In an election year crowded with high-profile and extremely tight races, including Montana’s governor and U.S. Senate contests, the race for the state’s lone congressional seat has often been overlooked.
Polls show low name recognition among the three candidates and a high percentage of undecided voters, with nearly 60 percent of voters in some surveys unable to say if they have a favorable or unfavorable opinion of Republican Steve Daines and Democrat Kim Gillan, the race’s two frontrunners. Many voters say they’ve never even heard of them.
But the race’s lower profile certainly doesn’t diminish its importance. Montana only has one representative to cover the entire state, meaning the candidate who wins is Montana’s lone representative in the 435-member U.S. House.
“Montana only has one voice in the U.S. House,” Gillan said. “That one voice needs to be experienced and effective.”
Since Democrat Pat Williams retired after nine terms from 1979-1997, Republicans have had a stranglehold on the state’s congressional seat, with six-term Rep. Denny Rehberg serving the last 12 years. Rehberg is vacating the seat to challenge Democratic Sen. Jon Tester for his U.S. Senate seat. Rehberg’s predecessor, Rick Hill, is the Republican candidate for governor this year.
Daines and Gillan are vying to replace Rehberg, along with Libertarian David Kaiser of Victor. As with other statewide races, the third-party candidate is not expected to win the seat though Kaiser could take enough votes to be a decisive factor in the outcome if the race is close.
Kaiser has been polling in the single digits and as high as 10 percent, with Daines maintaining a consistent and at times double-digit lead over Gillan, depending on the poll. In September and October, polls have pegged the percentage of undecided voters at anywhere between 12 and 38 percent.
Daines, a former executive at RightNow Technologies in Bozeman, has held a sizable money lead from the beginning of the race, in addition to his lead in the polls. He has also received endorsements from three of the state’s largest newspapers: the Missoulian, Billings Gazette and Bozeman Daily Chronicle.
“It’s a bit unusual for a Republican to receive the endorsements of all three of those papers,” he said in an interview earlier this week. “And I think it just demonstrates the support we’re seeing of the ideas I represent to help get the country back on track.”
Daines, who distinguishes himself as a businessman rather than a “career politician,” has been running on a platform of strong conservative values, both fiscally and socially. He supports a balanced-budget amendment for the federal government. He also favors repealing the Affordable Care Act and overturning Roe v. Wade, the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion.
The Republican supports a plan put forth by vice presidential candidate and Wisconsin Rep. Paul Ryan to create a “premium-support” plan for Medicare, noting that Medicare is forecasted to go broke in 12 years.
“Really the issue is how do we save (Medicare) for the next generation?” he said. “And I think what Paul Ryan has is a good starting point.”
Gillan points to her experience in the state Legislature as evidence of her ability to work with both sides of the aisle and produce meaningful policy. The Democrat has spent 16 years as a representative and senator from Billings. She also says her background in workforce development and training gives her an understanding of how to create jobs and grow businesses with well-trained workers.
In addition to balancing budgets and hammering out tax policies, Gillan says one particular piece of legislation she is proud of is her autism insurance mandate, which she said received bipartisan support.
“People really want problem solvers,” she said. “They do not want anyone who is going to continue the gridlock or has the attitude that it’s my way or the highway.”
Gillan says she is the candidate best suited to represent the needs of the middle class, seniors and women, arguing that she would stand up for pro-choice positions and to “protect and strengthen the promise of Medicare for today’s seniors and for future generations.”
“My opponent wants to take away a woman’s constitutional right to choose even in the cases of rape and I am the only candidate who will fight to protect a woman’s choice and not let the government get involved in personal and private decisions,” she said.
Despite trailing in the polls, Gillan says she’s “feeling very optimistic” heading into the election season’s final stretch run. Daines, meanwhile, says he’s “taking nothing for granted.”
“We’ll keep working very hard until the polls close on Tuesday night,” he said.