Montana State Auditor Troy Downing secured victory in the Republican primary to replace retiring Rep. Matt Rosendale (R-MT), who earlier this year announced he would not seek reelection in the staunchly Republican district.
Downing clinched the race for Montana’s 2nd Congressional District with 37.9% of the vote with 4% of ballots tallied. The Associated Press declared Downing the winner at 9:27 p.m. local time.
This primary follows Rosendale’s decision not to pursue a third term in the House, citing insufficient capacity in Congress to disrupt the status quo upheld by those benefiting from the existing structure. His retirement decision came after several weeks of indecision about his future plans.
Rosendale initially declared his Senate candidacy in early February, setting up a competition with Republican candidate Tim Sheehy, who had already garnered support from the National Republican Senatorial Committee and other prominent party figures. However, his Senate campaign faltered after former President Donald Trump endorsed Sheehy over him, leading to Rosendale suspending his campaign just one week later.
Rosendale then announced his House reelection bid on Feb. 28, only to withdraw from the race just over a week afterward.
Downing is now the frontrunner to win in November, as the district is rated R+16 by the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
