Republican Tim Sheehy will defeat Sen. Jon Tester in competitive Montana race, CNN projects
CNN
Republican Tim Sheehy will defeat three-term Montana Sen. Jon Tester, CNN projects, boosting the GOP’s hopes of claiming the Senate majority. JE: MAY NEED TO UPDATE DEPENDING ON WHEN THIS RACE IS CALLED
Republican Tim Sheehy will defeat three-term Montana Sen. Jon Tester, CNN projects, adding to Republicans’ newly won Senate majority. Montana has long been a deep-red state in presidential elections — and every other statewide office is currently held by a Republican. But Tester, a seven-fingered dirt farmer who had cut a moderate profile on Capitol Hill, previously had defied political gravity with his wins in 2006, 2012 and 2018. Still, his seat – alongside Democratic-held seats in two other red states, Ohio and West Virginia – was a prime Republican target this year. Republicans Bernie Moreno and Jim Justice won those races, respectively. This year marked the first time Tester had to share the ballot with Trump, who won the state by 16 percentage points in 2020 and nearly 20 points in 2016 — a reality that meant the Democratic incumbent needed to out-run the top of his party’s ticket by double digits to be competitive. Democrats cast Sheehy, a retired Navy SEAL, as an out-of-state millionaire with questionable ranching credentials and commitment to public land – the same playbook used against Republican Matt Rosendale in 2018. Sheehy moved to Montana in 2014 after leaving the military, but Republicans believed carpetbagging attacks would have limited appeal in a state that is home to more transplants after the coronavirus pandemic.