Live coverage: Montana Election Day 2024

Montana goes red, red and red

It was a good night to be a Republican in Montana — and in the U.S.

The Associated Press called Republican Tim Sheehy, in the U.S. Senate race, and Republican Rep. Ryan Zinke, in the U.S. House race in western Montana, both winners.

Sheehy ousted incumbent and Democrat U.S. Sen. Jon Tester, who was the only statewide elected Democrat in Montana and had been seeking his fourth term.

Republicans were trouncing opponents in all other statewide races.

On the national stage, Republican and former President Donald Trump was declared a winner and will have a second term.

Zinke addresses supporters just before midnight: ‘We’re feeling good’

U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke addressed a few dozen supporters at his election night party at Grouse Mountain Lodge in Whitefish just before midnight. He spoke confidently about winning the yet-uncalled race for Montana’s 1st Congressional District.

“We’re feeling good. We’re outperforming where we should,” Zinke said.

“I’m pretty sure that we’re going to win.”

As of 12:10 a.m., the Secretary of State’s office reported tallying 196,127 ballots, roughly 24% of registered voters in the state. No results have been posted from Flathead, Gallatin, Yellowstone, Cascade or Lewis and Clark counties.

In the congressional race, Zinke trails Democrat Monica Tranel 50% to 48%, a difference of just 3,000 votes. The tally includes late-night results from heavily Democratic Missoula County.

“We, as Montanans, we’re going to decide the Senate, and we’re going to decide the House,” Zinke said before wishing supporters goodnight. “And I can’t think of a better people to decide the course of the country.”

Shortly before midnight, Gallatin County has not reported

It’s Sheehy’s turf, and it’s Tester’s color. Most recent story here, with Sheehy leading.

CI-126 springs back to life

Though early voting results showed that both Constitutional initiatives 126 and 127 were trailing, CI-126 has jolted back to life after a large number of ballots were counted.

Both measures, sponsored and supported by the same group, would change how voting happens in Montana.

CI-126 would allow the top four vote-getters regardless of party in the primary election to move onto the general election. It’s opponents have labeled it a “jungle primary.”

Meanwhile, CI-127 would require winning candidates to receive a majority (50%) of the vote, or the winner would be decided by a method selected by the Legislature. That could be several models, including a snap run-off, similar to the type used in Georgia.

While CI-127 fell behind and has so far stayed behind in results, CI-126 is split nearly evenly at 50% with 84,448 voting in favor of it, and 85,036 voting against it.

Tranel in the lead as Missoula County votes start rolling in

Democrat Monica Tranel had taken the lead over Republican Ryan Zinke in the western Congressional district after Missoula County started reporting. Story here. 

Every vote matters

As poll numbers continued to trickle in, the race for a new chief justice of the Montana Supreme Court was tight.

How tight?

Only 62 votes separated former federal magistrate Jeremiah Lynch from his challenger, Broadwater County Attorney Cory Swanson.

That’s out of more than 158,000 votes counted. Now, it’s dangerous trusting a journalist to do math, but that is 50.009% to 49.980%

Initiative to protect abortion holds strong after more ballots roll in

Voters were still saying yes to CI-128, a measure to protect abortion, with 54% of the vote, shortly after 11 p.m. Original story here, with same percent of voters supporting and opposing.

Sheehy holds early lead over Tester in US Senate race

In one of the most closely watched races in the country, Republican Tim Sheehy has an early lead of 16 percentage points over Democratic three-term incumbent U.S. Sen. Jon Tester with about 15% of votes in Montana counted as of 11 p.m.

Most of Montana’s larger and more Democratic counties had yet to report results as of 11 p.m. because there were long lines of voters waiting to register when polls closed at 8 p.m.

But Sheehy leads Tester by about 20,000 votes with about 125,000 votes reported so far by the Secretary of State’s Office.

Both candidates spoke at their respective rallies earlier in the evening, but neither declared victory nor defeat.

Sheehy’s lead, should it hold up overnight, would mirror a trend nationally of Republicans taking Senate seats in tight races. Earlier in the evening, Republican Jim Justice won the open West Virginia seat, while Bernie Moreno defeated incumbent U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown in Ohio.

Click here to read more.

Even without the results of the Sheehy-Tester race, the U.S. Senate will be Republican led

On a night in which Democrats had to be flawless and then some to keep control of the United States Senate, the Republicans upset that plan and regained control of the nation’s upper chamber of Congress.

While several other close races, namely Montana’s race between three-term incumbent Jon Tester and Republican challenger Tim Sheehy, were still being tallied, the Associated Press had already declared that Republicans had picked up enough seats to assure that they’ll be in the majority regardless of who wins the presidency.

For more on that, please click here.

In Texas, Republican Ted Cruz was able to fend off a formidable and well-heeled challenger in Colin Allred. To read more about that, click here.

In Ohio, incumbent Sen. Sherrod Brown, a Democrat, was upset by Republican Bernie Moreno. To read more about that, click here.

Knudsen, Jacobsen hold wide leads early

Montana Attorney General Austin Knudsen and Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen, both Republicans, hold wide leads over their respective challengers as of 10:50 p.m. Tuesday in their efforts to win re-election.

Knudsen leads Democrat Ben Alke, a Bozeman-based attorney, 66% to 34% with 101,000 votes reported in the race by the Montana Secretary of State’s Office.

Jacobsen was carrying 68% of the vote in her race as of 10:50 p.m., far outpacing Democrat Jesse James Mullen (30%) and Libertarian John Lamb (3%).

About 13% of ballots had been reported as of 10:50 p.m. Many of Montana’s largest counties still had dozens or hundreds of people lined up to vote when polls closed at 8 p.m., and those counties cannot report results until everyone there has voted, officials said earlier Tuesday.

Click here to read more on the Attorney General’s race and click here for more on the Secretary of State’s race.

Close races in Montana Supreme Court matchups

The two nonpartisan races for open seats on the Montana Supreme Court remain too close to call, based on initial election results posted by the Montana Secretary of State’s office, which show roughly 85,000 ballots have been processed statewide.

For Montana Supreme Court Seat 3, Katherine Bidegaray is deadlocked with Dan Wilson, with just 40 votes separating them, according to initial results. 

In the race to replace outgoing Montana Chief Justice Mike McGrath, Cory Swanson holds a more commanding 13,000-vote lead lead over Jerry Lynch 

In Montana state auditor’s race, Brown leading Repke in Montana auditor race

With 10% of ballots in Montana counted, Republican James Brown appeared to be leading his Democratic challenger John Repke by a 2-to-1 margin on Tuesday night in the race for Montana state auditor. Story here.

Montana Election Observation Initiative releases statement

The Montana Election Observation Initiative (MTEOI) released the following statement Tuesday night:

Republicans leading PSC races, but most counties only partially reporting

Republicans were leading in all three races of the Montana Public Service Commission just before 10 p.m.

Brad Molnar and Jeff Welborn, with the GOP, were ahead in Districts No. 2 and 3, respectively.

In District No. 4, Republican Jennifer Fielder was leading independent Elena Evans, although with Missoula County still out. Story here. 

Sheehy, Knudsen, Jacobsen leading races in early results

The Secretary of State’s Office is only reporting about 81,000 votes so far, about 10% of all registered voters, but Republicans are leading early in the U.S. Senate race, Attorney General’s Office race, and the race for the Secretary of State seat.

There are still hundreds of thousands of votes to be counted and reported, and several large counties still have voters in line. But Republican Tim Sheehy currently leads Democratic incumbent U.S. Sen. Jon Tester 57% to 41% and by about 13,000 votes.

In the Attorney General Office’s race, incumbent Republican Austin Knudsen leads Democrat Ben Alke 64% to 36%. In the Secretary of State’s race, incumbent Republican Christi Jacobsen currently leads with 66% of the vote share, compared to 32% for Democrat Jesse James Mullen and 2% for Libertarian John Lamb.

Constitutional initiatives to change elections too close to call, but not popular

Two ballot initiatives that would change how Montana voting works remained too close to call after the first results from Tuesday’s elections were released, but CI-126 was a little more popular than CI-127, although both were on the losing end of initial results. Story here.

Hedalen takes early lead over O’Brien

Early statewide voting results show that Republican Susie Hedalen, the Superintendent of Public Schools Townsend, is headed to become the Superintendent of Public Instruction for the State of Montana. She holds an early 20-point lead over Democrat Shannon O’Brien, with just more than 21,000, or 3% of the vote counted. Story here.

Preliminary results show lead for CI-128 supporters

Very early results from the Secretary of State’s Office show that “yes” votes currently lead “no” votes for CI-128, the amendment that seeks to enshrine abortion in Montana’s constitution, 58% to 42%, with about 22,000 votes tallied.

The results are preliminary and will certainly change, as many of the larger Montana counties still have voters in line waiting to cast their ballot. Those counties will not release any results until all voters have cast a ballot.

The initial 3,500 votes tallied out to a 52% to 48% lead for CI-128 supporters, but that has ballooned to 58% to 42% after about 19,000 more votes were reported.

Click here to read more.

Montana looks to replace Rosendale with Downing

Montana Auditor Troy Downing will likely be exchanging his office in Helena for one in Washington, D.C., as very early results appeared to track with the state’s deep-red bent in the central and eastern Congressional district.

With just more than 11,000 votes in, Downing had a 71% to 29% lead over Democratic challenger John Driscoll. Downing will likely beat a field of two Democrats (including a write-in) and one independent for the eastern Congressional seat in Montana. Story here.

Gov. Greg Gianforte wins re-election in Montana

Polls in Montana closed at 8 p.m. and the Associated Press immediately called the Montana governor’s race for Republican incumbent Gov. Greg Gianforte.

BREAKING: Republican Greg Gianforte wins reelection for governor in Montana. #APRaceCall at 10:00 p.m. EST. https://t.co/FjgpZFcJ4E

— AP Politics (@AP_Politics) November 6, 2024

“Serving as Montana’s governor is the greatest honor of my life. Kristen (Lt. Gov. Juras) and I are deeply grateful to serve Montanans for another four years to continue delivering on our promises to create more good-paying Montana jobs, open greater opportunities for more Montanans to achieve the American dream, and protect our Montana way of life. With what we’ve been able to achieve together, Montana can and should be a model for our sometimes fractured nation,” Gianforte said in a statement. “Tonight’s victory isn’t about me. It’s about all of us. And we’ll continue the work together to bring the American Dream into greater reach for all Montanans.”

This is Gianforte’s third gubernatorial election night, and second victory. He first ran for the state’s executive office in 2016 against then-incumbent Democrat Gov. Steve Bullock, losing by roughly 19,000 votes. He ran again in 2020, after serving two terms in the U.S. House representing Montana’s at-large district, and won the governorship with 54% of the vote.

Donald Trump wins Montana, AP projects

The Associated Press called the presidential race in Montana for Republican Former President Donald Trump right as polls closed at 8 p.m.

The Secretary of State’s Office has yet to report any vote tallies yet, but the AP has methods to project the vote, as it said in a story published alongside the race call.

The result is not unexpected, as Trump has led Democrat Kamala Harris in polling throughout the past several months, and he won Montana with 56.9% of the vote in 2020 to Joe Biden’s 40.5%.

The Daily Montanan Election results feed is live

Want to know the results of the election, including the statewide races?

The Daily Montanan’s live results feed is active and can be found on the homepage, or by clicking here.

Live Election Results

Missoula polling places busy, wait to register estimated at three hours

At the Missoula County Elections Center, a nonprofit was handing out hand warmers, hot cocoa and snacks to encourage people to wait in line.

Roughly an hour and a half before polls closed, the estimated wait time to register was three hours.

Tim Jacobs, chief of Community Emergency Response Team, said he’s worked elections since 2018 and has not seen it this busy in Missoula.

“I never in my wildest dreams would have expected this,” Jacobs said.

He said he voted in Lolo in the morning and had to wait, also unusual in Lolo.

At the Missoula Public Library, a polling place Tuesday, election judge Carol Miller said a constant flow of voters have come through the polling place. Even if people have problems, she said they are willing to take the time to fix them.

A takeaway from the day: “People were really committed to voting.”

Voter Tawnie Sabin, with Ellie Fortunati, 15, said people need to vote in order to enjoy the privileges of this country.

“It’s always an important election,” Sabin said.

Polls are now closed in Montana

Polls in Montana have closed, but there remain voters in line in several counties in Montana who can still cast their ballot if they were in line at 8 p.m. You can view our live election results here from Decision Desk HQ.

Keep checking back here to see who won in Montana.

Lewis and Clark County registration line 3 hours long

People in line and election workers told the Daily Montanan that the wait at the Lewis and Clark County Elections Office for people who still need to register to vote was about three hours long as of 6:30 p.m. One man who was about 30 people from the front of the line said he had gotten off work at 3:30 p.m., gotten to the elections office around 4, and was still waiting to register to vote.

Some elections monitors were holding the place of prospective voters so they could use the bathroom. Several voter groups brought pizza, which was eaten quickly, and other snacks and water for voters to eat and drink while they wait in line.

Elections officials at the office were reminding people in line that if they are in line when polls close at 8 p.m., they will be able to register and vote.

Polls are open for 30 more minutes in Montana

Polls in Montana close in 30 minutes at 8:00 p.m. As long as you are in line by 8:00 p.m., you have the right to vote — stay in line.

Voters should bring a valid form of ID to their polling location. Examples include a driver’s license, U.S. passport, school district or postsecondary education photo ID, MT Concealed Carry Permit, or a current utility bill, bank statement, paycheck or government document that shows your name and current address. See a full list here.

Absentee voter turnout reaches 83% in Montana

The 455,893 absentee ballots cast so far marks about 57.2% of the 796,957 registered voters in Montana. The absentee ballots do not include ballots cast in person on Tuesday.

In 2020, turnout was 81.3% in. Montana – the highest turnout in at least 30 years, according to the Secretary of State.

U.S. Rep. Ryan Zinke makes appearance in Kalispell

In Kalispell, voters in 27 precincts visited the Flathead County Fairgrounds to cast their ballots. Outside, supporters of U.S. Representative Ryan Zinke, who is running for re-election to represent Montana’s 1st Congressional District, waved signs, blasted music and stayed warm under heat lamps.

For a time, Zinke himself was out on the sidewalk shaking hands and waving at the cars lined up to enter the fairgrounds. Zinke will be spending election night in Whitefish.

Long wait for results in Gallatin County expected

In Yellowstone County, polling places were filled on Tuesday morning. Election officials there said they hadn’t seen such a turnout from voters since at least the 2008 election.

Cascade County officials had to open up extra room to house long lines of voters waiting to register, the Montana Free Press reported. Voters in Gallatin County stood in line through a morning dose of snow, social media posts show. Nora Shelly of the Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported that some of those voters in Gallatin County had been standing in line for four hours in the snow. Officials there said they don’t anticipate having the first results in until at least 11 p.m.

For more on polling places across Montana, click here.

Lowell Elementary, neighborhood polling place, draws voters on Election Day

Shelby Jessop walked down the sidewalk outside Lowell Elementary School in Missoula on Election Day in November 2024 sporting an “I Voted” sticker on her coat. Jessop, whose little girl followed, said abortion is a top issue for her, and she stands with Sheehy.

“I think that we should all be a part of what decisions are made in our country,” Jessop said. “I wish more people would vote, honestly.”

‘Busy as hell’ at elections office in Lewis and Clark County

In Lewis and Clark County, more than 100 people were in line to vote or update their registration around 11 a.m., while people simultaneously came in to drop their absentee ballots off.

A county election official told the Daily Montanan it had been “busy as hell” all morning and likely would be throughout the rest of the day.

Montana Secretary of State’s Office Elections Director Austin James was at the county elections office to check in and said things were similarly busy in many counties across Montana.

James said he’d gotten to work at 4 a.m. Tuesday and that a team was working at the office to ensure there were no cyberattacks or other malicious activity occurring within election offices, but he reported no issues so far. He said the office would not release a county’s results until everyone in line had voted to ensure none of their votes were influenced by early results.

Election workers at four polling sites the Daily Montanan visited around Helena in the late morning and early afternoon continued to see a steady stream of voters coming through. Several said they had lines to start the morning at 7 a.m., that the turnout was much higher than in the primary, and that they had been busy throughout the morning.

Long lines at polls in Missoula on Tuesday morning

In Missoula, Shelby Richards stood in line with pup Rose, a service animal in training to help with her severe post traumatic stress disorder.

Richards, who has a 6-year-old daughter, said she believes the economy has been in decline.

“It’s time for some things to change and make it livable for families,” Richards said.

She said she wants to see former President Donald Trump and fellow Republican Tim Sheehy, running to oust Democrat incumbent Jon Tester in the U.S. Senate, take office.

Outside the Elections Center in Missoula, Community Emergency Response Team workers directed voters driving through the parking lot.

CERT’s Dawn Couch said people had been kind and patient with each other, and a few were honking and yelling the names of their candidates.

She said the elections staff had been “amazing.”

“It’s been really, really well run,” Couch said.

In the parking lot, Logan Kostka looked for a pen to sign his name and turn in his ballot. Kostka said women’s reproductive rights were one factor in the 2024 election, but not the only one.

“As an LGBTQ+ member, a lot of the stuff coming from Project 2025 is literally against my belief system and my being as a human,” said Kostka, 20.

At least one neighborhood polling place at an elementary school in Missoula didn’t have lines out the door.

Shelby Jessop walked down the sidewalk sporting an “I Voted” sticker on her coat. Jessop, whose little girl followed, said abortion is a top issue for her, and she stands with Sheehy.

“I think that we should all be a part of what decisions are made in our country,” Jessop said. “I wish more people would vote, honestly.”

More than half of Montana voters cast ballots ahead of Election Day

To start the day in Montana, more than 54% of registered voters had already cast their ballot. Data from the Secretary of State’s Office showed 431,636 Montana voters had returned their absentee ballots out of 792,440 voters.

During the last presidential election in 2020, 612,075 Montana voters cast ballots, resulting in a turnout rate of 81.33%, the highest in Montana in at least 30 years, according to the Secretary of State’s Office. Click here to read more.