It’s poll week here at Montana Free Press.
We’re publishing results from an MTFP-Eagleton poll we’ve conducted in late December and early January as part of our ongoing Montana Insights project, examining Montana voters’ opinions on everything from a statewide sales tax (not popular) to the geographic of eastern Montana (mixed takes) and the president’s immigration agenda (quite controversial).
We’ll be rolling out those and other poll results over several days in the form of stories on our website, montanafreepress.org — and rounding up some of the most interesting takeaways with updates to this post between March 2 and March 6, 2026.
Here’s what we’ve got:
Most Montana voters don’t want a statewide sales tax
Nearly half of respondents, 48% indicated that they “strongly” oppose a statewide sales tax even if the revenue is used to reduce property tax bills. That sentiment was firmly bipartisan, with only 34% of Republicans, 38% of Democrats and 32% of independents voicing support for a sales tax.
Montana voters overwhelmingly view cost as a major hurdle in accessing mental health care
Montana voters named cost as a major perceived barrier to mental health care access. Fewer respondents rated physical distance and stigma as a significant hurdle.
‘The mostly flat part’: what our poll respondents say about where Eastern Montana really begins
A question on how to divide Montana’s eastern region from its western one didn’t produce a clear consensus. The top selections for a dividing line were quite literally hundreds of miles apart — Billings and the Continental Divide.
Montanans want more solar, natural gas development, are less interested in new coal plants
Solar and natural gas power make up a small share of the state’s energy mix, but Montanans are bullish on generating more electricity with them. Additional power from coal plants and wind farms proved to be less popular among poll respondents, with roughly one-third saying they would prefer less electricity from these sources.
75% of voters want Montana to have at least as much federal land as it does now
A majority of Montana voters across the political spectrum say they want the scope of federal land ownership to stay the same or expand. With 62% of Republicans polled agreeing, the findings suggest a gap between the Montana Republican Party Platform — which supports federal land transfer to state ownership — and Republican voters.
Montana voters assign feds, fossil fuel industry most responsibility for tackling climate change
Fewer respondents said that private businesses, local governments and individuals should bear responsibility for addressing climate change. The youngest were the most likely to describe climate change as a serious problem.
Most Montanans support GOP-backed work requirements for Medicaid beneficiaries
Overall, 59% of respondents said they strongly or somewhat support the increased Medicaid work requirements in last year’s One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Most Montanans also reported being covered by employer health insurance, as opposed to the Medicaid program which covers many lower-income adults.
Majority of Montanans favor legalized corner-crossing
Nearly 60% Montana voters polled said they think corner-crossing between sections of public land should be legal. Independents and Democrats were the most likely to hold that view, but a majority of Republicans also agreed.
Montanans deeply divided on federal immigration enforcement
One-hundred percent of Montana Democrats expressed disapproval of Republican President Donald Trump’s approach to immigration while 94% of Montana Republicans expressed support. Regardless of political party, an overwhelming majority of Montana voters, 85%, expressed strong feelings one way or the other about the issue.
Which affordability challenges worry Montana voters most?
Healthcare was the most-cited cost-of-living challenge, followed by food costs. Rent and mortgage costs were also cited as a source of difficulty by many younger respondents — but few older ones.
Most Montana voters get their news from videos
Montanans over 50 were almost four times as likely as their younger counterparts to report “frequently” watching TV news. Younger Montanans, meanwhile, reported getting news from YouTube, social media, podcasts, and short-form video like TikTok and Instagram Reels in greater numbers.
Voters lukewarm on personal appeal of Montana electeds
With a 50% favorability rating, President Donald Trump ranks as the most popular elected official in Montana. Many eastern Montana respondents also indicated they don’t know enough to have an opinion of their congressman, U.S. Rep. Troy Downing.