ReportToss-upToss-upToss-upToss-up
Inside Elections with Nathan L. GonzalesToss-upToss-upToss-upToss-up
Larry J. Sabato's Crystal BallLean RepublicanLean RepublicanLean RepublicanLean Republican
Note: Ballotpedia updates external race ratings every week throughout the election season.

Noteworthy endorsements

See also: Ballotpedia: Our approach to covering endorsements

This section lists noteworthy endorsements issued in this election, including those made by high-profile individuals and organizations, cross-party endorsements, and endorsements made by newspaper editorial boards. It also includes a bulleted list of links to official lists of endorsements for any candidates who published that information on their campaign websites. Please note that this list is not exhaustive. If you are aware of endorsements that should be included, please click here.

Noteworthy endorsements
Endorsement Daines (R) Bullock (D)
Newspapers and editorials
Billings Gazette[10] ✔
Bozeman Daily Chronicle[11] ✔
Missoulian[12] ✔
Montana Standard[13] ✔
Elected officials
President Donald Trump (R)[14] ✔
Individuals
Former Montana Secretary of State Bob Brown (R)[15] ✔

Timeline

2020

Campaign advertisements

This section shows advertisements released in this race. Ads released by campaigns and, if applicable, satellite groups are embedded or linked below. If you are aware of advertisements that should be included, please email us.

Republican Party Steve Daines

Supporting Daines

"Paradise" - Daines campaign ad, released September 11, 2020
"Outdoors" - Daines campaign ad, released September 8, 2020
"28 Years" - Daines campaign ad, released September 1, 2020
"Six Years" - Daines campaign ad, released August 21, 2020
"No Bull" - Daines campaign ad, released July 31, 2020
"Mountain Mudd" - Daines campaign ad, released July 23, 2020
"Three Words" - Daines campaign ad, released June 17, 2020
"Backbone" - Daines campaign ad, released June 8, 2020


Opposing Bullock

"Fight For Montana" - Daines campaign ad, released October 29, 2020
"Back Home" - Daines campaign ad, released October 29, 2020
"Julia" - Daines campaign ad, released October 29, 2020
"Sam" - Daines campaign ad, released October 16, 2020
"This Election" - Daines campaign ad, released October 16, 2020
"Oh Brother" - Daines campaign ad, released October 16, 2020
"Ed" - Daines campaign ad, released October 8, 2020
"The Truth" - Daines campaign ad, released October 1, 2020
"Christine" - Daines campaign ad, released September 30, 2020
"The Choice" - Daines campaign ad, released September 22, 2020
"Rob O'Neill" - Daines campaign ad, released September 11, 2020
"Trust" - Daines campaign ad, released September 8, 2020
"Hanoi Jane" - Daines campaign ad, released August 31, 2020
"A Plus" - Daines campaign ad, released August 26, 2020
"Second Amendment" - Daines campaign ad, released August 17, 2020
"Far Left" - Daines campaign ad, released August 7, 2020
"Sheriff Shane" - Daines campaign ad, released July 29, 2020
"Their Side" - Daines campaign ad, released July 24, 2020

Democratic Party Steve Bullock

Supporting Bullock

"How" - Bullock campaign ad, released October 26, 2020
"Montana Republicans" - Bullock campaign ad, released October 7, 2020
"Bob Brown" - Bullock campaign ad, released October 7, 2020
"Memories" - Bullock campaign ad, released September 28, 2020
"Thank You" - Bullock campaign ad, released September 11, 2020
"Infrastructure" - Bullock campaign ad, released September 6, 2020
"Every One of Us" - Bullock campaign ad, released August 19, 2020
"This Time" - Bullock campaign ad, released August 19, 2020
"Not One" - Bullock campaign ad, released July 25, 2020
"Cares" - Bullock campaign ad, released July 8, 2020
"Choteau" - Bullock campaign ad, released July 8, 2020
"Home" - Bullock campaign ad, released July 2, 2020
"All Montanans" - Bullock campaign ad, released June 22, 2020
"Every Day" - Bullock campaign ad, released June 15, 2020
"Make Washington Work More Like Montana" - Bullock campaign ad, released March 9, 2020


Opposing Daines

"Together" - Bullock campaign ad, released October 28, 2020
"Bone" - Bullock campaign ad, released October 5, 2020
"Longtime" - Bullock campaign ad, released August 15, 2020

Satellite group ads

Campaign themes

See also: Campaign themes

Republican Party Steve Daines

Daine’s campaign website stated the following:

“

Steve Daines is a fifth generation Montanan, a lifelong sportsman, a father of four, and Cindy’s husband, serving the people of Montana in the U.S. Senate. Steve is committed to putting Montana first as he works to bring real change to Washington and fights for common sense solutions.

A fifth-generation Montanan, Steve was elected to serve the people of Montana in the United States House of Representatives on November 6, 2012. Two years later, Steve was elected to serve the people of Montana in the United States Senate on November 4th, 2014. As a United States Senator, Steve is fighting to create jobs, secure our borders, cut government spending, and protect our Second Amendment rights.

Steve Daines for U.S. Senate Steve’s Montana journey dates back to his great-great-grandmother Karine Dyrud, who immigrated from Norway in 1869. As a widow and mother of seven children, she moved westward from Minnesota and homesteaded on the northern plains of Montana 23 miles east of Conrad. She is buried in a small Montana country cemetery near the Golden West Lutheran Church and her tombstone sums up her life in three short words — “Saved by Grace”. Six generations later, this legacy of faith, freedom, and opportunity still exists in Steve’s family.

Steve’s mom and dad grew up in Billings. His dad graduated from Billings Senior High School and enlisted in the Marines. He later graduated from The University of Montana with a degree in Business. In 1964, Steve’s parents moved to Bozeman. With three children at home under the age of ten and virtually no money in their pockets, Steve’s parents started a home construction business in Bozeman.

Steve attended public schools in Bozeman from kindergarten through high school and during his senior year at Bozeman High, Steve was elected Student Body President. Through scholarships and summer jobs working construction, Steve put himself through college at Montana State University. He graduated with Highest Honors earning a B.S. Degree in Chemical Engineering and, after graduation, left Montana to work for Procter & Gamble. Steve’s thirteen-year management career at P&G was split between work in the United States and international assignments.

Steve Daines for U.S. Senate In 1997, Steve and his wife Cindy moved the family back to Montana. Steve left P&G and returned home to Bozeman, joining his mom and dad in the family construction business. In 2000, Steve joined RightNow Technologies, a small start-up business founded and headquartered in Bozeman. His first assignment was VP of Customer Service, and also served in various executive capacities including VP Asia-Pacific. The company experienced rapid growth and in 2004, became a publicly traded software company. RightNow employed over 1000 people and was one of the largest employers in Bozeman, and later acquired by Oracle.

Steve and Cindy have been married 33 years, and have four children. They enjoy backpacking, hunting, skiing, and fishing. [26]

”
—Steve Daines’ campaign website (2020)[27]


Democratic Party Steve Bullock

Bullock’s campaign website stated the following:

“

From protecting our health care to strengthening our economy, Steve Bullock is running for Senate to make Washington work more like Montana. In the Senate, he’ll bring people together to do what’s right for Montana — because that’s what he’s always done.

HEALTHCARE
Affordable healthcare should be available to all Montanans–it shouldn’t depend on the size of your paycheck or where you live. We have made progress in recent years, but we still have work to do to make sure every Montanan can get coverage. To expand access to high-quality care, we must take bold action to make it more affordable, while also protecting and improving existing coverage. In the Senate, Steve will build on the successes of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), and fight tooth and nail against the politicians who want to return us to the bad old days when insurers could turn you away for having pre-existing conditions.

IMPROVING ACCESS
First things first, we need to end the attempts to roll back progress. There’s no excuse for threatening coverage for folks with pre-existing conditions, or re-imposing lifetime caps on coverage. Instead, we must build on the coverage expansions we have already secured and make more middle-class families eligible for this support. We need to simplify enrollment for Montana families, instead of making them jump through bureaucratic hoops to get coverage. And we should create a public option – that includes higher reimbursements for rural hospitals – for folks to buy health insurance, encouraging competition among insurers, driving down costs, and giving consumers more choice.

INCREASING AFFORDABILITY
It’s no secret that prescription drug costs are out of control. No Montanan should ever have to choose between paying the bills and affording their medications. That’s why it’s high time to take on the pharmaceutical industry and negotiate drug prices and cap out of pocket drug costs in Medicare. We need to end surprise medical billing, so that folks who have insurance don’t get hit with outrageous out-of-network charges when they get home from the hospital. Consolidation in the healthcare industry is driving up costs and driving down competition, and we should bring antitrust enforcement into the 21st century to combat this damaging trend. Healthcare reform created caps on out-of-pocket costs; we must preserve this vital protection and work to lower those caps to more affordable levels.

EXPANDING RURAL CARE
Medicaid expansion was a lifeline to rural hospitals in Montana, and we must continue to protect and preserve them. Our rural communities should not lose access to healthcare because folks in Washington are trying to make health care a partisan issue. We need to keep the lights on in rural hospitals, but we also need to make sure there are doctors and nurses inside them. We need a public option that includes higher reimbursements for rural hospitals. We can and should do much more to train healthcare providers in rural areas and create incentives for them to stay. Our rural communities also need continued investments in the infrastructure necessary for telehealth, along with consistent insurance coverage of telehealth services.

STRENGTHENING MEDICARE
Montanans have earned Medicare benefits through a lifetime of hard work, and we must make sure that it remains rock solid for current and future beneficiaries. By closing the prescription drug donut hole, healthcare reform took some important steps to making medications more affordable for seniors. It’s time to take the next step, and allow Medicare to negotiate and cap drug costs. In Montana, the state’s insurance plan negotiates with hospitals to lower costs for beneficiaries. Let’s make Washington take similar action to lower drug costs in Medicare. Keeping Medicare strong includes fighting fraud and making sure funds are going where they should: providing care for seniors.

ADDRESSING THE OPIOID EPIDEMIC
No one is above the law, and drug companies should be held accountable for negligent sales of opioids and dangerous marketing tactics. We must increase investments in substance use disorder treatment, especially in the hardest-hit rural areas, and expand the “return to work” programs that help folks who have struggled with addiction return to the workforce.

A RECORD OF ACCOMPLISHMENT ON HEALTHCARE
Steve brought Republicans and Democrats together to pass and reauthorize Medicaid expansion in Montana, expanding healthcare to more than 90,000 Montanans. He increased access to telemedicine to expand access to care in rural communities, added autism coverage for all Medicaid-eligible children, and cracked down on big tobacco companies trying to get a new generation hooked on their products through vaping.

Steve made record investments in Montana’s mental health system, expanding crisis intervention and treatment, doubling the number of Medicaid substance use treatment providers, and investing in suicide prevention efforts for veterans, Native Americans, and youth. He pushed insurance companies to cover mental health and substance use treatment the same way they do physical health, and established Project ECHO to dramatically increase access to integrated behavioral healthcare in rural areas.

Steve fought for increases in the state’s support for Native American health services, and protected reproductive health services from being used as a political football by ending the constant battle over its funding at the state level.

EDUCATION
Public education is the pathway to opportunity in this country, and one of our greatest equalizers. But lack of support and investment has undermined this foundation of the American dream. In the Senate, Steve Bullock will work to strengthen public education by making it fair and accessible for every student, and ensuring that all adults can add to their professional training without being burdened by debt or dropping out of the workforce.

SUCCESS STARTS IN SCHOOLS
Basic investments in K-12 education, like funding for special education and rural schools, are woefully inadequate. Wraparound services that keep kids healthy and ready to learn, like afterschool and summer learning, school-based mental health and breakfast programs, need additional support too. Renewing our commitment to these investments will help us regain America’s competitive education advantage. That also means fighting attempts to yank resources away from public schools through vouchers, for-profit charter schools, and privatization. Voluntary, publicly-funded preschool should be available to every family who wants it.

SUPPORTING EDUCATORS
Rural, low-performing, and underserved schools need help in attracting, supporting, and retaining effective teachers, principals, support professionals, and specialized staff. We need to improve and expand training for the folks like principals and superintendents who lead our schools. To free our educators and preserve a broad curriculum, we should cut down on the over-testing that eats into instruction time and crowds out the subjects that make for a well-rounded, quality education.

COLLEGE AFFORDABILITY
Pell Grants open the door to higher education, and we should increase eligibility to serve more families. Students should have access to free tuition for community college, and once all students are in the workforce, they shouldn’t have to pay income taxes on student loan repayment benefits from their employers. By getting student loans out from under the management of for-profit corporations, we can lower interest rates and make it easier to refinance when interest rates go down. Public service student loan repayment is essential for helping folks afford to serve their communities, but the system isn’t working the way it promised to–we need to improve and expand it so young people can afford to go to college and give back to their communities. Tribal colleges play a vital role for Native American students throughout our state, and we should boost our investments in these bedrock institutions.

ENCOURAGING WORKFORCE TRAINING
By providing financial support to students who obtain employer-recognized certificates and offering tax credits to employers who bring on apprentices or offer other work-based learning, we can secure the jobs that sustain families without spending years in school.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
During Steve’s time as Governor, Montana has made record investments in our public education system. Steve fought for Montana’s first-ever investment in publicly-funded preschool. He froze in-state tuition for Montana colleges six out of eight years, making our state one of the most affordable in the nation. Under his tenure, enrollment in high school-college dual enrollment courses doubled, saving families millions of dollars in tuition. He created an apprenticeship tax credit that doubled for businesses that hired veterans, and created the country’s first tribal college apprenticeship program. And Steve oversaw an expansion of broadband internet to public schools, providing the infrastructure necessary for a 21st century education.

VETERANS
Montana has one of the highest rates of military service in the nation and every community in our state is home to men and women who pledged to defend our country. We owe it to them to uphold the promises made when they sacrificed so much. As Governor, Steve Bullock has worked to honor our commitments to our veterans, and as Montana’s Senator he’ll continue advocating every day on their behalf.

PROTECTING VETERANS’ HEALTHCARE
Montanans who have sworn an oath to protect and defend our nation deserve the care that they’ve earned and was promised to them. In the Senate, Steve will always fight to improve the quality of VA care and make it more accessible for all of our veterans. Steve will oppose measures to privatize the VA and any other policies that would put veterans’ healthcare at risk. He’ll work across the aisle to expand VA clinics, including mobile clinics for veterans in Montana’s rural communities, because honoring our commitments should never be a partisan issue.

Ensuring quality care means making sure the VA is adequately staffed by well-trained professionals. Steve will support policies like loan forgiveness for doctors, nurses, and support staff who work for the VA to ensure clinics attract the medical professionals needed to provide the best level of care.

Even a single veteran suicide is unacceptable, and sadly, we have seen too many of our bravest gone too soon. As Governor, Steve has worked to break down barriers between veterans and critical mental health services. In the Senate, he will work relentlessly to make sure every Montana veteran can access mental health care so that those who followed the call to serve never find themselves with nowhere left to turn.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR VETERANS
Servicemen and women deserve every opportunity to succeed when they return to civilian life. As Montana’s Senator, Steve will support programs that encourage hiring of veterans, create new job opportunities, and translate their military training to civilian-sector employment. Steve will support tax credits for employers hiring veterans, work to make more funding available for loans to veterans looking to start small businesses, and secure affordable housing for veterans at risk of homelessness.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor of Montana, Steve Bullock has worked to support Montana’s veterans and make sure they have the resources and support they need after leaving the service. He created new tax credits for businesses that hire veterans and provided scholarships for Purple Heart recipients who want to further their education.

He has made sure that job training and licensing from the military carry over to the private sector, and he doubled the amount of money available to assist veterans who are first-time home buyers. Steve Bullock invested in Montana suicide prevention efforts for veterans and opened up opportunities for Montanans who served to access mental health counseling. As our Senator, Steve will work to make federal policy reflect Montana’s values of honoring and caring for our men and women who wore the uniform.

RURAL MONTANA
As a lifelong Montanan, Steve Bullock understands the importance of our rural communities to our economy and our Montana way of life. As Governor, Steve has fought to keep rural hospitals open, protect farmers and ranchers, and make sure that no matter where they live, our kids have the resources and support they need to succeed. He’ll continue this record of fighting for rural communities as Montana’s Senator.

AGRICULTURE
Agriculture is the lifeblood of our rural communities and one of the major pillars of Montana’s economy. Our state’s farmers and ranchers help feed our nation and the world. As Governor, Steve has worked to protect family farms and ranches and make it easier for the next generation to keep Montana’s agricultural industry moving forward.

Farmers and ranchers already face enough uncertainty as it is. That’s why we must implement policies that make sure Montana producers can get our state’s top-notch products to market. In the Senate, Steve will fight for fair trade deals that open access to markets, support expanding disaster aid to fill the gaps that crop insurance and Farm Bill funding don’t address, and take action on harmful consolidation in the agricultural industry. Steve will support programs to create more opportunity for farmers and ranchers just getting started, like low-interest loans and student loan assistance for Montanans going into agriculture.

RURAL HEALTHCARE
For many Montanans, rural, critical access hospitals are the only place for miles where they can receive healthcare, whether it’s a routine visit or an emergency. The extra hours that it could take to get to a doctor if those hospitals went away could be the difference between life and death. That’s why Steve has fought tirelessly to protect rural hospitals, and under his watch not a single one has closed in Montana.

When some rural healthcare providers across the state were facing tough choices and wondering if they could keep serving their communities into the future, Steve worked with Republicans and Democrats in the legislature to pass Medicaid expansion – twice. This expanded coverage to more than 90,000 Montanans and made sure rural hospitals could keep their doors open and their communities healthy.

RURAL BROADBAND
In today’s connected world, reliable internet access isn’t a luxury, it’s a necessity. People are coming to rely more and more on the internet for news, education, commerce, and telehealth and mental health services and we can’t let rural communities get left behind. In the Senate, Steve will make funding for rural broadband a top infrastructure priority and continue working to expand access to high speed internet just as he’s done as Governor.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Steve has been a strong and consistent advocate for rural Montana. He signed into law new tax incentives for constructing new crop processing plants and has stood up against consolidation that harms agricultural producers. Steve created opportunities for student loan assistance for farmers and ranchers, making Montana one of the few states in the country to offer a form of student loan forgiveness to young farmers and ranchers.

Steve fought to expand Medicaid, expanding health coverage to more than 90,000 Montanans and keeping rural hospitals open in communities all across the state. He supported successful initiatives to increase bandwidth in rural schools, making sure kids in smaller districts don’t fall behind their peers. As a result, today nearly 100% of Montana’s K-12 schools meet national standards for broadband connectivity.

EQUALITY FOR ALL
Diversity is our nation’s strength, but for far too long, too many of our fellow Montanans have been held back. We must do better to ensure that every Montanan is treated fairly. Every person has the right to expect equal treatment under the law and equality of opportunity in the workforce, education, and health care. These are the values that Steve will defend in the Senate.

EQUALITY FOR LGBTQ MONTANANS
Through advancements like achieving marriage equality, our country has made significant progress on equality for LGBTQ Americans. But there’s no question our work didn’t end there. We need to pass the Equality Act, which would outright prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity. We must take action to make sure no Montanan is ever hurt just because of who they are or who they love.

RESPECTING MONTANA’S NATIVE PEOPLES
Congress has a lot of work to do to uphold the U.S.’s trust and treaty responsibilities to tribal nations. Steve will take his experience working in partnership with Montana’s tribal nations to Washington to go to bat for Indian Country in the Senate. As Governor, Steve invested in tribal colleges, Native-owned businesses, and language preservation. He signed into law legislation to fight the epidemic of missing and murdered Indidgenous women, and increased access to healthcare for thousands of Native Montanans through Medicaid expansion.

ADDRESSING GENDER DISCRIMINATION
As Montanans we are proud to have sent the first woman to Congress. To keep that heritage alive and thriving, we need to keep dismantling the barriers that stand in the way of women’s equality. We can do that by closing the pay gap, protecting access to health care, eliminating sexual harassment in the workplace, and preventing gender-based violence at home and on college campuses.

JUSTICE FOR ALL
Equality and justice for all are values that Americans hold dear, but we can only realize the promise of those values when we recognize the progress that still has to be made in fully achieving that goal. Confronting this problem head-on means taking on real criminal justice reform by addressing mandatory sentencing and mass incarceration. It means expanding economic opportunity by supporting entrepreneurs of color, tackling housing affordability by raising home ownership rates, and investing in a public education that prepares students of every background for success in higher education and the workplace. Discrimination has no place in America, and we can and must demand more of our leaders in Washington who have let this problem fester for far too long.

INCLUSION FOR MONTANANS WITH DISABILITIES
Every Montanan, regardless of ability, has strengths and talents to contribute to our state. Building communities that are inclusive of people with disabilities contributes to better schools, more vibrant public spaces, and a stronger economy. Protecting the health coverage secured through Medicaid expansion and fully funding education for students with disabilities are bedrocks of ensuring equal opportunity for Montanans of all abilities, along with investing in vocational rehabilitation, independent living, home and community based services, and respite services for family caregivers.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor, Steve expanded sexual orientation and gender identity discrimination protections in state government hiring and contracting, and fought back against attempts to let businesses discriminate against people who are LGBTQ. During his tenure, Steve increased access to healthcare for Native people, invested in tribal colleges and apprenticeships, and supported Native entrepreneurs and business owners. He blocked every attack on Montana women’s right to make their own healthcare decisions, advanced pay equity, and reformed state laws protecting and supporting survivors of sexual assault. Steve signed into law the most sweeping criminal justice reform legislation in Montana history, improving outcomes for offenders and keeping communities safe. Under Steve’s leadership, Montana adopted the Community First Choice program to ensure that Montanans with disabilities get the support they need to live at home, and created tax-free savings accounts for families to cover the costs of caring for loved ones who have disabilities.

PROTECTING WOMEN’S HEALTH AND RIGHTS
Achieving equality for all Montanans means ensuring that everyone has the same opportunities for success, regardless of gender. There’s no doubt that women face unique challenges, but by confronting them head-on, we can empower women, strengthen our families and communities, and keep the door of opportunity open to everyone.

EQUALITY IN HEALTHCARE
Thanks to the Affordable Care Act, insurers can no longer charge women higher premiums just for being women. Washington politicians are trying to turn back the clock on this progress, but Steve will fight to make sure that women aren’t forced to pay more for healthcare than men. Every woman has the right to insurance coverage that meets her needs, which means building on the progress of healthcare reform. Read more about what Steve will do in the Senate to make healthcare more affordable and accessible healthcare here.

FAIRNESS IN THE WORKPLACE
It’s frustrating, but we know it’s true—women still make less money than men for doing the same work. Steve will push to hold businesses to a higher standard by passing the Paycheck Fairness Act. By requiring employers to be transparent about how they pay their workers, we can more easily hold bad actors accountable and root out persistent discrimination. Over half of minimum-wage earners in this country are women, making the fight to raise the minimum wage all the more urgent. Our society should have zero tolerance for sexual harassment, and Steve will work to make further progress on preventing harassment and protecting whistleblowers in every workplace.

REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM
Women must have the right to make their own healthcare decisions without interference from Washington, D.C. politicians. Steve will protect access to contraception without copays, and make sure bosses don’t get to dictate their employees’ private health decisions. We need to solidify Roe v. Wade as the law of the land. Defending and fully funding Title X will ensure that folks across the state, especially in rural areas, are able to access family planning services.

SUPPORTING FAMILIES
Balancing working life with raising a family is a challenge for everyone, but too often it’s women’s earnings that take a hit when they have children. Steve will demand better for working families. That means achieving paid family leave so that every parent has the time, money, and job security to raise their children. We can start by expanding access to preschool, so that parents who work can choose what’s best for their families and careers, and young children get a head start at educational success. We must also make child care more affordable, both through financial support to families to help defray the cost and through ensuring living wages for daycare workers and preschool educators.

OVERCOMING DOMESTIC VIOLENCE
Each woman who lives with the threat of physical violence or intimidation is one too many. Unfortunately, this is still the experience of too many Montana women, especially Native women who experience murder rates ten times higher than the national average. All of us have a responsibility to do better. In the Senate, Steve will stand up for survivors of sexual assault and reverse Betsy DeVos’ attacks on protections for women on college campuses. Restoring Title IX standards will protect survivors of sexual assault and help to prevent assault in the first place. He will fight to protect and fully fund the Violence Against Women Act, and continue the vital work necessary to end the epidemic of missing and murdered Indigenous women.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor, Steve stopped every attack attempted on Montana women’s right to make their own healthcare decisions. He signed an executive order to ensure equal pay for Montana women, convened the Equal Pay for Equal Work Task Force, and conducted the first-ever pay audit of state agencies. Steve signed Montana’s first Earned Income Tax Credit into law, helping hardworking families keep more of their paychecks in their pockets.

PUBLIC LANDS
In Montana, we know that our public lands are one of the most important things that we all share. They belong to each and every one of us, and are one of our greatest equalizers: all Montanans, regardless of background or income, have the same access to our state’s wealth of public lands and waters. And public lands are not only a part of Montanans’ way of life – they support our outdoor recreation industry, one of the state’s biggest economic drivers.

As Governor, Steve has fought tirelessly to protect and expand public access, and he’ll continue that fight every day in the Senate.

KEEPING PUBLIC LANDS IN PUBLIC HANDS
Our public lands must be protected and managed responsibly for future generations to enjoy. It is critical that we fight back against any and all efforts to privatize or sell off public lands, and oppose those who want to do so. We will also ensure that adequate funding is provided to maintain existing access and create new opportunities for Montanans to enjoy the treasures of our state. Our children and grandchildren should be able to enjoy the same opportunities to hunt, fish, and recreate on public lands that we have today.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Attorney General, Steve fought against out of state interests when they tried to overturn Montana’s Stream Access Law and fought efforts to block access to Montana’s public lands.

As Governor, Steve vetoed bills that threatened Montana’s public lands. He restored funding for the Habitat Montana program and went to court to defend conservation easements, which created new opportunities for access. As a member of the state’s Land Board, Steve used his office to open up tens of thousands of acres for recreation in Montana and create new fishing access sites, while managing state trust lands responsibly to ensure that our schools received the funding they needed. Steve created Montana’s Office of Outdoor Recreation to support the businesses that rely on public lands and the jobs they create. And as fire seasons have become longer and more intense in recent years, Steve created the Fire Suppression Fund to ensure Montana has adequate resources to address this threat.

In the Senate, he will represent our state’s outdoor heritage and make sure Montana stays the last best place for hunting, fishing, and outdoor recreation.

CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
As Americans, we believe that everyone’s voice matters. But these days, the people and corporations with the biggest bank accounts are the ones who get to be heard. That’s why the toxic influence of money in politics has to stop, and it’s why Steve has spent his career fighting to end it.

We have serious challenges to tackle as a nation, but Washington has been so thoroughly corrupted by big money that hardly anything gets done. Washington, D.C. politicians hand out huge tax breaks to millionaires, while average Montanans get ignored and left behind. Out of state special interests pour unaccountable dark money into our elections and politicians stand aside and let it happen. As Americans, we pay more for health care than folks in other countries with little to show for it, thanks to the millions of dollars that Big Pharma and other corporations spend to influence our government.

But we can change all of this. With Steve Bullock in the Senate, we can make Washington work for us–not for millionaires, not for special interests, but for Montana.

We must make companies disclose every dollar they spend to influence our elections if they want to do business with the federal government. By passing the federal DISCLOSE Act, we can force secretive donors out into the open. And we can build the momentum we need to finally overturn the Supreme Court’s disastrous Citizens United decision and ban unlimited, unaccountable spending in our elections.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Attorney General, Steve took the fight against Citizens United all the way to the Supreme Court. When the Supreme Court ruled against Montana, Steve kept up the fight. As Governor, he passed the DISCLOSE Act, one of the strongest campaign finance disclosure laws in the country. He required any company contracting with the state to disclose expenditures it makes to influence elections, and he banned the use of foreign money in our state’s elections.

ECONOMY AND JOBS
Building an economy that works for all Montanans means creating more opportunities for education, training, and good-paying jobs. Young Montanans shouldn’t be forced to look to other states to pursue their careers. That’s why Steve Bullock has worked throughout his time as Governor to expand apprenticeships, support main street businesses, and encourage new business growth in Montana, and he’ll keep building on that work as Montana’s Senator.

APPRENTICESHIPS AND JOB TRAINING
There are many paths to good-paying, middle class jobs, and one of the best ways to open these doors is by expanding access to apprenticeship and job training programs. Creating more opportunities for workers to get hands-on experience while learning a trade allows Montanans to find jobs right here in-state, and helps businesses connect with the skilled workers they need.

That’s why Steve expanded apprenticeships in Montana by more than 67%, and created tax incentives for businesses to hire apprentices – and doubled that tax credit for hiring veterans. In the Senate, he’ll push to expand apprenticeship programs.

MAIN STREET MONTANA
Our small businesses are the backbone of Montana’s economy. From Kalispell to Glendive, local and family-owned businesses keep Montana moving forward, whether they’ve been around for generations or are just getting started.

Steve has made small business growth a focus of his administration, creating the Main Street Montana project to connect the public sector, private sector, and education community, and encouraging entrepreneurship and new business development by cutting red tape and lowering taxes on businesses. By building on initiatives like these and improving small businesses’ access to credit, Steve will continue this work in the Senate to advance job creation and ensure Main Street’s success.

TAX RELIEF FOR MONTANA FAMILIES
Working Montana families deserve to keep more of their hard-earned paychecks. As Governor, Steve signed into law the state’s first-ever Earned Income Tax Credit, helping middle-class Montanans’ money stay with them and support their local economies. In the Senate, Steve will fight to make sure the benefits of tax reform go to working families – not to big corporations and millionaires.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor, Steve has worked to provide tax breaks for working families and to help Montana businesses succeed. He expanded the state’s apprenticeship program and created new tax credits for businesses to hire learning workers and veterans.

Steve encouraged business growth and new business development by eliminating business equipment taxes for all small businesses in Montana, and creating tax incentives for high-tech businesses to open up shop in Montana.

NATIVE AMERICANS
Steve Bullock has a proven record of respecting tribal sovereignty and working in partnership with tribal nations to tackle the challenges facing Indian Country. Congress still has a lot of work to do to meet the federal government’s trust and treaty responsibilities to tribal nations, so Steve will take his experience to Washington to go to bat for Montana’s Native peoples in the Senate.

SUPPORTING FAMILIES AND COMMUNITIES
To improve health equity, we must fully fund the Indian Health Service and urban Indian health programs and invest in mental health care, including suicide prevention efforts and substance use treatment. Equal access to a quality education is essential, and for Native children that requires fully funding Impact Aid, culturally sensitive and trauma-informed wraparound services, and increasing support for tribal colleges. Creating affordable housing in Indian Country is critical to addressing homelessness faced by Native families. In the Senate, Steve will work with both parties in consultation with Native leaders to address this challenge.

NATURAL HERITAGE
Everyone has a right to clean water–extending the life of the Indian Water Settlement Fund will ensure that we’re securing this right and meeting treaty responsibilities in Indian Country. Public lands offer economic opportunity and support jobs throughout our state, and we need to make sure this promise is met in Indian Country as well. We can create Native jobs by empowering tribes to work in partnership with the National Park Service in managing public lands.

PROTECTING VOTING RIGHTS
Access to the ballot box is the most fundamental right in our democracy. To preserve voting rights for Native Americans, we need to protect measures like satellite voting locations and same-day voter registration, and ensure that tribal IDs are accepted as documentation for registering and voting.

NATIVE AMERICAN VETERANS
Montana’s Native communities have a long legacy of service in the armed forces, and we need to make sure we’re keeping our promise to Native veterans after they leave the military. Increasing the number of tribal veteran service officers is an important step in ensuring that all veterans receive the benefits they have earned.

MISSING AND MURDERED INDIGENOUS PEOPLE
Every Montana family deserves to know that we will not rest if they are facing the horror of a missing son or daughter. The federal government has a responsibility to do much more to address the crisis of missing and murdered Indigenous women. In the Senate, Steve will push to improve the federal response to incidents of missing and murdered Native Americans, and improve cooperation and coordination between tribal and federal response agencies.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
By consistently showing up for Montana’s eight tribal nations, Steve has been able to achieve real progress as Governor. During his tenure, he invested in tribal colleges, secured millions in funding to help Native Americans start their own business, funded native language preservation, signed laws to fight the epidemic of Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, increased access to healthcare for Native people through Medicaid expansion, and created the first tribal college apprenticeship program in the nation.

INFRASTRUCTURE
For too long, we have neglected our nation’s infrastructure, jeopardizing our quality of life and ability to compete in a 21st century economy. In the wake of the coronavirus crisis, we can improve our economy and create local jobs that can’t be outsourced by reinvesting in infrastructure. In the Senate, Steve Bullock will fight for an infrastructure plan that creates good-paying jobs, connects the nation, strengthens communities, and protects our environment.

REPAIRING EXISTING INFRASTRUCTURE
Securing a long-term, sustainable funding source for the Highway Trust Fund to repair and improve our roads and bridges will facilitate economic growth. Our water infrastructure needs investment, too, to build new flood management systems and rehabilitate aging and stressed locks and dams. The most antiquated piece of machinery in the west is our electric grid, and it needs to be modernized to reduce energy waste, save money for consumers, increase transmission of renewable energy, and modernize delivery.

To keep our state and our economy connected and competitive, we need to support travel infrastructure that links Montana to the nation. Steve will support infrastructure investments to upgrade and expand airports, and will protect essential air service to keep Montana’s rural communities connected.

FOSTERING COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT
The building blocks of our communities are an important piece of our infrastructure, and they are in serious need of attention. Many communities, especially those in rural areas, lack access to high-speed internet, and Steve will work to make sure that every home, business, school, library, and healthcare facility is connected to broadband. We can support telecommunications providers in “rip and replace” efforts to eliminate unsecure, Chinese-made equipment and replace it with more secure technology.

Giving every American access to clean water means increasing investments in local water systems, replacing lead service lines, fixing aging irrigation systems, and upgrading wastewater systems. We must provide funding for construction of schools, hospitals, and affordable housing, especially in rural areas, to make sure everyone has the ability to live, work, and raise their family in the communities they love. As Senator, Steve will fight for infrastructure funding that includes the things that matter to Montana communities.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor, Steve brought Republicans and Democrats together to approve the largest infrastructure investment in Montana history, securing nearly $400 million for long-overdue upgrades to provide clean drinking water, safe wastewater, storm systems, bridges, and buildings to communities across the state. Steve supported successful initiatives to increase bandwidth in rural schools, making sure our kids in small school districts don’t fall behind their peers. Nearly 100% of Montana’s K-12 schools now meet FEC standards for broadband.

CLIMATE AND ENVIRONMENT
Our climate is changing. We can see it right here in Montana in longer, more intense fire seasons, and the loss of ice in Glacier National Park each year. By making smart policy decisions, we can mitigate the effects of climate change on agriculture, the environment, and public lands, while protecting jobs and investing in new industries. In the Senate, Steve will work to invest in clean energy and create good-paying jobs in fields that address climate change.

INVESTING IN CLEAN ENERGY
We need to invest in tomorrow’s energy sources while protecting jobs and communities in Montana. Expansion of clean energy like solar and wind power, along with energy conservation efforts, can cut down on emissions by reducing energy usage. We need to continue to provide resources to the Montanans who have powered our coal industry for generations and can lead the way in the new clean energy economy.

Boosting investment in training and credentialing programs for workers can help grow the economies of communities undergoing transition. By working directly with farmers and ranchers–who are seeing the impacts of climate change on their own livelihoods–we can develop next-generation biofuels, improve soil health through better use of carbon-reducing cover crops, and restore forests and wetlands.

INVESTING IN THE FUTURE
By working with state governments, unions, and the private sector, we can update our electric grid to modernize delivery, meet the needs of the 21st century, and support good-paying jobs. Investments in cutting-edge technologies can capture carbon for use in commercial products like cement while cutting pollution and creating jobs. Revitalized research efforts can help farmers and ranchers improve the environment, cut costs, and boost productivity at the same time. Incentivizing efficient infrastructure and home building will drive more efficient energy use, reduce pollution, and lower families’ utility bills.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS
As Governor, Steve established the Montana Climate Solutions Council and joined the U.S. Climate Alliance. His Energy Blueprint paved the way for expansion of clean energy in Montana, including a quadrupling of installed solar capacity and doubling of wind generation. As energy markets transition into cleaner forms of production, Steve secured funding to retrain Colstrip workers and help the community and families succeed. He signed a new law that gives workers in coal mines and plants first crack at new cleanup and reclamation jobs, including requirements for competitive wages. [26]

”
—Steve Bullock’s campaign website (2020)[28]


Pivot Counties

See also: Pivot Counties by state

Three of 56 Montana counties—5.4 percent—are Pivot Counties. Pivot Counties are counties that voted for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012 and for Donald Trump (R) in 2016. Altogether, the nation had 206 Pivot Counties, with most being concentrated in upper midwestern and northeastern states.

Counties won by Trump in 2016 and Obama in 2012 and 2008
County Trump margin of victory in 2016 Obama margin of victory in 2012 Obama margin of victory in 2008
Blaine County, Montana 2.46% 15.32% 19.24%
Hill County, Montana 17.18% 3.50% 12.21%
Roosevelt County, Montana 6.49% 15.58% 26.27%

In the 2016 presidential election, Donald Trump (R) won Montana with 56.2 percent of the vote. Hillary Clinton (D) received 35.7 percent. In presidential elections between 1892 and 2016, Montana voted Republican 65.6 percent of the time and Democratic 34.4 percent of the time. In the five presidential elections between 2000 and 2016, Montana voted Republican all five times.[29]

Presidential results by legislative district

The following table details results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections by state House districts in Montana. Click [show] to expand the table. The "Obama," "Romney," "Clinton," and "Trump" columns describe the percent of the vote each presidential candidate received in the district. The "2012 Margin" and "2016 Margin" columns describe the margin of victory between the two presidential candidates in those years. The "Party Control" column notes which party held that seat heading into the 2018 general election. Data on the results of the 2012 and 2016 presidential elections broken down by state legislative districts was compiled by Daily Kos.[30][31]

In 2012, Barack Obama (D) won 34 out of 100 state House districts in Montana with an average margin of victory of 17.6 points. In 2016, Hillary Clinton (D) won 28 out of 100 state House districts in Montana with an average margin of victory of 17.2 points. Clinton won one district controlled by a Republican heading into the 2018 elections.
In 2012, Mitt Romney (R) won 66 out of 100 state House districts in Montana with an average margin of victory of 28.2 points. In 2016, Donald Trump (R) won 72 out of 100 state House districts in Montana with an average margin of victory of 34.7 points. Trump won 14 districts controlled by Democrats heading into the 2018 elections.


Ballot access requirements

The table below details filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates in Montana in the 2020 election cycle. For additional information on candidate ballot access requirements in Montana, click here.

Filing requirements for U.S. Senate candidates, 2020
State Office Party Signatures required Signature formula Filing fee Filing fee formula Filing deadline Source
Montana U.S. Senate Qualified party N/A N/A $1,740.00 1% of annual salary 3/9/2020 Source
Montana U.S. Senate Unaffiliated 12,694 5% of total votes cast for successful candidate in the last general election $1,740.00 1% of annual salary 6/1/2020 Source

Election history

2018

See also: United States Senate election in Montana, 2018

General election

General election for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Jon Tester defeated Matt Rosendale and Rick Breckenridge in the general election for U.S. Senate Montana on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Jon Tester
Jon Tester (D)
 
50.3
 
253,876
Image of Matt Rosendale
Matt Rosendale (R)
 
46.8
 
235,963
Image of Rick Breckenridge
Rick Breckenridge (L)
 
2.9
 
14,545

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 504,384
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = 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.

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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Democratic primary election

Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Incumbent Jon Tester advanced from the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 5, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Jon Tester
Jon Tester
 
100.0
 
114,948

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 114,948
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Republican primary election

Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Matt Rosendale defeated Russell C. Fagg, Troy Downing, and Albert Olszewski in the Republican primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 5, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Matt Rosendale
Matt Rosendale
 
33.8
 
51,859
Image of Russell C. Fagg
Russell C. Fagg
 
28.3
 
43,465
Image of Troy Downing
Troy Downing
 
19.1
 
29,341
Image of Albert Olszewski
Albert Olszewski
 
18.7
 
28,681

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 153,346
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

Green primary election

Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana

Steve Kelly defeated Timothy Adams in the Green primary for U.S. Senate Montana on June 5, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Steve Kelly
Steve Kelly
 
61.2
 
971
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Timothy Adams
 
38.8
 
615

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 1,586
Candidate Connection = 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.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2014

U.S. Senate, Montana General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngSteve Daines 57.8% 213,709
     Democratic Amanda Curtis 40.1% 148,184
     Libertarian Roger Roots 2.1% 7,933
Total Votes 369,826
Source: Montana Secretary of State

2012

U.S. Senate, Montana General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngJon Tester Incumbent 48.6% 236,123
     Republican Denny Rehberg 44.9% 218,051
     Libertarian Dan Cox 6.6% 31,892
Total Votes 486,066

State profile

See also: Montana and Montana elections, 2020
USA Montana location map.svg

Partisan data

The information in this section was current as of April 30, 2020.

Presidential voting pattern

  • Montana voted Republican in all seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Congressional delegation

State executives

State legislature

Montana Party Control: 1992-2025
No Democratic trifectas  •  Fifteen years of Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D R R R R R
Senate D D D R R R R R R R R R R D D D D R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R
House D R R R R R R R R R R R R S S R R S S R R R R R R R R R R R R R R R

Montana quick stats
More Montana coverage on Ballotpedia:


Demographic data for Montana
 MontanaU.S.
Total population:1,032,073316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):145,5463,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:89.2%73.6%
Black/African American:0.5%12.6%
Asian:0.7%5.1%
Native American:6.5%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0.1%0.2%
Two or more:2.5%3%
Hispanic/Latino:3.3%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:92.8%86.7%
College graduation rate:29.5%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$47,169$53,889
Persons below poverty level:17%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Montana.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "NRSC," accessed September 16, 2020
  2. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "SMP," accessed September 16, 2020
  3. ↑ Candidate Connection surveys completed before September 26, 2019, were not used to generate candidate profiles. In battleground primaries, Ballotpedia based its selection of noteworthy candidates on polling, fundraising, and noteworthy endorsements. In battleground general elections, all major party candidates and any other candidates with the potential to impact the outcome of the race were included.
  4. ↑ Fundraising by primary candidates can be found on the race's respective primary election page. Fundraising by general election candidates can be found on the race's general election page.
  5. ↑ Federal Election Commission, "2022 Quarterly Reports," accessed March 2, 2022
  6. ↑ Inside Elections also uses Tilt ratings to indicate an even smaller advantage and greater competitiveness.
  7. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Nathan Gonzalez," April 19, 2018
  8. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Kyle Kondik," April 19, 2018
  9. ↑ Amee LaTour, "Email correspondence with Charlie Cook," April 22, 2018
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 Billings Gazette, "Gazette endorsement: For U.S. Senate, Steve Bullock," October 25, 2020
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 Bozeman Daily Chronicle, "Bullock our best bet at changing Congress," October 5, 2020
  12. ↑ 12.0 12.1 Missoulian, "Montanans should send Governor Bullock to the Senate," October 25, 2020
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 Montana Standard, "Standard endorsement: For Senate, we recommend Steve Bullock," October 25, 2020
  14. ↑ Facebook, "Steve Daines on February 28, 2020," accessed September 17, 2020
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Twitter, "Steve Bullock on October 9, 2020
  16. ↑ Montana State University Billings, "Mountain States Poll," October 28, 2020
  17. ↑ Protect Our Care, "Health Care a Key Issue for Montana; Voters Trust Bullock Over Daines to Protect Their Health Care," October 27, 2020
  18. ↑ The New York Times, "MT101820 Crosstabs," October 25, 2020
  19. ↑ NBC Montana, "20-700 - Montana Elections Survey - Toplines," October 22, 2020
  20. ↑ PoliticalIQ, "Montana Senate Race: Daines (R ) 49% Bullock (D) 47%," October 19, 2020
  21. ↑ Montana State University Bozeman, "TREASURE STATE 2020 POLL RESULTS: THE MONTANA U.S. SENATE RACE ," October 14, 2020
  22. ↑ Emerson College, "Montana 2020: Republicans Hold Advantages in Presidential, US Senate and Governor Races," October 7, 2020
  23. ↑ The New York Times/Siena College Research Institute, "MT0920 Crosstabs," September 20, 2020
  24. ↑ Emerson College, "Montana 2020: Trump Holds Strong as Biden Coalesces Support," August 3, 2020
  25. ↑ Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named fecmt
  26. ↑ 26.0 26.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
  27. ↑ Steve Daines' campaign website, “Meet Steve Daines,” accessed September 17, 2020
  28. ↑ Steve Bullock’s campaign website, “On the Issues,” accessed September 17, 2020
  29. ↑ 270towin.com, "Montana," accessed June 29, 2017
  30. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' statewide election results by congressional and legislative districts," July 9, 2013
  31. ↑ Daily Kos, "Daily Kos Elections' 2016 presidential results for congressional and legislative districts," February 6, 2017
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Montana's current delegation to the United States Congress
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Steve Daines (R)
Tim Sheehy (R)
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