Montana Sen. Jon Tester announced Wednesday that he’s running for reelection, defending a critical seat for Democrats on the 2024 Senate map.
“Montanans need a fighter that will hold our government accountable and demand Washington stand up for veterans and lower costs for families,” Tester wrote in a tweet. “I will always fight to defend our Montana values. Let’s get to work.”
Tester, 66, has held his seat since 2007. He’s the only statewide elected Democrat in Montana, a state that typically elects Republicans by double-digit margins. Tester’s seat is a top target for Republicans hoping to flip control of the Senate next year.
His reelection decision is a big relief for Senate Democrats, who are facing an extremely challenging map in 2024 as they seek to hold their narrow majority. Several of their incumbents are up for reelection in red states. Democrats also need to defend incumbents in the swing states of Pennsylvania and Wisconsin, as well as hold the seat being vacated by Democratic Sen. Debbie Stabenow in Michigan.
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) has not yet announced whether he is running for reelection, but he is another top GOP target and faces a possible challenge from West Virginia GOP Gov. Jim Justice.
Tester serves on the Appropriations Committee and is influential on defense, veterans care, and banking issues. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) also recently put Tester in charge of probing a Chinese spy balloon that traveled over Montana before the military shot it down off the coast of South Carolina earlier this month.
Tester might be the Democrat best positioned to win in Montana. The gruff-mannered farmer, who lost three fingers on his left hand in a meat grinder accident, won his last race in 2018, despite a blizzard of attacks from then-President Donald Trump and his allies ― an impressive feat in a state that picked Trump for president twice.
Still, Tester is likely to face a well-funded GOP opponent in 2024. The potential field of candidates includes Montana GOP Reps. Matt Rosendale and Ryan Zinke, Gov. Greg Gianforte, and state Attorney General Austin Knudsen.
GOP Sen. Steve Daines, Montana’s other senator and head of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, vowed his party would do all it could to retire the incumbent Democrat.
“Jon Tester just made the same mistake Steve Bullock did in 2020,” Daines said, referring to the former Montana Democratic governor who mounted an unsuccessful effort to oust Daines in the last election cycle. “Both should have ended their political careers on their terms. Instead, they each will have their careers ended by Montana voters. Jon’s support for Joe Biden’s disastrous agenda of open borders, reckless spending, and massive tax hikes is a fireable offense.”