2 weeks Ago By BLAIR MILLER [email protected]
As U.S. Sen.
Steve Daines readies himself for a reelection bid in 2026, the Bozeman Republican picked up a quick endorsement this week from President Donald Trump. "Steve Daines is a Great Man, and TREMENDOUS Senator, representing the Fantastic People of Montana," Trump said Monday in a social media post . "I love Montana, won every one of my Races there by a landslide, and would only recommend the best to represent you in the Senate!" While Daines has not formally announced his reelection campaign, filings with the Federal Election Commission show his campaign committee is preparing for 2026.
Campaign finance records show he brought in nearly $1 million in the first quarter of the year and spent about $286,000, leaving him with about $2.4 million in cash at the start of April. U.
S. Sen. Steve Daines speaks at a Donald Trump rally in the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman on Friday.
Daines ran the Senate Republicans' election arm during the 2024 cycle and was key to winning the Senate majority back for the GOP — in part by helping Sen. Tim Sheehy, another Republican, unseat three-term Democratic U.S.
Sen. Jon Tester in Montana. Trump said Daines, in his role as National Republican Senatorial Committee chair, helped elect "smart, tough, and sincere America First Patriots.
" Trump came to Bozeman last summer to campaign alongside Daines and Sheehy. Daines' name was among those discussed at points last year to replace Sen. Mitch McConnell is majority leader, but he declined to jump into the race.
He now chairs the National Parks Subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources, and also sits on the upper chamber’s committees on finance, foreign relations and Indian affairs. "In the Senate, Steve is fighting hard to Grow the Economy, Cut Taxes, Secure the Border, Stop Migrant Crime, Support our Military/Vets, Unleash American Energy Dominance, Restore PEACE THROUGH STRENGTH, and Defend our always under siege Second Amendment," Trump said of Daines in his endorsement. A former technology executive, Daines was elected to the U.
S. House of Representatives in 2012, then to the U.S.
Senate in 2014. He won reelection in 2020, defeating Democratic then-Gov. Steve Bullock 55% to 45%.
Former President Donald Trump speaks at a rally in the Brick Breeden Fieldhouse in Bozeman on August 9, 2024. Daines thanked Trump for his endorsement Monday. "I'm honored to have your support as we fight to protect Montana values, secure our border, cut taxes, and Make America Great Again! Together, we’ll deliver results for our state and nation," he said in a social media post.
Daines, Downing, Zinke, Sheehy defend Trump's tariff strategy despite volatile markets Jason Thielman, Daines' senior adviser who also worked alongside him at the NRSC and with him for more than a decade, said Trump’s endorsement was a show of the president's "clear and unequivocal support" for Daines' Senate reelection bid. FEC records show two other candidates have filed to run for Daines' seat: Democrat Reilly Neill, who ran a write-in campaign for Montana’s eastern congressional district in 2024, and Democrat Michael Hummert, who ran against Tester in last year's Democratic U.S.
Senate primary..
