Democrats may need a miracle to maintain their majority in the Senate after 2024, and they’ve turned their eyes to Montana in hopes of finding it.
Jon Tester may be one of the luckiest Democrats in decades. He is one of a handful of Red State Democrats who have stayed in the Senate because their terms lined up with the “Democratic” years of 2006, 2012, and 2018.
Now, that luck may be running out because of Joe Biden.
The Washington Examiner writes that the three-term senator is doing everything he can to distance himself from the most unpopular president in modern American history.
“[The race] is as tight as a tick on a hound dog,” Democratic strategist Brad Bannon said. “Given his political situation, which is pretty hairy, his best move is to emphasize his local roots.”
Tester is a virtual shoo-in for Tuesday’s Democratic primary in Big Sky Country. He faces one opponent, Democrat Michael Hummert, who has not filed any campaign finance reports and does not appear to have an operating budget.
Republican and ex-Navy SEAL Tim Sheehy is heavily favored in the GOP primary against former Montana Public Service Commissioner Brad Johnson and past congressional candidate Charles Walking Child. Rep. Matt Rosendale’s (R-MT) exit from the race in February after only being in it for six days cleared the way for Sheehy.
Tester is facing heightened scrutiny from national Republicans for what they say is taking “credit for opposing Biden policies he supported,” including measures on energy, the pandemic, and illegal immigration. Over the course of 65 pages in two separate memos viewed by the Washington Examiner, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, Senate Republicans’ campaign arm, has laid out extensive point-by-point rebuttals.
Tester may have a hard time running away from the president. He votes with him over 90 percent of the time.
Political prognosticators believe there will be a close race in the Big Sky State. Recent polls showed that the GOP frontrunner, Tim Sheehy, was the leading Tester at 48 percent to 45 percent.
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