Tester Stays Home for Harvest as Democrats Gather in Chicago, Leaving Montana Senate Race to Ads

As Democrats prepare for their national convention in Chicago next week, the party's energy has not carried over to a Senate race in Montana that could help decide control of the chamber. Three-term Sen. Jon Tester is locked in a close contest with Republican Tim Sheehy, a former Navy SEAL.

Tester has declined to endorse Kamala Harris, and his campaign says he will not attend the Democratic National Convention because it is harvest season and he is working on his farm near Big Sandy. The campaign also said he was too busy to give interviews.

His absence may matter little in a state where he has built a durable image. Television and radio across Montana carry ads that portray him as a third-generation Montanan and the only working farmer in the Senate, not a coastal elite Democrat. In one spot he says, "I'm protecting our freedoms, because Montanans don't like to be told how to live by anyone, especially the government."

Democrats have, meanwhile, attacked Sheehy as a wealthy newcomer with a ranch and resort homes in Big Sky and on Flathead Lake. In Helena, columnist George Ochenski questioned that approach, noting that voters tend to admire a successful businessman. He said Democratic strategists have been off base for a long time, that Tester holds the party's last statewide seat, and that "he's really scared."

The concern stems partly from Donald Trump's double-digit wins in Montana in the last two elections. Sheehy, 38, who moved to the state in 2014 and founded a firefighting aviation company, drew headlines when he introduced the former president at a fundraiser at the Yellowstone Club and a rally in Bozeman. He called Tester a rubber stamp for the Biden-Harris agenda and said, "every single time America has been on the ballot in the U.S. Senate, Jon Tester's voted the other way." Sheehy's campaign did not respond to interview requests.

Many at the rally had lined up for hours to see Trump, some wearing MAGA gear and traveling from neighboring states. Republican legislator Jane Gillette said the visit is important for turnout in down-ballot races, but acknowledged that some voters see Sheehy as an establishment pick. She said she will vote for him for the good of the party, while others would prefer to keep Tester in office and wait for a better candidate to challenge him later. Since 2006, Tester has never won by more than four percentage points.

Outside the college towns and resort valleys, the Trump-era Republican message resonates in rural areas that feel left behind. At a farmers market in White Sulphur Springs, Jeffrey Campbell said he has always voted for Tester because he lives nearby, but not this year. He said Tester's campaign is "just smearing" Sheehy and not discussing his own plans. Even so, Tester signs can still be seen in pastures, sometimes beside Trump banners painted on barns.

In Great Falls, once a Democratic stronghold, Tester's campaign is counting on independent-minded voters like Michael Winters, a Republican, veteran and former mayor. Winters described Tester as friendly and approachable, and said Montana would be foolish to send him away given his seats on the Appropriations and Veterans committees.

A recent poll taken before Trump's rally put the race within the margin of error, familiar territory for the Democrat.