Montana's Democratic candidate is facing pressure to drop out by the deadline

+ Politics Montana's Democratic candidate is facing pressure to drop out by the deadline August 9, 20268:12 AM ET Heard on Weekend Edition Sunday By Clayton Murphy Montana's Democratic candidate is facing pressure to drop out by the deadline Listen &middot; 3:47 3:47 Transcript Toggle more options Download Embed Embed "> <iframe src="https://www.npr.org/player/embed/nx-s1-5922215/nx-s1-9880797" width="100%" height="290" frameborder="0" scrolling="no" title="NPR embedded audio player"> Transcript Monday, Aug.

+ Sponsor Message Transcript AYESHA RASCOE, HOST: So far this year, Democrats have stepped aside in three states - South Dakota, Idaho and Nebraska - to make way for independent candidates. There's another opportunity for that to happen in Montana. But as Montana Public Radio's Clayton Murphy reports, Democrats need to act before tomorrow's deadline.

+ CLAYTON MURPHY, BYLINE: About 70 people are inside the old Masonic Lodge in Townsend, Montana, an hour or so south of the capital, Helena. Outside, it's hot and smoky from wildfires. The lodge is half preschool, half town hall. Tonight, it's a campaign stop for Alani Bankhead, Montana's Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) UNIDENTIFIED PERSON: So let's welcome Alani. (APPLAUSE) ALANI BANKHEAD: Oh, my goodness. Actually, I'm going... MURPHY: Bankhead won the state primary, but both voters and some prominent Democrats are pressuring her to drop out of the race to make room for a prominent independent candidate, Seth Bodnar, who has already raised more money than her and Republican Kurt Alme combined. Every question from the crowd is the same, like this one from Cara Keleher (ph). (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) CARA KELEHER: Will you continue to show your strength as a leader by withdrawing from the race so that Democrats, independents and anti-MAGA voters can unify to beat Kurt Alme? BANKHEAD: Thank you for coming, Cara. I really appreciate the question. I'm not going to drop out. MURPHY: Since 2024, Republicans have held all of Montana's federal seats. This spring, some prominent Montana Democrats started saying that the party's brand is so weak here that the only way to beat a Republican is to back an independent candidate. Jim and Terry Gundersen (ph) both voted for Bankhead in the primary. After the event, neither was sure they'd stick with the Democrat in November. JIM GUNDERSEN: It was an eye-opener. TERRY GUNDERSEN: We just want to see Alme be defeated, and whatever that takes might be the way it has to go. MURPHY: If Republican incumbent Steve Daines was running, there'd be less hope from opposition. But since he's retiring, the field is clear. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) KURT ALME: Washington's reckless spending has left us with inflation and enormous debt. It's time to fix the broken system. MURPHY: That's Kurt Alme. He left his job as U.S. attorney for Montana to be the Republican candidate. He's never held elected office. Alme's lack of name recognition and President Trump's plunging poll numbers are reasons independent candidate Seth Bodnar thinks he can win. He says Montanans don't like either party and are hungry for a new choice. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) SETH BODNAR: Now, this battle in Montana today is not between Republicans and Democrats. It's between the extreme and the rest of us. MURPHY: Bodnar's a former Green Beret and university president with experience as a corporate executive. Like most Montana Democrats, he's pro-abortion rights, anti-gun control and in favor of strong protection for the public lands that make up about a third of Montana's territory. Bodnar said he believes in stronger borders, but not with the way ICE is enforcing that. On Friday, Bodnar called a press conference to say he's not dropping out. (SOUNDBITE OF ARCHIVED RECORDING) BODNAR: So let me be very clear, I am in this race until the very end. MURPHY: If all three candidates stay in, Republican Alme is almost guaranteed victory, says Kal Munis, a political science professor at Montana State University. KAL MUNIS: Even if she were to only garner 10% of the vote in the state, that would just be disaster for Bodnar's hopes of potentially being able to flip control of the seat. MURPHY: Bankhead's campaign has raised $58,000. Bodnar's - 3.2 million. Republican Alme's total is 1.9 million. If a candidate drops out after Monday, it'll take a massive effort to build an anti-Alme coalition behind one name. For NPR News, I'm Clayton Murphy in Helena. Copyright &copy; 2026 NPR. All rights reserved. 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