1 of 4 | Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., attends a dinner in the East Room of the White House in November. He announced Wednesday that he won’t seek re-election. File Photo by Aaron Schwartz/UPI | License Photo
Sen. Steve Daines, R-Mont., announced Wednesday that he won’t seek re-election this year, withdrawing just minutes before the filing deadline.
“I’m grateful to God for allowing me to serve,” Daines, 63, said in a video. “But after much careful thought, I’ve decided not to seek re-election.”
Daines filed to run but pulled his application minutes before the deadline of 5 p.m. MT on Wednesday. Just eight minutes before the deadline, U.S. Attorney Kurt Alme filed his paperwork to run for the seat.
Just before 8 p.m. ET Wednesday, President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social that he endorses Alme.
“Kurt Alme is an exceptional person, and will do a fantastic job as your next United States Senator from the Great State of Montana — HE WILL NOT LET YOU DOWN!” the post said.
Alme was a U.S. attorney during Trump’s first administration and worked as a state budget director under Republican Gov. Greg Gianforte.
Also running for the seat is Seth Bodnar, former president of the University of Montana. He is running as an independent.
“Steve Daines has so little respect for Montana Republicans that he withdrew at the last minute to coronate his handpicked successor instead of giving them a voice at the ballot box,” NBC News reported Bodnar said. “This is the disgusting arrogance of Washington politicians and their party bosses who trade power back and forth like candy while Montanans are crushed under higher costs and fewer opportunities.”
Democrat Reilly Neill, a former state representative, is also running, along with Air Force veteran Alani Bankhead; Army and Navy veteran Michael Hummert; and Michael Black Wolf, a preservation officer and community leader from the Fort Belknap Indian Community.
Daines served in the House of Representatives from 2013 to 2015 and has been a Senator since 2015.
This week in Washington
President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable on the Ratepayer Protection Pledge inside the Indian Treaty Room of the Eisenhower Executive Office Building near the White House on Wednesday. Technology firms that sign the pledge will commit to ensuring artificial intelligence infrastructure does not raise utility bills for households and small businesses. Photo by Bonnie Cash/UPI | License Photo
