Montana held its general election on November 5, 2024, deciding 125 legislative seats and 9 statewide offices led by the governorship. No chamber changed party control.
Highlights
- Republicans swept every statewide office and kept both chambers, but Democrats broke the two-thirds supermajorities the GOP had used to refer constitutional amendments and override vetoes, so neither chamber is veto-proof when the 2025 session opens.
- This was the first election on the maps drawn after the 2020 census, and a University of Montana political scientist quoted by the Daily Montanan credited the Democratic gains almost entirely to the new district lines rather than a change of mood: Republicans went from 34-16 to 32-18 in the Senate and from 68-32 to a final 58-42 in the House once that recount settled the last seat. The state Democratic Party called it the party's biggest seat gain in 30 years.
- At the top of the ticket Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) cruised to a second term over Ryan Busse (D) by about 20 points, and the rest of the Republican slate ran close behind him. Attorney General Austin Knudsen (R) and Secretary of State Christi Jacobsen (R) were re-elected. Susie Hedalen (R) won the open superintendent of public instruction race, and James Brown (R) won the open state auditor's office. The same electorate retired U.S. Sen. Jon Tester.
- Voters wrote abortion rights into the constitution with CI-128, which passed by about 15 points, and rejected two proposals to change how elections are run: CI-126, which would have created a top-four open primary, failed narrowly, and CI-127, which would have required a winner to take a majority of the vote, failed by a wider margin.
- Across the 125 legislative races, 2 sitting members were defeated and 18 seats drew a single candidate. Because every district was redrawn before this election, the seat-by-seat flip count is not a meaningful measure of the night; the chamber totals above are.
Legislature
- House (100 seats): 32 D, 68 R before the election, 42 D, 58 R after; control stayed with Republicans.
- Senate (50 seats): 16 D, 34 R before the election, 18 D, 32 R after; control stayed with Republicans.
Statewide races
Legislative races
Ballot measures
| Measure | Description | Result |
|---|
| CI-126 | Establish top-four primaries for federal and state offices in Montana. This citizen-initiated measure was placed on the Montana 2024 ballot. Voters rejected it with only 49.0% voting yes. | Failed (49% yes) |
| CI-127 | Require an electoral system in which candidates for certain offices must win a majority of the vote, rather than a plurality, to win the election. This citizen-initiated measure was placed on the Montana 2024 ballot. Voters rejected it with only 40.0% voting yes. | Failed (40% yes) |
| CI-128 | Provide for a state constitutional right to abortion before fetal viability. This citizen-initiated measure was placed on the Montana 2024 ballot. Voters approved it with 58.0% voting yes. | Passed (58% yes) |