Holidays With the MT GOP Family Are Going to Be Awkward This Year
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Friday, December 22, 2023
CONTACT
rehm@mtdems.org
New reporting from CNN indicates that the Republican Senate primary is continuing to heat up
Helena, MT – It’s sure to be an awkward holiday season for the Montana GOP this year. New reporting from CNN indicates that Matt Rosendale is closer than ever to launching his primary campaign against Mitch McConnell’s chosen candidate Tim Sheehy, teeing up what could be a bruising primary battle in 2024.
CNN: Trump looms over key Montana Senate race as hard-right Rosendale may upend GOP plans
By Manu Raju
December 22, 2023
As Rosendale is now taking steps to mount a Senate primary run and promote himself as a MAGA warrior, top Republicans are hoping to shut down any hope that the conservative hardliner could use Trump as a springboard to the nomination.
If Rosendale runs against Sheehy, he would have a serious shot at winning the GOP primary as he bills himself as the rock-ribbed conservative in the race — especially if he stays in Trump’s good graces.
What Rosendale decides to do remains one of the most critical questions in the 2024 Senate election cycle. If he runs, as he’s indicating he will, it could be a boon for Democrats, who are hoping that a handful of contested GOP primaries across the country could help them cling to their majority as they face one of the most daunting maps in years, having to defend 23 seats compared to 11 for the GOP.
“We prefer a contested primary,” said Michigan Sen. Gary Peters, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chairman.
But in Montana, Peters wouldn’t characterize Rosendale as a weaker candidate, arguing that Sheehy has “vulnerabilities that will become quite apparent as the campaign goes on.
“I don’t think it matters one way or the other (whether it’s Rosendale or Sheehy). Tester has already beaten him once. He can beat him again,” Peters said of Rosendale.
Tester told CNN that it wouldn’t “make a lick of difference” which candidate he faces.
GOP Sen. John Cornyn of Texas, a former NRSC chairman, said that GOP primaries remain a major challenge in 2024 — and that Montana could be one of them.
“It’s an old lesson that we forget sometimes, which is winning elections is more than just about winning the primary,” Cornyn said. “And I think that’s the concern, because there are some people who are capable of winning a primary, but they’re not capable of winning the general election because they refuse to broaden their appeal to a majority of the voters sufficient to actually win a general election.”
Rosendale criticized Sheehy as “Mitch McConnell’s hand-picked candidate” and sought to tie him to GOP presidential hopeful Nikki Haley.
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