EAST HELENA — Monday, Aug. 10, at 5 p.m., was the deadline for any candidates to drop out of Montana’s November elections – and with that milestone past, there are still four candidates on the ballot in the state’s U.S. Senate race.
For weeks, there had been speculation that either Democratic candidate Alani Bankhead or independent candidate Seth Bodnar might drop out of the race. However, Bodnar held a news conference on Friday to say he was in for the duration, and Bankhead made the same statement at a news conference of her own Monday.
“There has been a lot of noise about this race, so let me cut through it, plain and simple: I am in this race to win it, and I am staying through Nov. 3,” Bankhead said, speaking at a park in East Helena.
(Watch the video for more on where the Senate race goes from here.)
Bankhead said both Bodnar and Republican nominee Kurt Alme are backed by “the establishment” and “the powerful,” and that she would never bow down to pressure to end her campaign.
“I trust Montanans to make up their own minds,” she said. “You value your independence and trust your freedom, and you do not take kindly to operatives 2,000 miles away telling you what to do. The voters have already spoken. Let's respect that and let Montana decide its own future.”
Over the last month, the candidates – particularly Bankhead – faced growing pressure to drop out. Some political leaders argued having both Bankhead and Bodnar in the race would leave neither of them with a realistic chance of defeating Alme.
Bankhead said on social media that members of her family had faced harassment because of her refusal to drop out. She linked to posts of an apparent document that encouraged people to contact people close to her as a way of convincing her to withdraw.
Bankhead said her family was taking additional security precautions, but that it wouldn’t affect her decision to continue running.
“I can't be pushed out of this race – that's what makes me dangerous to the establishment, is they know that I'm never going to kowtow to money or power,” she said.
Bodnar’s campaign said in a statement Monday morning that any harassment was not acceptable, as did Montana Freedom PAC, a super PAC that has been supporting Bodnar and calling for Bankhead to withdraw. Bodnar himself said in a social media video that he rejected any attempts to contact Bankhead’s family about the race.
“That is horrible, that is unacceptable,” he said. “And I tell you what, if you're a group that you think you're supporting me by doing this type of crap, you're not.”
Bodnar’s campaign released another statement after Bankhead’s news conference, responding to her decision not to drop out.
“Alani Bankhead has every right to stay in this race,” said campaign spokesperson Abigail Tracy. “But Montanans should ask themselves why Republican-aligned dark money groups are boosting her campaign, raising money for her and rooting for her to stay in.”
In recent weeks, supporters of both Bodnar and Bankhead have pointed to polling suggesting that, if they both remained in the race, they’d receive similar shares of the vote but leave Alme with a large lead. Now, both candidates have made the case that they’re ready to win even in a four-way race, but national election analysts have forecast Republicans as a strong favorite to hold onto the seat.
The final Senate ballot will feature four names: Alme, Bankhead, Bodnar and Libertarian candidate Kyle Austin. In addition, there will be a write-in line, after candidate Jami Woodman filed as a registered write-in.
No candidates withdrew from any of Montana's congressional races before the Monday deadline. Three candidates – two Democrats and a Libertarian – dropped out of state legislative races, and their parties will have an opportunity to replace them on the ballot until Aug. 19.
