Daines Drops Re-election Bid in Montana, Upending a Senate Race [View all]
Source: New York Times
March 4, 2026, 8:47 p.m. ET
Senator Steve Daines, Republican of Montana, said on Wednesday that he would not seek re-election this year, a surprise announcement that could offer Democrats a long-shot chance to flip a seat in their uphill fight to win control of the Senate.
Mr. Daines made the announcement just minutes before the filing deadline closed for November's election, saying that he had been "wrestling with this decision for months" and that it was time for "new leaders," like the state's junior Republican senator, Tim Sheehy, to "spearhead the fight for Montana in the United States Senate."
Mr. Daines, a two-term senator who led Republicans� successful effort to flip the Senate in 2024, also endorsed a successor: Kurt Alme, the U.S. attorney for Montana. President Trump also quickly endorsed Mr. Alme on Wednesday evening.
Mr. Daines' announcement "a surprise even to his Senate colleagues" upended the political landscape in Montana, a sparsely populated and independent-minded state that has veered rightward in recent years. The last remaining statewide Democrat, Senator Jon Tester, lost his re-election bid to Mr. Sheehy in 2024.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/04/us/elections/steve-daines-out-montana-senate-race.html
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