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.
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.