Democrats Lose Critical Senate Seat in Montana as Republican Tim Sheehy Unseats Jon Tester

Mar. 15, 2025

Jon Tester; Tim Sheehy.Photo:Kevin Dietsch/Getty; Eva Marie Uzcategui/Bloomberg via Getty

Montana Senate Race: Montana Sen. Jon Tester and Tim Sheehy

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.

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

Montana Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy speaks during a rally for Republican presidential nominee, former U.S. President Donald Trump at the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse at Montana State University on August 9, 2024 in Bozeman, Montana

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