Montana, Governor
Race Forecast: Democrat Favored
Vote for winner in 2004: 50 percent
While Montana ’ s voters have a longstanding pattern of leaning Republican, they have seldom been lockstep in their partisan tendencies — something borne out by Schweitzer ’ s election in 2004 and the 2006 Senate win by Jon Tester, who along with veteran incumbent Max Baucus gives the Democrats control of both of the state ’ s U.S. Senate seats. The fact that no major Republican candidate has emerged to challenge Schweitzer next year speaks to the strength of this politically centrist rancher/farmer, whose job approval ratings have topped 70 percent at junctures of his term in office.
Race Information
- Incumbent: Brian Schweitzer, D
- First Elected: 2004 (1st term)
- Incumbent Status: Running for reelection
- Challengers: Roy Brown, R; Stan Jones, LIBERT
- Race Forecast: Democrat Favored
State Information
- U.S. Senate Delegation: 2 Democrats
- U.S. House Delegation: 1 Republican
- Senators
- Sen. Max Baucus, D
- First Elected: 1978 (6th term)
- Last Elected: 2002 (62.74%)
- Sen. Jon Tester, D
- First Elected: 2006 (1st term)
- Last Elected: 2006 (49.16%)
- State Offices
- State House Control: Republican
- State Senate Control: Democratic
- Demographics (2000 census)
- Population (2005): 935,670
- Under 18: 25.5%
- Over 65: 13.4%
- Non-Hispanic White: 89.5%
- Black: 0.3%
- Hispanic: 2.0%
- Asian: 0.5%
- American Indian: 6.0%
- Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander: 0.0%
- Median Household Income: 33,024
- Median Household Income Rank: 46
| Year | Election | Candidate | Votes | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | general | Brian Schweitzer (D) | 316,509 | 65.4% |
| Roy Brown (R) | 157,894 | 32.6% | ||
| Stan Jones (LIBERT) | 9,790 | 2% | ||
| 2004 | general | Brian Schweitzer (D) | 225,016 | 50.4% |
| Bob Brown (R) | 205,313 | 46% | ||
| Bob Kelleher (GREEN) | 8,393 | 1.9% | ||
| Stan Jones (LIBERT) | 7,424 | 1.7% | ||
| 2000 | general | Judy Martz (R) | 209,135 | 51% |
| Mark O'Keefe (D) | 193,131 | 47.1% | ||
| Stan Jones (LIBERT) | 7,926 | 1.9% | ||
| 1996 | general | Marc Racicot (R) | 320,768 | 79.6% |
| Judy Jacobson (D) | 84,407 | 20.4% | ||
| 1992 | general | Marc Racicot (R) | 209,401 | 51.3% |
| Dorothy Bradley (D) | 198,421 | 48.6% | ||
| Year | Democrat | Republican | Independent |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | John Kerry: 39% | George W. Bush: 59% | |
| 2000 | Al Gore: 33% | George W. Bush: 58% | |
| 1996 | Bill Clinton: 41% | Robert Dole: 44% | |
| 1992 | Bill Clinton: 38% | George H. W. Bush: 35% |
