Jon Tester; Tim Sheehy.Photo:Kevin Dietsch/Getty; Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty
Kevin Dietsch/Getty; Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty
Republican Tim Sheehy has unseated Democratic Sen. Jon Tester in Montana’s 2024 Senate race, The Associated Press projects, marking a significant victory for Republicans in this election cycle.
By the time Sheehy was declared the winner on Wednesday, Nov. 6,Republicans had already secured the Senate majorityfor the upcoming 119th Congress after an upset victory in Ohio thatunseated incumbent Democrat Sherrod Brown.
Photo Courtesy of the Jon Tester for Senate Campaign.
Tester, 68, has represented Montana in the Senate since 2006, when he flipped the seat blue for the first time since 1988. He has served on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee and the Senate Indian Affairs Committee, and he was previously the president of the Montana state Senate.
A farmer and former music teacher, Tester has received generally positive approval ratings throughout his time in the Senate, but heightened national partisanship made his seat more difficult to defend this time around in a deeply conservative state.
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Tester had been reportedly considering retiring from politics, but announced in February 2023 that he would run for reelection, as perPolitico. He has voiced support for protecting women’s reproductive freedoms and has been ranked one of the most effective lawmakers in Washington, D.C., according toThe Center for Effective Lawmaking.
Less popular in Montana, though, was his vote to convictDonald Trump, 78, duringboth of the former president’s impeachment trials. He declined to endorseKamala Harrisfor president in 2024,Bozeman Daily Chroniclereported.
Tim Sheehy in 2024.Michael Ciaglo/Getty
Michael Ciaglo/Getty
Sheehy, 38, proved a strong candidate for the Republican Party when he secured the nomination in June.
A Minnesota-born veteran and businessman, Sheehytoutedon the campaign trial that he “built one of the largest aerial firefighting companies in America” and “started a veteran-led cattle ranching and feeding operation.”
The father of four ran as an anti-choice candidate, but says he supports IVF. He earned Trump’s endorsement.
source: people.com