Gianforte celebrates victory in campaign for second term

BOZEMAN — Republican incumbent Greg Gianforte celebrated securing another four years in governor’s office Tuesday night after early election results showed him easily besting Democratic challenger Ryan Busse.

The Associated Press called the race in Gianforte’s favor almost immediately after polls closed at 8:00 p.m., even as state election results showed less than 5% percent of votes counted statewide. 

Gianforte’s lead persisted after Missoula County began reporting votes after 11:00 p.m. Though results were not available from other major counties — including Cascade, Yellowstone and Gallatin — Gianforte held a roughly 17 percentage-point lead before midnight, with about 30% of votes counted statewide.

Gianforte, a former tech CEO and U.S. House representative from Bozeman, campaigned as a booster of Montana’s economic development since first winning election in 2020, even as the state has reeled from an affordability crisis fueled by rising residential property taxes, inflation and other cost-of-living increases.

Speaking to a crowded room of supporters at a Republican election watch party in Bozeman, Gianforte promised to deliver economic improvements through another term in Helena.

“Four years ago, Montanans voted for change because Montana was not living up to its full potential,” Gianforte said. “I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished so far, but we have more work to do. It will take focus and determination, and I’m committed as ever to bringing people together to get the job done for you.”

The Busse campaign had not released a statement about the Associated Press race call by 11:30 p.m. 

Gianforte ran an understated reelection campaign compared to Busse, his primary competitor. The Democrat sought to drive up voter interest in the contest by criticizing Gianforte’s handling of last year’s residential property tax increase, his support for a slew of abortion restrictions, and by alleging that the Republican has failed to meaningfully improve Montana’s public education and health care landscapes. 

“Think right now of a governor and a lieutenant governor, what we could do in the next four to eight years,” Busse told a room full of Democratic supporters in Helena on the Monday before Election Day. “Think about a governor who values public education and fixes 1,004 teacher vacancies … I want you to think about a governor who does not raise property taxes on everybody.”

The property tax turmoil was among the most dominant issues the candidates addressed on the campaign trail. As Montana Free Press previously reported, the median residential property tax bill increased by 21% last year. Democrats have blamed Republicans for the rise, saying GOP leaders failed to rebalance the tax system to account for surging home values.  

In public statements, Gianforte pledged to address high residential property taxes in the 2025 Legislature, including by backing a “homestead exemption” that would reduce bills for primary residences by shifting tax burden to second homes. He also consistently blamed local governments for passing inflated budgets that require higher taxes and tried to downplay the state’s role in affecting property tax change.

The governor turned down invitations to two debates against Busse hosted by major media organizations before eventually agreeing to one appearance hosted by Nonstop Local, the state’s ABC-Fox affiliate, in mid-October. 

But Gianforte appealed to his base through appearances on several friendly media shows and podcasts and by appearing alongside big-name national conservative figures — including former President Donald Trump, Trump’s eldest son Don Jr., media personality Ben Shapiro and U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson — who flocked to Montana this cycle to boost Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tim Sheehy’s race against incumbent Democrat Jon Tester. 

Publicly available polling about the race between Gianforte and Busse showed the incumbent widely and consistently in the lead.