When did Max Baucus become senator of Montana?
1978 United States Senate election in Montana
The 1978 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 7, 1978. Following the death of United States Senator Lee Metcalf on January 12, 1978, Montana Supreme Court Chief Justice Paul G. Hatfield was appointed to serve for the remainder of Metcalf's term. Hatfield opted to run for re-election, but was overwhelmingly defeated in the Democratic primary by United States Congressman Max Baucus of the 1st congressional district. Baucus advanced to the general election, where he was opposed by Larry R. Williams, an author and the Republican nominee. Baucus ended up defeating Williams by a solid margin to win his first term in the Senate, and, following Hatfield's resignation on December 12, 1978, he began serving his first term in the Senate.
2008 United States Senate election in Montana
Montana generally gives its presidential electors to Republican candidates, but historically has elected several prominent Democrats to the United States Senate, including Thomas Walsh, Burton K. Wheeler, Mike Mansfield, and Lee Metcalf. Between 1913 and 2015, only two Republicans served as U.S. Senator from Montana, Zales Ecton and Conrad Burns. In 2004, the state elected Democratic Governor Brian Schweitzer, reversing a 16-year trend of electing Republicans to the Governorship. In the 2006 elections, the Republican Party took over the state House of Representatives in Montana, the only pick-up of a state legislature for the Republicans.
All Republican candidates trailed Baucus badly in polls. Garnett Shay had legal problems, preventing him from running an effective campaign.Senator Baucus defeated Kelleher as a Democratic incumbent running in a year that was very successful for his party in general. The Montana Senate race was somewhat unusual, in that it was perhaps the only race that year in which the Republican candidate was more liberal than the Democratic one. Kelleher, a perennial candidate and eccentric figure in Montana politics, took many positions that were highly unorthodox by GOP standards, such as favoring more liberal drug control policies, supporting universal healthcare and affirmative action, and favoring fair trade restrictions. He was, at the time, an 85-year-old attorney and perennial candidate who has run for office on several different party tickets. Kelleher was pro-life, advocated a Parliamentary system of government for the United States, and supported nationalization of the American oil and gas industry and a single-payer health care system. He received no support from the Montana Republican Party.
List of United States Senators from Montana
Montana was admitted to the Union on November 8, 1889 and elects U.S. Senators to Classes 1 and 2. Its current Senators are Democrat Jon Tester (serving since 2007) and Republican Steve Daines (serving since 2015).
List of United States Senators from Montana
, there are two living former U.S. Senators from Montana. The most recent Senator to die was John Melcher (served 1977–1989) on April 12, 2018. The most recently serving Senator to die was Conrad Burns (served 1989–2007) on April 28, 2016.
List of United States Senators from Montana
! rowspan=11 | 12
2014 United States Senate elections
Six-term incumbent Democrat Max Baucus, the longest-serving senator in Montana's history, had been re-elected with 73% of the vote in 2008. Baucus announced on April 23, 2013 that he would retire in 2014, rather than seek re-election to a seventh term. Baucus was appointed as the United States Ambassador to China, leading him to resign from the Senate in February 2014.
2006 United States Senate elections
In 2000, George W. Bush carried Montana 58% to 33% in the race for President, but Burns won by 3.4%. Since the direct election of Senators began in 1913, Burns is only the second Republican Montana has elected to the U.S. Senate. Also, for thirty-two straight years, 1952 to 1984, Montana elected only Democratic Senators.
Frank G. Higgins
After graduating from Michigan in 1886, Higgins returned to Missoula where he practiced law. He was the first person born in Montana to be admitted to the Montana state bar. In the late 1880s, he gave up the practice of law to become president of the Higgins Bank in Missoula. He subsequently began a political career and became the first native-born person from Montana to be elected to the Montana state legislature and as a mayor. He served in the Montana House of Representatives upon Montana's admission to the United States starting in 1889. He served in both the first and second sessions of the Montana legislature.
Higgins is credited with the decision to locate the University of Montana at Missoula, having introduced the bill into the state legislature providing for the establishment of a state university in Missoula. He was elected as the mayor of Missoula in May 1892 and served a one-year term. He was also a delegate from Montana to 1892 Democratic National Convention.
Horace R. Buck
On August 16, 1881, Buck married Mary E. Jewett, daughter of Dr. Pliny Jewett, a distinguished New England physician, in New Haven, Connecticut, with whom he had three children. In 1884, Buck was elected to the Council, the higher branch of the Legislative Assembly of the Territory of Montana. In 1887, he moved to Helena, Montana, where he continued in the practice of the law, and served for several years the official reporter of decisions of the Montana Supreme Court. He also prepared and published a complete digest of the first eight volumes of the Montana Reports. In 1891 he was appointed a District Judge for the First Judicial District of Montana, to fill a vacancy on the bench caused by the creation of an additional judgeship; and in 1892 was elected to the office of District Judge for a full term of four years. In 1896 he was elected an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the State.
Denise Juneau
Juneau was named as a possible candidate for US Senator Max Baucus's (D-Montana) seat, which was vacated upon his retirement in 2014. On August 5, 2013, she announced that she would not run for the Senate.
1922 United States Senate election in Montana
The 1922 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 7, 1922. Incumbent United States Senator Henry L. Myers, who was first elected to the Senate in 1910, and was re-elected in 1916, declined to seek re-election. Former United States Attorney Burton K. Wheeler won the Democratic primary and advanced to the general election, where he faced Carl W. Riddick, the United States Congressman from Montana's 2nd congressional district and the Republican nominee. Ultimately, Wheeler defeated Riddick comfortably and won his first term in the Senate.
Max Baucus
In 2006, the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) gave Baucus a 67% overall rating indicating having a mixed record on voting for gay rights. In 1996 Baucus voted in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which prohibited "marriage between members of the same sex in federal law, and provide that no state is required to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states" and defined marriage as being between a single man and a single woman. However, in 2004 he voted against the proposed constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage and in June 2012, he definitively spoke out in support for same-sex marriage. He has supported measures to curb job discrimination and hate crimes based on sexual orientation. He voted in favor of the Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010.
Max Baucus
In 1994, Baucus cast a pivotal vote in favor of Senator Dianne Feinstein's (D-CA) "Assault Weapons" Ban. In 2013, Baucus was one of four Democrats to vote against the Manchin-Toomey Amendment to expand background checks for potential gun buyers.
Max Baucus
On December 26, 2013, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Baucus to the post of Ambassador to China The President submitted Baucus's nomination to the Senate on January 7, 2014.
Max Baucus
As chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, Baucus called the first Senate meeting of interested parties before the committee to discuss health care reform, including representatives from pharmaceutical groups, insurance companies, and HMOs and hospital management companies. The meeting was controversial because it did not include representatives from groups calling for single-payer health care.
Bob Hawks (Montana politician)
Robert L. "Bob" Hawks is a Democratic Party member of the Montana Senate. He represented District 33 from 2004 to 2012. He was unable to run for re-election in 2012 due to Montana's term limits.
Mike Taylor (Montana politician)
Born in Lewistown, Fergus County, Montana, Taylor grew up in Judith Basin County, Montana. He owned a hair cutting shop and was a rancher. Taylor lived in Proctor, Montana, From 1997 to 2005, Taylor served in the Montana State Senate and was a Republican. In 2002, Taylor ran for the United States Senate from Montana opposing the incumbent Max Baucus. Taylor withdrew from the race because of a smear campaign. He then re-entered the campaign and lost the election to Baucus.
Jon Tester
In March 2012, the Montana GOP filed a complaint with the Senate Ethics Committee requesting an investigation into the actions of Tester and Max Baucus. The complaint cited a "Politico" report suggesting that Baucus' K Street connections were "warning clients against giving campaign contributions to Tester's Republican challenger Rep. Denny Rehberg". Tester denied any wrongdoing.
John Walsh (U.S. senator)
On October 3, 2013, Walsh announced his intention to run for the seat of retiring Senator Max Baucus. On February 9, 2014, Walsh was appointed to replace Baucus in the Senate after Baucus stepped down early to become U.S. Ambassador to China, making Walsh the incumbent in the race. Rancher Dirk Adams and former Montana Lieutenant Governor John Bohlinger also ran for the Democratic nomination.
Max Baucus
A statistical analysis of the impact of political contributions on individual senators' support for the public insurance option conducted by Nate Silver has suggested that Baucus was an unlikely supporter of the public option in the first place. Based on Baucus's political ideology and the per capita health care spending in Montana, Silver's model projects that there would be only a 30.6% probability of Baucus supporting a public insurance option even if he had received no relevant campaign contributions. Silver calculates that the impact on Baucus of the significant campaign contributions that he has received from the health care industry further reduces the probability of his supporting a public insurance option from 30.6% to 0.6%.
1984 United States Senate election in Montana
The 1984 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 6, 1984. Incumbent United States Senator Max Baucus, who was first elected in 1978, ran for re-election. He easily won renomination in the Democratic primary, and advanced to the general election, where he faced Chuck Cozzens, a former State Representative and the Republican nominee. Despite President Ronald Reagan's strong performance in the state that year, Baucus was able to easily win a second term over Cozzens.
Max Baucus
Baucus has been criticized for his ties to the health insurance and pharmaceutical industries, and was one of the largest beneficiaries in the Senate of campaign contributions from these industries. From 2003-08, Baucus received $3,973,485 from the health sector, including $852,813 from pharmaceutical companies, $851,141 from health professionals, $784,185 from the insurance industry and $465,750 from HMOs/health services, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. A 2006 study by Public Citizen found that between 1999 and 2005 Baucus, along with former Senate majority leader Bill Frist, took in the most special-interest money of any senator.
Shannon Augare
Senator Augare lived and governed in a tough times that faced rural-America and native-America. He has unique experience clearing a path for good paying green jobs, programmatic infrastructure development, and community planning. Beginning in 2004, while directing a multi-state (Montana, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming), 19 tribal nation regional planning project, Senator Augare began bringing various elected officials and concerned citizens together to discuss and create landmark public policy measures that support community infrastructure development. He is credited with creating a model of building sustainable partnerships and family asset building programs. Senator Augare worked in concert with former Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer, current Governor Steve Bullock, former US Senator Max Baucus (who serves now as US Ambassador to China), current US Senators Jon Tester, and Steve Daines to spark creative economic development projects on local, state, and national levels. Former US Senator Max Baucus, then chairman of the powerful US Senate Finance Committee, appointed Senator Augare to serve on the United States / Thailand Trade Negotiations taskforce to ensure trade opportunities were promoted for Indian Country throughout the United States. Former Montana Governor Brian Schweitzer appointed Senator Augare to serve on the Montana Board of Crime Control and later the Family Economic Security Council. In 2007, and again in 2010 and 2013, Montana Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike McGrath appointed Senator Augare to serve on the Equal Justice Taskforce for Montana.
Max Baucus
On July 2, 2011, Baucus married Ms. Hanes at the Sieben Ranch in Montana.
Max Baucus
As a result of Baucus's significant fund-raising advantage, in the week that he announced his intention to run for re-election, he opened eight state offices—one more than he had official offices in the state. Baucus also announced that he had hired 35 full-time campaign staff members. Baucus won re-election in a landslide victory, with 73% of the vote, carrying every county in the state.
Max Baucus
Only three senators have more former staffers working as lobbyists on K Street, at least two dozen in Baucus' case. Several of Baucus's ex-staffers, including former chief of staff David Castagnetti, are now working for the pharmaceutical and health insurance industries. Castagnetti co-founded the lobbying firm of Mehlman Vogel Castagnetti, which represents "America's Health Insurance Plans Inc", the national trade group of health insurance companies, the Medicare Cost Contractors Alliance, as well as Amgen, AstraZeneca PLC and Merck & Co. Another former chief of staff, Jeff Forbes, opened his own lobbying shop and to represent the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America and the Advanced Medical Technology Association, among other groups.
Max Baucus
Baucus voted for the Authorization for Use of Military Force Against Iraq Resolution of 2002. He voted with a majority of Democrats against Senator John Kerry's amendment stipulating a firm deadline for withdrawal of American combat personnel from Iraq.
Max Schwabe
Schwabe was elected as a Republican to the Seventy-eighth and the two succeeding Congresses (January 3, 1943 – January 3, 1949). He was an unsuccessful candidate for reelection to the Eighty-first Congress in 1948. He also worked as the Missouri State director of the Farmers Home Administration in the United States Department of Agriculture from 1953 to 1961.
Brian Schweitzer
The focus changed in April 2013, when Baucus decided to retire. Soon thereafter, a Democrat associated with Schweitzer stated the former governor was leaning toward a bid in 2014. He was considered highly likely to run. Schweitzer made no firm commitment. After Baucus' announcement, he stated that he was concentrating on his current project of helping a dissident investor group take control of the Stillwater Mining Co. in south-central Montana. He subsequently became the chair of the Board of Stillwater Mine. When asked about the Senate race in June 2013, he publicly stated it was a difficult decision, and he was not sure he wanted to give up his post-political life on Georgetown Lake and take a substantial pay cut. However, Montana political analysts generally viewed him as considering a run.
Steve Bullock (American politician)
Governor Bullock and his lieutenant governor, John Walsh, were sworn in on January 7, 2013. Bullock later appointed Walsh to become the new Senator from Montana to replace Max Baucus, who had been appointed Ambassador to China. Bullock then appointed Angela McLean to replace Walsh as lieutenant governor.
Max Baucus
Baucus raised a record amount of money for his 2008 re-election bid, 91 percent of which came from individuals living outside of Montana. Similarly, according to the Center for Responsive Politics, Baucus's 2008 campaign raised $11.6 million, only 13 percent of which came from Montana donors; the rest included millions from health care and other industries overseen by Finance and Baucus's other committees. The overwhelming ratio of special interest and out-of-state dollars to donations from Montana donors have raised questions:
Roy Brown (Montana politician)
Roy Brown (born February 16, 1951 in Casper, Wyoming) is a former Montana State Senator from Billings, Montana Senate District 25. He served four terms in the Montana House of Representatives and was elected to the State Senate in 2007. He was the Republican nominee for the Governor seat in Montana with Steve Daines in 2008. In 2010, Representative Kendall Van Dyk defeated Brown in the general election.
2012 United States Senate election in Montana
The Republican primary was held on June 5, 2012.Three debates were scheduled, including one with the Libertarian candidate whose ultimate influence on the race remains uncertain. The first, between Rehberg and Tester, was held on October 8, 2012 at 7 p.m. at Petro Theatre at the MSU Billings University campus. The debate was televised live by Montana PBS andbroadcast on KEMC/Yellowstone Public Radio and streamed on the Gazette’s website. It was moderated by Steve Prosinski, editor of The Gazette, with questions from a panel of political reporters. Representatives from the Associated Students of Montana State University Billings, the student government, served as timekeepers.Former president of the Montana Senate and farmer Jon Tester was elected with 49.2% of the vote in 2006, defeating incumbent Conrad Burns.
Max Baucus
Baucus has completed a 50-mile ultramarathon and has crewed for winner and fellow Montana native Nikki Kimball at the 100-mile Western States Endurance Run, which he hopes to run in the future.
Tim Babcock
Babcock served three terms in the Montana Legislature prior to being elected lieutenant governor in 1960. He became governor in 1962 upon the death of Governor Donald Nutter. During his tenure, he proposed a three-percent sales tax to support the state government, and moderated the budget signed by Governor Nutter. In 1964, Babcock endorsed Barry Goldwater of Arizona for the Republican presidential nomination. Democrat Lyndon B. Johnson of Texas, however, was an easy winner that year of Montana's then four electoral votes. He ran for re-election in 1964 against Roland Renne, the former President of Montana State College and the Democratic nominee. Following a close campaign, Babcock was narrowly re-elected over Renne. From 1964 to 1965, he a member of the National Governors' Conference Executive Committee, and he chaired the Western Governors' Conference from 1966 to 1967.
Ron Kraus
Kraus was first sworn in on January 3, 1995, serving until January 4, 1999. He served in the 79th and 80th Minnesota Legislatures. He served all 4 years in the minority caucus. Successful legislation Kraus carried includes a law that requires school superintendent candidates to tell the hiring school board if they had ever been bought out of a previous job contract. He also was able to get $800,000 for the Blazing Star Trail, $250,000 for Albert Lea schools to develop a unique kindergarten and first-grade pilot program, and a $250,000 "Mighty Ducks" grant for a second ice sheet in Albert Lea, Minn. Kraus also worked hard to reduce commercial and industrial property tax rates.
Francis Bardanouve
Francis Bardanouve (December 10, 1917 – March 17, 2002) was an American politician in the state of Montana who served in the Montana House of Representatives from 1958 to 1994. He was Speaker pro tempore in 1975. Serving for 36 years, he is the second longest serving member of the Montana legislature.
Max Baucus
Baucus was one of the Senate's largest career recipients of pro-Israel Political Action Committee (PAC) contributions, receiving $550,589 since 1989.
Jon Tester
His election as President marked a transition for Montana Democrats as they moved into the majority leadership of the Senate for the first time in more than a decade. Term limits prohibited Tester from running for State Senate for a third consecutive term. Tester cited a prescription drug benefit program, reinstatement of the "Made in Montana" promotion program, a law to encourage renewable energy development, and his involvement with a bill that led to an historic increase in public school funding as accomplishments while in office.Tester announced his candidacy in May 2005 for the U.S. Senate seat held by Republican incumbent Senator Conrad Burns. Tester was the second Democrat to jump into the race, after state auditor John Morrison. While Tester was seen as having a greater following among his fellow legislators, his opponent, whose grandfather was governor of Nebraska, was able to raise significantly more money and had greater statewide name recognition.
2014 United States Senate elections
Democratic Senator Max Baucus, who had announced he would retire and not seek a seventh term in office, resigned from the Senate in February 2014 in order to accept an appointment as United States Ambassador to China. Democrat John Walsh, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana, who was already running for Baucus' seat when Baucus was named to the ambassadorship, was appointed to replace Baucus by Governor Steve Bullock.
1934 United States Senate election in Montana
The 1934 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 6, 1934. Incumbent United States Senator Burton K. Wheeler, who was first elected to the Senate in 1922, and was re-elected in 1928, ran for re-election. After easily winning the Democratic primary, Wheeler moved on to the general election, where he faced George M. Bourquin, a former United States Federal Judge and the Republican nominee. In a stark contrast to his close campaign in 1928, Wheeler won re-election to his third Senate term in a landslide.
J. S. Brenner
John Skoning "Jack" Brenner (January 2, 1911 – July 24, 1980), commonly known as J. S. Brenner, was an American politician in the state of Montana. A Republican, he served in the Montana House of Representatives from 1949 to 1952 and Montana Senate from 1952 to 1966. In 1963, he served as minority leader of the state Senate. Born at Elgin, Illinois in 1911, Brenner attended the New Mexico Military Institute, Montana State University, and the University of Pennsylvania. He was a cattle rancher and lived in Grant, Beaverhead County, Montana. He was also a member and president of the Montana Stock Growers Association. He was defeated for reelection to the state Senate in 1966 by Frank W. Hazelbaker.
Bob Bacon
Bacon was elected to his first term in the State Senate in 2004, defeating Republican Ray Martinez, a former Fort Collins mayor, and Libertarian Mark Brophy. In 2008, Bacon defeated Republican Matt Fries to win reelection.
Bob Bacon has had the following political experience:In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Bacon served on these committees:
National Good Neighbor Day
On April 28, 2004, the Senate passed a resolution by Montana Senator Max Baucus to designate September 26 as National Good Neighbor Day.
John E. Erickson (Montana politician)
On March 13, 1933, Erickson resigned as governor whereupon Frank Cooney, formerly Erickson's lieutenant governor and now the acting governor, appointed Erickson to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Thomas J. Walsh. Although on the face of it, this appears to have been a rather brazen attempt on Erickson's part to establish himself in the senate, Montana Senator Burton K. Wheeler tells a different story in his autobiography. Apparently Montana's Democratic National Committeeman, J. Bruce Kremer, was certain to be appointed to Walsh's seat. Walsh very much disliked Kremer and worried that Kremer would succeed him if he (Walsh) accepted Franklin D. Roosevelt's appointment to his cabinet, as Attorney General. After Walsh's untimely demise, his daughter Genevieve Gudger asked Senator Wheeler if he would intercede with Governor Erickson to stop Kremer's appointment. As Wheeler also disliked Kremer, he agreed to do so. In Wheeler's telling it was he who talked a reluctant Erickson into getting himself appointed. In the special election to fill the remainder of the vacancy, Erickson ran for election to the senate seat, but finished third in the primary, behind James E. Murray, who went on to win the special election in November, and James F. O'Connor. He continued to serve in the Senate through November 6, 1934, the day that Murray was elected, at which point he resigned in favor of Murray, in order to give Murray seniority rights over other freshman senators, who didn't start their terms until 1935. Following his return from the Senate, he practiced law in Helena, Montana, until his death.
List of United States Senators from Montana
! rowspan=10 | 5
1990 United States Senate elections
Incumbent United States Senator Max Baucus, who was first elected in 1978 and was re-elected in 1984, ran for re-election. After winning the Democratic primary, he moved on to the general election, where he was opposed by Allen Kolstad, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana and the Republican nominee. Baucus ultimately ended up defeating Kolstad in a landslide, winning his third term with ease.
Steve Bullock (American politician)
Bullock began his second term on January 2, 2017 alongside Montana Lieutenant Governor Mike Cooney. Bullock and Cooney were the only two Democrats to retain statewide offices in the 2016 elections as the Republicans captured the offices of Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction, Montana State Auditor, and Montana Secretary of State and held onto the offices of Montana Attorney General and U.S. Representative for Montana's at-large congressional district. Following the 2016 elections, Bullock faced large Republican majorities in the Montana Legislature because the Republicans gained three State Senate seats and widened their Senate majority over the Democrats to 32-18 while maintaining a 59-41 majority in the Montana House of Representatives, the same as in 2015.
2008 Montana gubernatorial election
The 2008 Montana gubernatorial election was held on November 4, 2008 to elect the governor and lieutenant governor of the U.S. state of Montana. Incumbent Governor Brian Schweitzer, a Democrat who was elected to his first four-year term in 2004, was elected to a second term with 65.5 per cent of the vote. John Bohlinger, a Republican and the incumbent lieutenant governor, was once again Schweitzer's running mate, and was re-elected to a second term. The Republican nominee was Roy Brown, a member of the Montana Senate. Brown's running mate was businessman, and future U.S. Representative and U.S. Senator, Steve Daines.
Max Baucus
On July 29, 2006, Baucus's nephew Marine Cpl. Phillip E. Baucus was killed in combat in Al Anbar Province. Phillip, a 28-year-old resident of Wolf Creek, Montana, had been a member of the 3rd Light Armored Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Marine Division, I Marine Expeditionary Force.
America's Healthy Future Act
On October 13, the Senate Finance Committee made their final vote on the Baucus proposal. The committee passed its bill 14 to 9. All Republicans voted no with the exception of Sen. Olympia Snowe. She later commented, "When history calls, history calls." The "San Francisco Chronicle" referred to her vote as "a coup" for Baucus, coming after criticism from his fellow Democrats for making too many compromises. Snowe, as well as some moderate Democratic members of the committee, have vowed that they will drop their support for the Baucus plan if a 'public option' is added at any point.
2002 United States Senate elections
Incumbent Democrat Max Baucus won re-election to a fifth term.
2014 United States Senate election in Montana
Daines defeated Curtis by a 57.9% to 40.0% with Libertarian Roger Roots winning 2.2%. Daines and Arkansas' Tom Cotton became just the 18th and 19th U.S. House freshmen to win U.S. Senate races over the last 100 years, and just the third and fourth over the last 40 years.
Because Walsh withdrew, a nominating convention was held to pick a new nominee prior to August 20. The state party called a convention for August 16, and voting delegates were members of the State Central Committee, specifically: "one chair and one vice chair from each existing county central committee; one state committeeman and one state committeewoman from each county central committee; all voting members of the State Party Executive Board; the president of each chartered organization of the Montana Democratic Party; Montana State House leadership, and Montana State Senate leaders, and all Democrats currently holding statewide or federal office."
Mike Cooney
Cooney continued working for Baucus until 1988, when he was encouraged to run for Secretary of State of Montana. An old friend of his sent a $100 campaign donation after hearing Cooney defend Baucus' vote for the Gramm–Rudman–Hollings Balanced Budget Act of 1985 and Cooney decided to run. He received permission from Baucus to run, though reluctantly, as Baucus did not want to lose him, so Cooney agreed to only campaign on evenings and weekends. Cooney was unopposed in the Democratic primary and defeated the Republican nominee, State Senator Pete Story, by 174,917 votes (49.28%) to 163,830 (46.16%). His victory was considered an upset as he was outspent by his opponent and Republicans had won the open gubernatorial seat, incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator John Melcher was defeated by Republican Conrad Burns and George H. W. Bush carried the state's four electoral votes in the presidential election. Along with Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction Nancy Keenan and Clerk of the Montana Supreme Court Ed Smith, Cooney was one of only three Democrats to win a statewide election in Montana that year.
Nick Bacon
After his military retirement, Bacon returned with his wife, Tamera Ann, to Arizona and worked for the Department of Veterans Affairs at their Phoenix regional office. While there, he was the co-originator of the Med-Vet Healthcare Program in Phoenix and participated in John McCain's 1986 political campaign in which McCain was first elected to the U.S. Senate. Bacon later served as town manager for the Phoenix suburb of Surprise from 1987 to 1990, during which time he oversaw the expansion of the town's territory and development by annexing nearly 75 square miles of land. Bacon was praised for his efforts by Surprise City Councilman Roy Villanueva, who initially opposed Bacon's expansion efforts but later commented that Bacon "was a good person who involved himself with the community and tried to help Surprise as much as possible." Likewise, former Surprise City Clerk Sherry Aguilar commented on Bacon's drive. "It seemed like he had so much energy and was really wanting to take (Surprise) to the next level," she said. "It seemed like he was so enthusiastic."
Montana Territory
Dem Democratic
Rep Republican
History of Montana
Though historically a swing state politically, beginning with the 1988 election, the state tended toward Republican party domination until 2004, when the election of a Democratic governor and a return of the legislature to divided party rule temporarily moved the state back into the swing status, solidified by the election of Senator Jon Tester in 2006. In the 2008 and 2010 elections, a Republican majority again gained full control of the legislature, but all five statewide offices remained in Democratic hands. When the 2012 election moved Steve Bullock, a Democrat who had been Attorney general to the office of governor, the Attorney General's office moved to Republican hands for the first time since 1992. In 2014 Governor Bullock later appointed Lieutenant Governor John Walsh to become the new senator to replace Max Baucus, the incoming Ambassador to China. Baucus had served 1979–2014, and played a major role in writing the nation's health care and tax laws. The 2014 Senate election became a contest between Walsh and Republican Congressman Steve Daines.
Jean Baucus
Jean Baucus (July 7, 1917 – December 10, 2011) was an American historian and rancher. She was also the mother of U.S. Senator Max Baucus of Montana and longtime matriarch of the Baucus family. Her work as a historian focused primarily on the history of Montana and the American West.
Thomas Siebel
In 2013, C3 Energy hosted former Senator Max Baucus from Montana, and Siebel and Baucus discussed the ways in which information technology addresses the utility industry's big data challenge.
Jean Baucus
Baucus authored four nonfiction books focusing on the history of Helena and Montana including ""Helena: Her Historic Homes, Vols. 1 and 2"", which were released during the late 1970s, and ""Gold in the Gulch"," published in 1981. Another work, ""Helena: An Illustrated History"," which she co-authored with editor Vivian Paladin, was first published in 1983 by the Montana Historical Society. Baucus also wrote ""Henry Sieben, 1846-1937: Legacy of Livestock and Land"", a biography of her grandfather. Her arts patronages included Holter Museum of Art in Helena.
List of United States Senators from Montana
! rowspan=15 | 7
Conrad Burns
Conrad Ray Burns (January 25, 1935 – April 28, 2016) was a United States Senator from Montana and later a lobbyist. He was only the second Republican to represent Montana in the Senate since the passage in 1913 of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution and was the longest-serving Republican senator in Montana history.
Daniel P. Beard
He also served as a Deputy Assistant Secretary in the United States Department of the Interior during the Carter Administration and served as Chief of Staff for Montana Senator Max Baucus (1982-1984).
Butte, Montana
Politically, Butte has historically been a Democratic stronghold, owing to its union legacy. Likewise, Silver Bow County has historically been one of the strongest Democratic bastions in Montana. In 1996, Haley Beaudry became the first Republican to represent Butte in the state legislature since 1950. In 2010, Max Yates was the next Butte Republican elected to the legislature; however, neither Beaudry or Yates were re-elected. In 2014, Butte became the third city in Montana to pass an anti-discrimination ordinance protecting LGBT residents and visitors from discrimination in employment, housing and public accommodations.
List of United States Senators from Montana
! rowspan=14 | 7
Max Baucus
In response to the questions raised by the large amount of funding he took from the health care industry, Baucus declared a moratorium as of July 1, 2009 on taking more special interest money from health care political action committees. Baucus, however, refused to return as part of his moratorium any of the millions of dollars he has received from health care industry interests before July 1, 2009, or to rule out a resumption of taking the same or greater health care industry contributions in the future. His policy on not taking health care industry money reportedly still allowed him to accept money from lobbyists or corporate executives, who, according to "The Washington Post", continued to make donations after July 1, 2009. A watchdog group found that in July 2009 Baucus accepted additional money from the health care industry in violation of his own self-defined moratorium terms, reportedly leading Baucus to return those monies.
Max Baucus
A hearing on his nomination was held by the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations on January 28, 2014. His nomination was later reported to the full United States Senate on February 4, 2014 and a vote for confirmation would later be considered. He was later confirmed by the full Senate on February 6, 2014 by a vote of 96–0 and Baucus himself voting "Present".
Chuck Baldwin
In November, 2011, Republican Montana gubernatorial candidate Bob Fanning selected Chuck Baldwin as his running mate. Baldwin withdrew his candidacy for lieutenant governor on February 12, 2012, several months before the June primary.
Max Baucus
On August 9, 2011, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid appointed Baucus to the United States Congress Joint Select Committee on Deficit Reduction.
George M. Bourquin
On February 13, 1912, Bourquin was nominated by President William H. Taft to a seat on the United States District Court for the District of Montana vacated by Carl L. Rasch. Bourquin was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 8, 1912, and received his commission the same day. He assumed senior status on March 9, 1934, serving in that capacity until his death, in 1958.
Scott Sales
In November 2016, Sales won an internal election among state Senate Republicans to be the president of the Montana Senate in the 2017 election. His opponent was Senator Eric Moore of Miles City. Although the vote was by secret ballot, it was described as a close case. He assumed office in January 2017. Sales broke with tradition in January 2017 by deciding to not sit with the state House in the customary beginning-of-session joint sitting to hear speeches from members of Montana's congressional delegation, the chief justice of the Montana Supreme Court, the Montana Superintendent of Public Instruction, and a Native American leader. Sales' choice to break from tradition was publicly criticized by former State Senate president Jon Tester.
John Lewis (Montana politician)
Lewis worked for Senator Baucus for 12 years, starting as a field organizer for Baucus's 2002 reelection campaign. Lewis then worked for five years as a legislative assistant before becoming director of field operations for Baucus's 2008 campaign. Lewis became Baucus's deputy state director after the campaign, and was promoted to state director in 2010. On Baucus's behalf, in 2011 Lewis attempted to visit all 56 Montana counties and meet with the mayors of all 129 incorporated Montana towns. He ultimately met with 118 mayors, traveling more than 20,000 miles in his car.
Jon Tester
Tester was first elected to the Senate in 2006, defeating Republican incumbent Conrad Burns in one of the closest Senate races of that year. He narrowly won reelection in 2012 against U.S. Representative Denny Rehberg, and in 2018 against Montana State Auditor Matt Rosendale. Tester was previously the president of the Montana Senate and worked as a music teacher and farmer. He became Montana's senior senator in 2014 following Max Baucus's departure.
Scott Sales
Sales was elected speaker of the Montana House of Representatives in 2007. At the time Sales became House speaker, he was relatively inexperienced; he assumed leadership of the chamber in just his second term and had never served as a committee chair. As speaker, Sales clashed with Governor Brian Schweitzer, opposing his budget proposal. Sales presided over a House controlled by Republicans by the thinnest of margins: during his term, there were 50 Republican representatives, one Constitution Party representative (Rick Jore) who was mostly allied with Republicans, and 49 Democratic representatives. The highly contentious legislative session ended in disarray, as the Legislature failed to pass a state budget, as required by the state constitution. In the ensuing special session, the budget was approved after Governor Schweitzer negotiated a compromise with several moderate House Republicans, effectively circumventing Sales.
Max Dennis
Max Dennis (August 9, 1925 – April 24, 1986) was a Republican politician who served in the Ohio Senate. An attorney from Wilmington, Ohio, Dennis was initially elected to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1954 and served five terms. He moved over to the senate in 1964, following an appointment. Following the Voting Rights Act of 1965, Dennis was reelected to a new district in 1966, and initially served as the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee. He again was reelected in 1968.
Max Baucus
In 1999, Baucus was the only Democrat to vote against an amendment by Senator Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ) that sought to "regulate the sale of firearms at gun shows". Baucus can be frequently found hunting and fishing on public lands around Montana.
Max Bacon (politician)
Bacon is a native of Springfield, Missouri, where he attended public school. He graduated from Southwest Missouri State University with a B.S. in education, and from the University of Missouri, where he received his law degree. He was admitted to the bar in 1968. Before being elected as a Democrat to the Missouri House of Representatives, he served as a prosecuting attorney in two Missouri counties. He and his wife, Jenine, and their two children live in Springfield and attend the Broadway Baptist Church. - see White House Reference
Denny Rehberg
Dennis Ray Rehberg (born October 5, 1955) is an American politician and member of the Republican Party. He served as the Lieutenant Governor of Montana from 1991 to 1997 and as the U.S. Representative for from 2001 to 2013. Rehberg was the Republican nominee for the United States Senate in 1996 and 2012, losing to Max Baucus 50% to 45% and to Jon Tester 49% to 45%, respectively. He subsequently became a co-chairman at Mercury, a Washington D.C. lobbying firm.
1996 United States Senate elections
Incumbent Democrat Max Baucus, who was first elected in 1978 and was re-elected in 1984 and 1990, ran for re-election. He was unopposed in the Democratic primary, and moved on to the general election, where he faced a stiff challenge in Denny Rehberg, the Lieutenant Governor of Montana and the Republican nominee. Despite Bob Dole's victory over Bill Clinton and Ross Perot in the state that year in the presidential election, Baucus managed to narrowly win re-election over Rehberg to secure a fourth term in the Senate.
Plum Creek Timber
In 2008, Senator Max Baucus arranged for appropriations in the 2008 Farm Bill to be used to purchase of Plum Creek land in Montana. This project became known as the Montana Legacy Project.
Corey Stapleton
In early 2013, he decided to run for the U.S. Senate and challenge longtime Democratic incumbent Max Baucus. Stapleton criticized Baucus's record and started a petition to repeal Obamacare. In April 2013, Baucus decided to retire.
1982 United States Senate election in Montana
The 1982 United States Senate election in Montana took place on November 2, 1982. Incumbent United States Senator John Melcher, who was first elected to the Senate in 1976, opted to run for re-election. He won the Democratic primary after he faced a tough intraparty challenger, and advanced to the general election, where he faced Larry R. Williams, an author and the Republican nominee, and Larry Dodge, the Libertarian nominee. Though his margin was reduced significantly from his initial election, Melcher still comfortably won re-election to his second and final term in the Senate.During his first term in the Senate, Melcher's relative conservatism for a Democrat prompted a primary challenger in Michael Bond, a housing contractor who campaigned on his opposition to nuclear war. Bond attacked Melcher for voting to increase spending on nuclear arms, and pledged to reduce military spending to $60 billion and to use the savings to reduce interest rates. During the campaign, Bond came under fire from the state branches of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and the Disabled American Veterans for turning in his draft card in 1967 to protest the Vietnam War, who put out a statement, saying, "There is no place in the U.S. Senate for any draft dodger, draft card burner or draft protester of any kind."
2008 United States presidential election in Montana
During the same election, incumbent Democratic Governor Brian Schweitzer was reelected to a second term in a landslide over Republican Roy Brown and Libertarian Stan Jones. Winning by more than a two-to-one margin, Schweitzer received 65.21% of the vote while Brown took in 32.77% and Jones got 2.03%. Also during the same election, incumbent Democratic Senator Max Baucus was handily reelected to a sixth term over perennial candidate Bob Kelleher running as a Republican, no third-party candidate was in the race. Due to Kelleher's policies, such as adopting a parliamentary system in the United States, adopting a single-payer healthcare system, and nationalizing American oil and gas industries, he received no support from Montana GOP, and Baucus defeated Kelleher by nearly a 3-to-1 margin, taking in 72.92% over Kelleher's 27.08% and winning every single county in the state. At the state level, however, Republicans picked up three seats in the Montana Senate and gained control of the chamber. Democrats picked up the office of Secretary of State.
Max Baucus
As the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Baucus played an influential role in the debate over health care reform in the United States. He was also chairman of the Joint Committee on Taxation, a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry and the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, and was chairman of the Subcommittee on Transportation and Infrastructure. Before his election to the Senate, Baucus was a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1975 to 1978, representing Montana's 1st congressional district. He previously served in the Montana House of Representatives from 1973 to 1974.
Robert Kelleher
In June 2008, he won a surprise victory in a five-way primary election on the Republican ticket to be chosen as the nominee to face incumbent U.S. Senator Max Baucus. It was his second run against Baucus, whom he also challenged in the 2002 Senate race on the Green party ticket (2.3%). He also ran for the U.S. Senate in 1988. In the United States Senate election in Montana, 2008, he got 27% of the vote against Baucus. He was snubbed by the GOP post-nomination and received no funding,
Montana State University
Michael P. Malone was named MSU's Acting President on January 1, 1991, and permanently appointed to the position in March 1991, Malone was named MSU's 10th president. He had served as MSU's Dean of Graduate Studies from 1979 to 1988, and then three one-year temporary appointments as Vice President for Academic Affairs while a fruitless nation search occurred for a permanent replacement. As Dean of Graduate Studies, he'd been critical of what he perceived as the state's unwillingnes to invest in high technology education.
America's Healthy Future Act
Chairman Baucus was known as the head of a bipartisan group called the 'Gang of Six' in the Senate Finance Committee. Senators Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico and Kent Conrad of North Dakota made up the other Democratic members of the 'gang', while Olympia Snowe of Maine, Chuck Grassley of Iowa, and Mike Enzi of Wyoming made up the Republican side. They underwent months of negotiations and compromises over the summer of 2009 to achieve a healthcare plan. In the first week of September, Baucus began saying that he would push through a plan even if he could not obtain bipartisan backing. He remarked that "time has come for action, and we will act" on September 9.
United States congressional delegations from Montana
There have been twenty-two senators elected from Montana, of whom fourteen have been Democrats and eight have been Republicans. Montana's current senators are Democratic Jon Tester, in office since 2007, and Steve Daines, in office since 2015. Tester was re-elected in 2012 with 48.58% of the vote, and Daines was elected in 2014 with 57.9% of the vote.
Veterans Traumatic Brain Injury Care Improvement Act
In 2011, Senator Max Baucus introduced S. 666, the Veterans Traumatic Brain Injury Care Improvement Act of 2011, which would have directed the Secretary of Veterans Affairs to study the feasibility of creating a treatment center in the northern Rockies or the Dakotas and specifically evaluate Montana as a site for the center.
Max Baucus
Baucus has a 74% pro-business voting record as rated by the United States Chamber of Commerce. He twice voted to make filing bankruptcy more difficult for debtors, once in July 2001 to restrict rules on personal bankruptcy, and a second time in March 2005 to include means-testing and restrictions for bankruptcy filers. He has frequently visited places of employment within the state and has personally participated in activities that he calls "Work Days." He has also hosted economic development conferences.
Healthcare reform debate in the United States
George McGovern wrote that significant campaign funds were given to the chairman and ranking minority member of the Senate Finance Committee, which has jurisdiction over health care legislation: "Chairman Max Baucus of Montana, a Democrat, and his political action committee have received nearly $4 million from the health-care lobby since 2003. The ranking Republican, Charles Grassley of Iowa, has received more than $2 million. It's a mistake for one politician to judge the personal motives of another. But Sens. Baucus and Grassley are firm opponents of the single-payer system, as are other highly placed members of Congress who have been generously rewarded by the insurance lobby."
Larry R. Williams
Williams was twice the Republican Party nominee to the United States Senate in Montana. In 1978 he defeated Bill Osborne and Clancy Rich in the Republican primary with 35,479 votes (61.66%), and then lost to Democratic U.S. Representative Max Baucus in the general election by 160,353 votes (55.69%) to 127,589 (44.31%). In 1982, he defeated attorney Willie Dee Morris in the primary by 49,615 votes (88.11%) to 6,696 (11.89%), and was then defeated in the general election by incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator John Melcher by 174,861 votes (54.46%) to 133,789 (41.67%).
John Lewis (Montana politician)
John Lewis (born 1978) is an American former top aide to Montana Senator Max Baucus. Lewis, a Democrat, ran for Congress in 2014 for Montana's at-large congressional district.
Bradley Maxon Hamlett
Bradley Maxon Hamlett was a Democratic member of the Montana Legislature. He was elected to Senate District 10, representing Cascade, Montana, in 2009 and 2011. He served District 15 in 2013 and 2015 due to redistricting.
Stan Jones (Libertarian politician)
Stan Jones (born January 13, 1943) is a Libertarian Party politician who has twice run unsuccessfully for the United States Senate in 2002 and 2006, and has run twice unsuccessfully for governor of Montana, in 2000 and 2004. The winner in 2000 was Republican Judy Martz, and in 2004 the winner was Democrat Brian Schweitzer. In 2002 the winner was Democrat Max Baucus. His loss in 2006 was his most significant, when he challenged incumbent Republican Conrad Burns and Democrat Jon Tester, and received 3 percent of the vote.
2000 United States Senate election in Montana
Burns spent twice as much money as Schweitzer on the election and only defeated him by a slim margin, 51-47 percent, while the state voted 58-33 percent for Republican presidential nominee George W. Bush. Schweitzer went on to become governor in 2004.
List of United States Senators from Montana
! rowspan=6 | 6
Brian Morris (judge)
On March 11, 2013, Senator Max Baucus announced that he will recommend that President Obama nominate Morris to fill the vacancy on the United States District Court for the District of Montana caused by Judge Sam Haddon taking senior status, the vacant seat being located in Great Falls. The recommendation was made after a number of candidates were considered by a nine-member Judicial Nominating Commission appointed by Senator Baucus and Senator Jon Tester. On May 23, 2013, President Obama formally nominated Morris to the judgeship. His nomination was reported to the floor by the United States Senate Judiciary Committee on September 19, 2013. Cloture was voted on and agreed to on December 12, 2013 by a vote of 57–40. He was confirmed by the United States Senate in a vote of 75–20 later that same day. He received his judicial commission on December 17, 2013.
1984 United States Senate elections
Incumbent Max Baucus ran for re-election. He easily won renomination in the Democratic primary, and advanced to the general election, where he faced Chuck Cozzens, a former State Representative and the Republican nominee. Despite President Ronald Reagan's strong performance in the state that year, Baucus was able to easily win a second term over Cozzens.
Amanda Curtis
During a rally sponsored by Mayors Against Illegal Guns outside of the Montana State Capitol in August 2013, Curtis urged Montana's senior U.S. Senator Max Baucus to rethink his opposition to expanded background checks. She spoke about how gun violence has affected her own family and called for more action to be taken.
Paul G. Hatfield
On January 22, 1978, Montana Governor Thomas Lee Judge appointed Hatfield to the United States Senate to fill the vacancy caused by the death of Lee Metcalf for the term ending January 3, 1979. He served from January 22, 1978, until his resignation December 14, 1978. He was defeated for renomination in the Democratic primary in June 1978 by Congressman Max Baucus with Baucus getting 87,085 votes (65.3%) to Hatfield's 25,789 (19.3%). There were two other minor candidates in the race. After that nominating defeat, Hatfield remained in the Senate until his own resignation when the election of his successor, Baucus, was officially certified after the general election in November 1978. Max Baucus praised his former primary opponent for being "one of the most decent and thoughtful people I've had the privilege of knowing."