Senator Jon Tester of Montana announced he will seek a fourth term in office in 2024.
Tester is a member of the Democratic Party which currently holds the majority of seats in the United States Senate. The 51-49 ratio includes two independents who caucus with the Democrats – Senators Kyrsten Sinema of Arizona and Bernie Sanders of Vermont.
“Montanans need a fighter that will hold our government accountable and demand Washington stand up for veterans and lower costs for families,” Tester wrote on Twitter on Feb. 22. “I will always fight to defend our Montana values. Let’s get to work.”
The 66-year-old was first elected in 2006. He underscored the vulnerability of his position after announcing his plans to seek reelection.
“Montana is 2024's most important Senate race. We cannot afford to lose,” he tweeted. “I'm the most vulnerable Democratic Senator up in 2024—which means I'm gonna need your help.”
He also kicked off a fundraising appeal, calling for donations of “any amount” by midnight.
“National Republicans are planning to spend millions to attack me,” Tester wrote. “I need your immediate support to build the resources it’ll take to fight back and win.”
In addition to Tester, two democrats – Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Joe Manchin of West Virginia – are expected to face serious challenges from Republicans during the upcoming election cycle. While Manchin has not publicly announced his plans for 2024, Brown has already committed to running again.
“Republicans have used every opportunity they have to try to game the system,” Brown told Cleveland.com in January. “They’ve made voter registration harder even though we have no fraud in Ohio ... They continue with redistricting and voter IDs and all the things they do to make it harder for people to vote ... That’s, in part, how they win these elections.”
“Democrats also face potentially tough races in Pennsylvania, Arizona, Nevada, Michigan and Wisconsin,” reports The Hill. “Tester’s decision to run again in Montana gives Democrats a candidate who is a proven winner in the state.”
Earlier this month, Tester said he was unsure of his plans for 2024 during an interview with NBC News.
“Ultimately, in the end, I’ve got a farm that’s been in the family for over 100 years,” the senator told the outlet. “We got to make sure that’s taken care of. We got to make sure that we’ve thought through all the procedures of what’s going to happen over the next eight years. And so once we get through with that, then we can come down and make a decision.”
According to the polling organization FiveThirtyEight, Tester has voted in support of policies supported by President Donald Trump about 20% of the time. He more frequently voted in line with Trump’s positions in the 115th (38.1%) and 116th (16.3%) Congresses. The senator did not vote in line with any of Trump’s positions during the 117th Congress.
Trump, who has already announced he will seek the presidency in 2024, won Montana by 56.5% in 2016 and 56.9% in 2020.
