BILLINGS — It was a disheartening election cycle for Montana Democrats after the departure of U.S. Sen. Max Baucus to China.
The party’s hand-picked replacement, former Lt. Gov. John Walsh, dropped out of the race amid a plagiarism scandal. His exit paved the way for a win by first-term Congressman Steve Daines, putting the seat in Republican hands for the first time since 1913.
Another candidate backed by the Democratic establishment, Baucus protege John Lewis, was solidly defeated by Republican Ryan Zinke for the state’s sole U.S. House seat.
The GOP also held its majority in the Legislature.
By Wednesday, it was clear the 2014 election pushed the state significantly toward the right after a trend favoring Republicans appeared to stall two years ago. It’s a reflection of broader Republican gains nationwide, but also points to major missteps by Democrats during the campaigns.
Foremost among those blunders was Walsh’s appointment in February after Baucus was named ambassador to China, former U.S. Rep. Pat Williams said.
“For the first time in my lifetime … insiders tried to hand-pick a Senator. And this is a clear demonstration that it didn’t work,” said Williams, the last Democrat from Montana to serve in the U.S. House, back in the 1990s.
Montana Democratic Party spokesman Bryan Watt said the outcome wasn’t what the party wanted, and it’s already looking to the upcoming legislative session as a chance to get back on track.
“We’re turning our sites on working with Gov. (Steve) Bullock to make sure we get some good stuff done in the Legislature: expanding Medicaid, fighting for working families, protecting our public lands and getting dark money out of our elections,” Watt said.
Voter turnout was about 55 percent in the state, comparable to the 2010 midterm turnout of 56 percent, Secretary of State Linda McCulloch said.
Democrats also noted there were exceptions to the party’s poor showing at the polls.
While Republicans maintained majorities in the state House and Senate, Watt said Democrats would gain a couple of seats in the House and maintain or pick up a seat in the state Senate.
Four more Democratic women will join the state Senate: Mary McNally from Billings, Cynthia Wolken from Missoula, Mary Sheehy Moe from Great Falls and Jill Cohenour from East Helena. A potential fifth, Diane Sands of Missoula, was in a race against Republican Dick Haines that was too close to call.
U.S. Senate candidate Amanda Curtis, a teacher and state lawmaker from Butte, made a strong run that could leave her well-positioned to run again for statewide office.
Curtis entered the race in late summer and was heavily outspent by Daines. Yet she managed to do almost as well as Lewis, who joined the House race in August 2013 after 12 years working for Baucus and was able to compete financially with Zinke.
Democratic voter Jason Kruser, a 46-year-old Billings bartender, said Curtis offers promise and, given more time, could raise enough money and generate the name recognition needed to prevail in a state-wide contest.
“She’s young, she’s intelligent,” Kruser said. “She could go up the ladder, so to speak. But there’s no guarantee. She could very well fade right back into obscurity.”
Also on the plus side for Democrats, a ballot proposal to end late voter registration was defeated after running into concerted opposition from many Democrats who said the measure infringed on voting rights.
Lewis said following his defeat that he and other Democratic candidates faced an uphill road due to voter discontent with President Barack Obama.
Montana Republican Party Chairman Will Deschamps said missteps by Democrats, particularly the Walsh implosion, “greased the skids” for Daines’ victory.
Combined with the significant gains made in 2010, when GOP victories broke a 50-50 split in the House, and some lesser gains in 2012, Deschamps said the party was steadily advancing.
Democrats still hold the governor’s office and Montana’s other U.S. Senate seat. Bullock’s re-election comes up in 2016, while Sen. Jon Tester is up again in 2018.
Deschamps suggested Republicans will need to deliver if voters are to continue picking his party over the Democrats.
“It’s like a dog chasing a truck,” he said. “You finally catch a truck and you say, ‘Now what do I do?'”