Democratic candidates for federal office in Montana remain woefully underfunded in all but one 2026 race, according to campaign finance reports that were due Wednesday.
Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Alani Bankhead ended June with $21,000 to spend, having mustered just $59,000 in contributions since the start of the year. Finances are similarly lopsided in the race for Montana’s Eastern U.S. House District, where Democratic candidate Brian Miller reported having $3,165 on hand at the end of June. Miller appeared to have raised $8,000 through the first two quarters.
Other campaigns have raised into the millions, a more typical amount for a federal election. In Montana’s Western U.S. House District, Democrat Sam Forstag and Republican Aaron Flint report similar levels of funding. Forstag reported raising $1.3 million through June, and has $550,079 in the bank. Flint reported raising $1.2 million and has $502,000 in the bank.
Republicans have held the Western District since the re-creation of the district in 2022. Incumbent Rep. Ryan Zinke is not running for reelection this year.
Though not unexpected, Bankhead’s finances were the filing deadline’s biggest reveal. Polling suggested that Bankhead faced long odds of winning the Democratic Party’s June 2 primary until super PACS began spending millions in the race. One left-leaning PAC spent $3.3 million promoting Bankhead and opposing contender Reilly Neill. A right-leaning PAC countered with $1.8 million to portray Neill as the more stereotypical liberal and Bankhead as a Democrat willing to work with President Donald Trump on immigration.
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Progressive Vet’s departure creates an advertising void for Bankhead in a race characterized by significant fundraising from independent candidate Seth Bodnar and Republican Kurt Alme, with other PACs ramping up their own operations in the nationally-watched contest.
Republican Kurt Alme and independent Seth Bodnar are the better-funded candidates in the Senate race. Alme finished June with $1.4 million in the bank, having raised $1.98 million in the first two quarters. Bodnar ended June with $977,779 in the bank and $3.2 million raised, including donations from a host of PACs that normally support Democratic candidates.
Republican and independent candidates similarly lead in fundraising in Montana’s Eastern House District, with loans accounting for much of the difference between the two candidates. Republican Rep. Troy Downing, Montana’s only federal incumbent seeking reelection in 2026, exited June with $2.1 million in fundraising receipts and $650,464 in the bank. The incumbent’s campaign committee also reports owing Downing $2 million in personal loans dating back to his 2024 campaign. Independent candidate Michael Eisenhauer reported $304,181 in receipts and $140,121 to spend. Eisenhauer has loaned his campaign $257,126.
Libertarian candidates are running in all three federal races. In the east, Patrick McCracken hasn’t raised the $5,000 minimum to require a finance report. Western District Libertarian Nick Sheedy is also below the minimum threshold. Libertarian Senate candidate Kyle Austin exited June with $262,194 in receipts and $19,832 in the bank.
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