For related races, see 2024 United States gubernatorial elections.
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 County resultsGianforte: 40–50% 50–60% 60–70% 70–80% 80–90% 90–100% Busse: 50–60% | ||||||||||||||||||||
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The 2024 Montana gubernatorial election was held on November 5, 2024, to elect the governor of the U.S. state of Montana, concurrently with the 2024 U.S. presidential election, as well as elections to the United States Senate, elections to the United States House of Representatives, and various state and local elections. Primary elections took place on June 4, 2024. Incumbent Republican governor Greg Gianforte won re-election to a second term, defeating Democratic nominee Ryan Busse.
Though Montana has backed Republicans in every presidential election since 1996, the sparsely-populated Mountain state maintained a Democratic tendency at the state and U.S. Senate levels well through the 2010s. In the 2020 gubernatorial election, Gianforte defeated Democratic nominee Mike Cooney by 12.8%, becoming the first Republican to be elected governor of Montana since Judy Martz in 2000. Gianforte's election flipped two of Montana's last three Democrat-held statewide offices (governor and lieutenant governor) into the GOP camp. Leading up to the election, the only statewide office occupied by a Democrat was Jon Tester's U.S. Senate seat, which flipped Republican in a concurrent race. Gianforte was widely expected to comfortably win re-election in 2024.
Republican primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Greg Gianforte, incumbent governor (2021–present)
- Running mate: Kristen Juras, incumbent lieutenant governor (2021–present)
Eliminated in primary
- Tanner Smith, state representative (2023–present)
- Running mate: Randy Pinocci, member of the Montana Public Service Commission (2019–present)
Endorsements
Greg Gianforte- Organizations
Results
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
- 80–90%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Greg Gianforte (incumbent) Kristen Juras (incumbent) |
144,752 | 75.2% | |
| Republican | Tanner Smith Randy Pinocci |
47,747 | 24.8% | |
| Total votes | 192,499 | 100.0% | ||
Democratic primary
Candidates
Nominee
- Ryan Busse, author and former vice president of sales at Kimber Manufacturing
- Running mate: Raph Graybill, former chief legal counsel to Governor Steve Bullock and nominee for Attorney General in 2020
Eliminated in primary
- Jim Hunt, attorney and candidate for Montana's at-large congressional district in 2008
- Running mate: Jerry Driscoll, former executive secretary of the Montana AFL-CIO
Withdrawn
- Shawn White Wolf, perennial candidate
Results
- 50–60%
- 60–70%
- 70–80%
- 60–70%
- 50%
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Ryan Busse Raph Graybill |
69,184 | 70.9% | |
| Democratic | Jim Hunt Jerry Driscoll |
28,354 | 29.1% | |
| Total votes | 97,538 | 100.00% | ||
Libertarian primary
Candidates
Presumptive nominee
- Kaiser Leib, software engineer
- Running mate: Matt Campbell, transportation engineer
General election
Predictions
| Source | Ranking | As of |
|---|---|---|
| The Cook Political Report | Solid R | June 13, 2024 |
| Inside Elections | Solid R | July 14, 2023 |
| Sabato's Crystal Ball | Safe R | June 4, 2024 |
| RCP | Likely R | July 13, 2024 |
| Elections Daily | Safe R | July 12, 2023 |
| CNalysis | Solid R | August 17, 2024 |
Polling
| Poll source | Date(s) administered |
Sample size |
Margin of error |
Greg Gianforte (R) |
Ryan Busse (D) |
Other | Undecided |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montana State University | September 30 – October 16, 2024 | 760 (A) | ± 3.56% | 50% | 31% | 5% | 14% |
| The New York Times/Siena College | October 5–8, 2024 | 656 (LV) | ± 4.3% | 57% | 35% | – | 8% |
| 656 (RV) | 57% | 35% | – | 9% | |||
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | September 29 – October 1, 2024 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.34% | 55% | 36% | 1% | 7% |
| Fabrizio Ward (R)/ David Binder Research (D) |
August 25–29, 2024 | 600 (LV) | ± 4.0% | 54% | 38% | – | 8% |
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | August 18–20, 2024 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.38% | 53% | 34% | 4% | 8% |
| Public Opinion Strategies (R) | June 11–13, 2024 | 500 (LV) | ± 4.4% | 54% | 33% | 5% | 8% |
| SurveyUSA | February 12–15, 2024 | 549 (LV) | ± 4.5% | 52% | 30% | – | 18% |
Results
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican |
|
354,569 | 58.86% | +4.43% | |
| Democratic |
|
232,644 | 38.62% | −2.94% | |
| Libertarian |
|
15,191 | 2.52% | −1.49% | |
| Total votes | 602,404 | 100.00% | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 612,423 | 76.57% | |||
| Registered electors | 799,849 | ||||
| Republican hold | |||||
See also
- 2024 United States presidential election in Montana
- 2024 United States Senate election in Montana
- 2024 United States House of Representatives elections in Montana
Notes
- Key:
A – all adults
RV – registered voters
LV – likely voters
V – unclear - Kaiser Leib (L) with 5%
- Kaiser Leib (L) with 1%
- Kaiser Leib (L) with 4%
- Kaiser Leib (L) with 5%
Partisan clients
- ^ Poll sponsored by the Montana Republican Party
- Poll sponsored by AARP.
- Poll sponsored by KULR-TV
References
- "2024 State Primary Election Dates". National Conference of State Legislatures. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
- "Busse and Gianforte win their respective primary races". KRTV NEWS Great Falls. June 5, 2024. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
- Kondik, Kyle (September 6, 2024). "Montana Senate Race Moves from Toss-up to Leans Republican". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
- "Cook Political Report 2024 Governor Race Ratings - 270toWin". 270toWin.com. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
- "2024 Governor". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved October 27, 2024.
- ^ Anthony, Michael (January 17, 2024). "Governor Greg Gianforte to seek reelection". KFYR-TV. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
- Larson, Seaborn (June 13, 2023). "Freshman GOP Rep. announces run for governor". Independent Record.
- Kimbel-Sannit, Arren; Sakariassen, Alex; Eggert, Amanda (April 15, 2024). "Who's running for office in Montana's 2024 election". Montana Free Press. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
- NRA-PVF. "NRA-PVF | Grades | Montana". NRA-PVF. Retrieved May 13, 2024.
- Stacy, Nicole (May 3, 2024). "SBA Pro-Life America Candidate Fund Endorses Gianforte for Governor". SBA Pro-Life America. Retrieved May 6, 2024.
- "Montana Governor Primary Election 2024 Live Results". www.nbcnews.com. December 4, 2024.
- Hanson, Amy; Brown, Matthew (September 14, 2023). "Former firearms executive Busse seeks Democratic nomination for Montana governor". Associated Press. Retrieved September 14, 2023.
- Silvers, Mara (February 19, 2024). "Busse taps Graybill as running mate in bid for governor's office". Montana Free Press. Retrieved February 20, 2024.
- ^ "FEDERAL PRIMARY 2024 Candidate List". prodcandidatefiling.mt.gov. Retrieved March 12, 2024.
- ^ Ambarian, Jonathon (March 11, 2024). "Top Montana election races set as candidate filing period closes". KTVH. Retrieved April 5, 2024.
- Kimbel-Sannit, Arren; Sakariassen, Alex (November 28, 2023). "Who's running for office in Montana in 2024? Here's a running list". Montana Free Press. Retrieved January 17, 2024.
Shawn White Wolf, who has run for a number of different positions in the Helena area in recent years, filed to run for governor in 2023 but has since withdrawn his candidacy.
- "Montana Governor Primary Election 2024 Live Results". www.nbcnews.com. December 4, 2024.
- "2024 Governor Race ratings". The Cook Political Report. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- "Gubernatorial Ratings". Inside Elections. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- "2024 Gubernatorial race ratings". Sabato's Crystal Ball. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- "2024 Governor Races". www.realclearpolling.com. Retrieved July 16, 2024.
- "Election Ratings". Elections Daily. July 22, 2023. Retrieved July 24, 2023.
- "Governor Forecasts". CNalysis. Retrieved August 17, 2024.
- "Montana State University" (PDF).
- "Cross-Tabs: October 2024 Times/Siena Poll of the Likely Electorate in Montana". October 10, 2024 – via NYTimes.com.
- "Public Opinion Strategies (R)" (PDF).
- "Fabrizio Ward (R)/
David Binder Research (D)" (PDF). - ^ Public Opinion Strategies (R)
- Journalist, Bobby Lee NonStop Local Digital (February 23, 2024). "Governor Gianforte leads against Busse in MT election poll conducted by NonStop Local". NonStop Local Montana.
- "2024 Statewide General Election Canvass". Secretary of State of Montana. December 11, 2024. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
External links
Official campaign websites
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