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2020 Montana gubernatorial election

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See also: 2020 United States gubernatorial elections
2020 Montana gubernatorial election
← 2016 November 3, 2020 2024 →
 
Nominee Mike Cooney Greg Gianforte
Party Democratic Republican
Running mate Casey Schreiner Kristen Juras
Incumbent Governor

Steve Bullock
Democratic



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The 2020 Montana gubernatorial election will be held on November 3, 2020, to elect the next Governor of Montana, concurrently with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate and elections to the United States House of Representatives and various state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic Governor Steve Bullock, who is term-limited and cannot seek reelection to a third consecutive term, is instead seeking Montana's Class II Senate seat[1][2][3] after an short campaign for President of the United States.[4] Bullock is the only incumbent governor in the United States (not counting U.S. territories) who is term-limited in 2020.

Bullock's lieutenant governor, Mike Cooney, a longtime local politician, is the Democratic nominee. The Republican nominee is Montana at-large congressman Greg Gianforte, who became a controversial figure for body slamming a reporter the day of a 2017 special election.[5]

Democratic primary

Candidates

Nominee

Eliminated in primary

  • Whitney Williams, businesswoman and daughter of former U.S. Representative Pat Williams[8]
    • Running mate: Buzz Mattelin, farmer and president of the National Barley Growers Association

Withdrawn

Declined

Endorsements

Mike Cooney
Statewide politicians
Federal politicians
Organizations
Whitney Williams
Statewide politicians
Local politicians
Federal politicians
  • Hillary Clinton, former Secretary of State, former First Lady, 2016 Democratic presidential nominee [30]
Organizations

Polling

Polls with a sample size of <100 have their sample size entries marked in red to indicate a lack of reliability.

Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Mike
Cooney 		Reilly
Neill 		Casey
Schreiner 		Whitney
Williams 		Other /
Undecided
Montana State University Billings October 7–16, 2019 40 (LV) – 19% 2% 6% 11% 62%

Results

Results by county
Cooney
  •   Cooney—70–80%
  •   Cooney—60–70%
  •   Cooney—50–60%
Tie
  •   Tie—50–60%
Williams
  •   Williams—50–60%
Democratic primary results[32]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mike Cooney 81,527 54.86%
Democratic Whitney Williams 67,066 45.14%
Total votes 148,593 100.00%

Republican primary

Candidates

Nominee

  • Running mate: Kristen Juras, businesswoman and attorney[35]

Eliminated in primary

  • Running mate: Jon Knokey, former state representative

Withdrawn

Declined

Endorsements

Greg Gianforte
Individuals
Organizations

Polling

Polls with a sample size of <100 have their sample size entries marked in red to indicate a lack of reliability.

Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Tim
Fox 		Greg
Gianforte 		Albert
Olszewski 		Other /
Undecided
Montana State University Billings October 7–16, 2019 99 (LV) – 25% 33% 9% 32%
Gravis Marketing August 28–30, 2019 433 (RV) ± 4.7% 29% 56% 15% –
Moore Information[A] July 7–10, 2019 400 (LV) ± 5.0% 17% 56% 5% 23%

Results

Results by county
Gianforte
  •   Gianforte—70–80%
  •   Gianforte—60–70%
  •   Gianforte—50–60%
  •   Gianforte—40–50%
Fox
  •   Fox—40–50%
  •   Fox—50–60%
Republican primary results[32]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Greg Gianforte 119,247 53.44%
Republican Tim Fox 60,823 27.26%
Republican Albert Olszewski 43,062 19.30%
Total votes 223,132 100.00%

Other candidates

Libertarian Party

Nominee

  • Lyman Bishop, founder and CEO of Hoplite Armor[47]
    • Running mate: John Nesper

Withdrawn

  • Ron Vandevender, nominee for lieutenant governor in 2016 and nominee for governor in 2012[48][49][50]

Green Party

Nominee

  • Robert Barb[47]
    • Running mate: Joshua Thomas

Results

Green primary results
Party Candidate Votes %
Green Robert Barb 713 100.0%
Total votes 713 100.0%

General election

Predictions

Source Ranking As of
The Cook Political Report[51] Tossup April 3, 2020
Inside Elections[52] Tossup April 23, 2020
Sabato's Crystal Ball[53] Tossup January 16, 2020
Politico[54] Lean R April 19, 2020

Endorsements

Mike Cooney (D)
Statewide and local politicians
Federal politicians
Former candidates
Organizations
Greg Gianforte (R)
Individuals
Organizations

Polling

Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Mike
Cooney (D) 		Greg
Gianforte (R) 		Other /
Undecided
The Progress Campaign (D) April 14–21, 2020 1,712 (RV) ± 4.6% 41% 43% 16%[b]
Hypothetical polling with former candidates

University of Montana polls did not account for the withdrawals of Democratic and Republican candidates after they lost their primaries.

with Mike Cooney, Tim Fox, Greg Gianforte, Albert Olszewski, Ron Vandevender and Whitney Williams
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Democratic
Candidates 		Republican
Candidates 		Ron
Vandevender (L)
University of Montana February 12–22, 2020 498 (LV) ± 4.4% 35.1%[c] 61.7%[d] 1.3%
with Mike Cooney, Tim Fox, Greg Gianforte, Reilly Neill, Albert Olszewski, Gary Perry, Casey Schreiner and Whitney Williams
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Democratic
Candidates 		Republican
Candidates
University of Montana September 26 – October 3, 2019 303 (RV) ± 5.6% 40%[e] 60.1%[f]
with Tim Fox, Matt Rosendale, Corey Stapleton, Kathleen Williams and Whitney Williams
Poll source Date(s)
administered 		Sample
size[a] 		Margin
of error 		Democratic
Candidates 		Republican
Candidates 		Other /
Undecided
University of Montana February 21 – March 1, 2019 293 (RV) ± 5.7% 32.4%[g] 48.4%[h] 19.2%[i]

Results

2020 Montana gubernatorial election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Mike Cooney
Republican Greg Gianforte
Libertarian Lyman Bishop
Green Robert Barb
Write-in
Total votes 100.00%

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f Key:
    A – all adults
    RV – registered voters
    LV – likely voters
    V – unclear
  2. ^ Undecided with 16%
  3. ^ Cooney with 21%; Williams with 14.1%
  4. ^ Gianforte with 35%; Fox with 21.6%; Olszewski with 6.9%
  5. ^ Cooney with 23%; Williams with 7.9%; Schreiner with 6%; Neill with 3.1%
  6. ^ Gianforte with 35.1%; Fox with 16.1%; Olszewski with 8.1%; Perry with 0.8%
  7. ^ Kathleen Williams with 26.6%; Cooney with 5.2%; Whitney Williams with 0.6%
  8. ^ Fox with 16.8%; Gianforte with 16.1%; Stapleton with 8%; Rosendale with 7.5%
  9. ^ "Someone else" with 15.4%; "none/do not plan to vote" with 3.8%
Partisan clients
  1. ^ Commissioned by Gianforte

References

  1. ^ Nilsen, Ella (March 9, 2020). "Gov. Steve Bullock just made the Montana Senate race competitive for Democrats". Vox.
  2. ^ Arkin, James (March 9, 2020). "Bullock enters Montana Senate race". POLITICO.
  3. ^ Pramuk, Jacob (March 9, 2020). "Montana Gov. Steve Bullock launches Senate bid, a boost in Democrats' push for majority". CNBC.
  4. ^ Weigel, David. "Montana Gov. Steve Bullock drops out of presidential race". Washington Post. Retrieved December 2, 2019.
  5. ^ Bozeman Daily Chronicle, Whitney Bermes, October 11, 2017, Judge releases Congressman Gianforte's mugshot, Retrieved October 11, 2017.
  6. ^ "Montana lieutenant governor joins governor's race". Associated Press. July 3, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  7. ^ Cates-Carney, Corin (February 28, 2020). "Cooney Names Schreiner As Running Mate In Gov Race". mtpr.org. Montana Public Radio.
  8. ^ Volz, Matt (October 3, 2019). "Williams now 4th Democrat in governor's race". Great Falls Tribune. Associated Press. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  9. ^ Press, The Associated (January 22, 2020). "Former Montana lawmaker Neill drops out of governor's race". KECI.
  10. ^ Drake, Phil (January 21, 2020). "Democrat Neill drops from Montana governor's race". Great Falls Tribune.
  11. ^ Bridge, Thom (February 3, 2020). "Casey Schreiner ends Montana gubernatorial campaign". The Missoulian. Retrieved February 3, 2019.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  12. ^ Michels, Holly. "Cooney picks Schreiner as running mate in race for governor". Montana Standard. Retrieved 29 February 2020.
  13. ^ Kondik, Kyle (December 6, 2018). "Governors 2019-2020: Democrats try to hold the line in red-state battles". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  14. ^ Kondik, Kyle (December 6, 2018). "Governors 2019-2020: Democrats try to hold the line in red-state battles". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved December 7, 2018.
  15. ^ Hanson, Amy Beth (May 13, 2019). "Mayor who was refugee from Liberia announces run for Senate". Associated Press. Retrieved May 13, 2019.
  16. ^ a b Dennison, Mike (March 20, 2019). "Montana 2020: Gianforte gubernatorial run would have 'domino effect' on statewide races". KRTV. Retrieved March 21, 2019.
  17. ^ Lippman, Daniel (May 10, 2019). "'The Revenant' author considering run for Montana Senate or governor". Politico. Retrieved May 10, 2019.
  18. ^ Punke, Michael (2019-06-23). "As my friends and family know, I have been considering a run for Montana's senator or governor. I'm grateful for the encouragement I received. I have decided not to seek election this cycle. For my family &me, it's not the right time. Thx to all who offered advice &encouragement". @MPunke. Retrieved 2019-06-23.
  19. ^ a b Ambarian, Jonathon (February 27, 2020). "Democratic gubernatorial candidate Williams gets endorsement from former Gov. Schweitzer". KPAX.
  20. ^ "Williams launches new bid for Montana US House seat". KECI. Associated Press. April 5, 2019. Retrieved April 5, 2019.
  21. ^ Cates-Carney, Corin (October 25, 2019). "Gov. Bullock Endorses Lt. Gov. Cooney In Gubernatorial Race". mtpr.org. Montana Public Radio.
  22. ^ a b c d "Mike Cooney". ballotpedia.org.
  23. ^ "Rep. Dunwell endorses Cooney for governor". cooneyformontana.com. January 18, 2020.
  24. ^ "Tester endorses Cooney in contested Democratic gov primary". ktvh.com. April 29, 2020.
  25. ^ Cooney, Mike (February 24, 2020). "I'm so humbled to have the support of my friend and mentor former Senator Max Baucus for this campaign. Max knows how we win tough races in Montana: by showing up, by putting in the hard work, and by listening to all Montanans #mtpol #mtgovhttps://helenair.com/opinion/columnists/mike-cooney-will-put-montanans-first-as-governor/article_5c308a6e-8726-5b18-b6b9-2a37a2cbfba4.html …". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  26. ^ "AFL-CIO endorses Cooney, Schreiner=". newsbreak.com.
  27. ^ a b "Mike Cooney's Momentum Grows with Three Big Labor Endorsements". cooneyformontana.com. April 8, 2020.
  28. ^ Williams, Whitney (October 28, 2019). "From her childhood in Browning to her election as the first Native American woman elected to statewide executive office, Denise has always tackled Montana's challenges with grit and determination — leaving a trailblazing legacy. I am so proud she's on #TeamWhitney. #MTpol". @WhitneyforMT. Twitter.
  29. ^ Engen, John (November 12, 2019). "Guest view: Missoula's mayor on why Whitney Williams should be Montana's next governor". Montana Standard.
  30. ^ "Twitter".
  31. ^ Schriock, Stephanie (October 8, 2019). "EMILY's List Endorses Whitney Williams for Montana Governor". emilyslist.org. EMILY's List.
  32. ^ a b "Montana Governor Primary Election Results". New York Times. Retrieved June 2, 2020.
  33. ^ a b c "Gianforte files fundraising paperwork to run for governor in 2020". KTVH.com. 2019-06-06. Retrieved 2019-06-07.
  34. ^ Michels, Holly K. (June 7, 2019). "Gianforte files to run for governor in 2020". Independent Record.
  35. ^ Drake, Phil (March 1, 2020). "Gianforte names Great Falls attorney Kristen Juras as lieutenant governor running mate". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  36. ^ a b "Montana's 2020 governor's race: Buckle up". KTVQ.com. 2019-03-28. Retrieved 2019-03-28.
  37. ^ Dennison, Mike (January 24, 2019). "Attorney General Fox launches gubernatorial bid". KRTV. Retrieved January 24, 2019.
  38. ^ a b c d patrick.reilly@missoulian.com, PATRICK REILLY. "Fox unfazed by prospect that Gianforte may enter Montana's race for governor". Helena Independent Record. Retrieved 2019-03-25.
  39. ^ Drake, Phil (October 4, 2019). "Olszewski picks Bogner to run as lieutenant governor". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  40. ^ Drake, Phil (June 15, 2019). "Stapleton announces run for U.S. House seat". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  41. ^ a b https://fox28spokane.com/fox-has-212k-in-bank-as-gop-governors-race-narrows/%7Ctitle=Fox has 212k in bank as GOP governor's race narrows|publisher=fox28spokane.com|date=July 5, 2019|accessdate=July 9, 2019
  42. ^ Pathé, Simone (June 17, 2019). "On heels of Senate loss, Matt Rosendale running for Congress — again". Roll Call. Retrieved June 17, 2019.
  43. ^ "Zinke says he won't run for Montana governor in 2020". Great Falls Tribune. Associated Press. November 9, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  44. ^ Lefebvre, Ben (November 8, 2018). "Zinke prepares to leave Trump's Cabinet". Politico. Retrieved November 12, 2018.
  45. ^ Trump, Donald Jr. "Montana's A-Team: Daines, Rosendale, Gianforte". missoulian.com. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  46. ^ "Greg Gianforte".
  47. ^ a b Michels, Holly K. (March 10, 2020). "Filing deadline for Montana ballot sees last-minute surprises". Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
  48. ^ "Former Democratic legislator to run for Montana governor". The Missoulian. Associated Press. June 10, 2019. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
  49. ^ Drake, Phil (February 9, 2020). "So what would you do? Candidates asked about Garcia". Great Falls Tribune. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  50. ^ Maag, Brittony (March 26, 2020). "Seven candidates file to run for governor of Montana". Ballotpedia News. Retrieved April 24, 2020.
  51. ^ "2019-2020 Gubernatorial race ratings". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved November 30, 2018.
  52. ^ "Gubernatorial Ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved February 1, 2019.
  53. ^ "Our Final 2016 picks". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved December 6, 2018.
  54. ^ "We rated every gubernatorial race in 2020. Here's who we think will win". Poltico. Retrieved November 19, 2019.
  55. ^ Cates-Carney, Corin (October 25, 2019). "Gov. Bullock Endorses Lt. Gov. Cooney In Gubernatorial Race". mtpr.org. Montana Public Radio.
  56. ^ https://twitter.com/PhilMurphyNJ/status/1268198714960678912
  57. ^ "Rep. Dunwell endorses Cooney for governor". cooneyformontana.com. January 18, 2020.
  58. ^ "Tester endorses Cooney in contested Democratic gov primary". ktvh.com. April 29, 2020.
  59. ^ Cooney, Mike (February 24, 2020). "I'm so humbled to have the support of my friend and mentor former Senator Max Baucus for this campaign. Max knows how we win tough races in Montana: by showing up, by putting in the hard work, and by listening to all Montanans #mtpol #mtgovhttps://helenair.com/opinion/columnists/mike-cooney-will-put-montanans-first-as-governor/article_5c308a6e-8726-5b18-b6b9-2a37a2cbfba4.html …". {{cite web}}: External link in |title= (help)
  60. ^ https://mobile.twitter.com/CooneyforMT/status/1268987397405982720
  61. ^ "AFL-CIO endorses Cooney, Schreiner=". newsbreak.com.
  62. ^ "AFL-CIO endorses Cooney, Schreiner=". newsbreak.com.
  63. ^ https://twitter.com/MTvoters/status/1270377189586792449. {{cite web}}: Missing or empty |title= (help)
  64. ^ Trump, Donald Jr. "Montana's A-Team: Daines, Rosendale, Gianforte". missoulian.com. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  65. ^ "Greg Gianforte".
Official campaign websites
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