Bernie Sanders Draws Big Crowds For Rob Quist As Montana Special Election Gets Closer To Toss Up

Last updated on September 25th, 2023 at 02:06 pm

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Sen. Bernie Sanders spent the weekend barnstorming Montana for Democratic candidate Rob Quist, and by Monday, the House special election in the state had been moved closer to being a toss up.

According to Sen. Sanders office, 12,500 people turned for Sanders/Quist rallies over the weekend, “More than 12,500 Montanans came out to see Bernie Sanders and Rob Quist at rallies in Missoula, Butte, Billings and Bozeman Saturday and Sunday ahead of Thursday’s special election.

Clip of Sanders campaigning for Quist:

Sen. Sanders (I-VT) urged people to come out and support the Democrat, “Rob Quist is running a great grassroots campaign, and it was a real joy to campaign with him over the weekend. He is standing up for working families in Montana and is fighting to create an economy and a government that works for all of us, and not just the billionaire class. If there is a large voter turnout on Thursday, Rob is going to pull off a major upset and win this election. Let’s do every we can to bring out that vote.”

Roll Call said that the race isn’t quite a toss up yet, but the momentum is moving towards the Democratic candidate, “There isn’t enough evidence that the candidates are neck-and-neck to justify a Tossup rating, but there is enough uncertainty with special election turnout, and with previous special election races as a backdrop, for us to change our Inside Elections rating of the Montana race from Likely Republican to Tilts Republican.”

Most of the special election attention remains focused on Georgia, but Democrats have a real shot to win in Montana on Thursday. With the Russia scandal taking up so much of the oxygen of our national dialogue, it is easy to forget about these special elections. While Democrats do win in Montana, it is considered a very red state.

A win by Rob Quist would send shockwaves through the Republican Party and provide the first signal there could be a midterm disaster waiting for Republicans in 2018.

Jason Easley

Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.

Awards and  Professional Memberships

Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association