United States 2026 / By state / Montana
Montana · Midterm elections · 3 November 2026
Who paid to reach Montana voters
The Republican side outspent the Democratic side in Montana, $563.3K to $420.1K. The costliest race: U.S. Senate, at $512.3K. Dan Wilson was the most-attacked name in the state.
Ads delivered from 4 May 2026 to 4 November 2026 · Results: unofficial count as of 6 November 2026
The races
Each race links to its candidates’ pages, with the unofficial count above its spend. Spend counts every ad about the race, the candidates’ own and outside groups’.
Democratic sideRepublican sideNo side (white figures)
U.S. Senate
Alme vs Bodnar
$512.3K · 1,250 ads · 23 pages
- Seth Bodnar$106.7K own
- Alani Bankhead$997 own
- Outside groups and others$404.6K
Largest pages
- Independent PAC$164.2K
- AFP Action$153.1K
- Seth Bodnar for Montana$106.7K
Governor
$20K · 35 ads · 11 pages
Largest pages
- Progressive Vet PAC$12.5K
- Montana Way PAC$3.3K
- Busse for Montana$1.2K
U.S. House
House · 2 districts
$197.5K · 279 ads · 18 pages
- MT-1 · Samuel Forstag$81.2K
- MT-2 · Troy Downing$26.9K
- Ads naming no district$89.4K
Other statewide offices
$163.6K · 151 ads · 22 pages
Largest pages
State legislature
$337.2K · 979 ads · 136 pages
- Stacy Zinn$250 own
- Kate McLaughlin$99 own
- Outside groups and others$336.9K
Largest pages
Ballot measures
- CI-132 · Add a new section to the Montana Constitution to require that all judicial elections are nonpartisanPassedYes 68.0% · No 32.0%
- CI-133 · Add the power of initiative and referendum to the state's Declaration of RightsPassedYes 65.2% · No 34.8%
- I-194 · Prohibit artificial persons, as defined in the initiative, from contributing to campaigns, ballot measure elections, or political partiesPassedYes 65.4% · No 34.6%
$159.7K · 270 ads · 20 pages
Largest pages
- Montanans Decide$95.1K
- Montanans for Nonpartisan Courts$28.6K
- The Montana Plan: I-194$20.8K
Local races
$26.5K · 190 ads · 35 pages
Largest pages
U.S. House, district by district
2 districts with ads. A district is placed only when the ad names it, or the candidate’s FEC record does.
| District | Candidates with ads | Result | Largest page | Ads | Spend | Side |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MT-1 | Samuel Forstag, Aaron Flint | Sam Forstag D 50.3% | Sam Forstag | 129 | $81.2K | |
| MT-2 | Troy Downing, Michael Eisenhauer | Troy Downing R 58.2% | Troy Downing | 51 | $26.9K | |
| District not named | AFP Action | 99 | $89.4K |
Who paid
The pages that spent the most on Montana’s races; spend here is what each page spent in this state.
| # | Advertiser | Side | Race | Ads | Spend | Attack |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | AFP ActionPaid for by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY ACTION, INC.(AFP ACTION) | Rep. | Senate | 40 | $188.8K | 7.5% |
| 2 | Independent PAC | Dem. | Senate | 401 | $164.2K | 35% |
| 3 | Seth Bodnar for MontanaPaid for by SETH BODNAR FOR MONTANA | Dem. | Senate | 305 | $106.7K | 14% |
| 4 | Conservatives4MT | Rep. | Legislature | 79 | $98.5K | 49% |
| 5 | Montanans Decide | None | Ballot measure | 23 | $95.1K | 8.7% |
| 6 | Montanans for Freedom and Responsibility | None | Other statewide | 30 | $77K | 87% |
| 7 | Progressive Vet PAC | Dem. | Senate | 194 | $54.8K | 96% |
| 8 | Montana Freedom PAC | Rep. | Senate | 20 | $42K | 40% |
| 9 | Sam ForstagPaid for by Sam For Montana | Dem. | House MT-1 | 57 | $40.5K | 0.0% |
| 10 | Montana Republican Legislative Campaign Committee | Rep. | Legislature | 17 | $33K | |
| 11 | Montanans for Nonpartisan Courts | None | Ballot measure | 73 | $28.6K | 0.0% |
| 12 | Troy DowningPaid for by Troy Downing for Congress | Rep. | House MT-2 | 22 | $21.6K | 45% |
| 13 | The Montana Plan: I-194Paid for by The Montana Plan | None | Ballot measure | 67 | $20.8K | 5.0% |
| 14 | House Majority PACPaid for by HMP | Dem. | House, district not named | 10 | $19.3K | 100% |
| 15 | Yellowstone County RepublicansPaid for by Yellowstone County Republican Central Committee | Rep. | Legislature | 82 | $19K | 0.0% |
| 16 | School Freedom FundPaid for by SCHOOL FREEDOM FUND | Rep. | Legislature | 20 | $17.3K | 0.0% |
| 17 | Reilly for MontanaPaid for by Reilly Neill | Dem. | Senate | 238 | $17.3K | 38% |
| 18 | Dr Annie Bukacek for PSCPaid for by Annie Bukacek for PSC | Rep. | Other statewide | 13 | $15.9K | 0.0% |
| 19 | Justice Watch | None | Other statewide | 13 | $15.4K | |
| 20 | Judge Dan Wilson for Montana’s Supreme CourtPaid for by REALTORS® for Better Government | None | Other statewide | 12 | $13.7K | 0.0% |
| 21 | Aaron FlintPaid for by Flint for Montana | Rep. | House MT-1 | 22 | $13.4K | 14% |
| 22 | Americans for Prosperity-MontanaPaid for by AMERICANS FOR PROSPERITY | Rep. | Legislature | 46 | $13.3K | 13% |
| 23 | Zack Wirth for Montana SenatePaid for by Zack Wirth Campaign | Rep. | Legislature | 49 | $9.9K | 37% |
| 24 | Christi JacobsenPaid for by Christi Jacobsen For Congress | Rep. | House MT-1 | 8 | $9.1K | 0.0% |
| 25 | Dr. Al OlszewskiPaid for by AL FOR MONTANA | Rep. | House MT-1 | 15 | $8.9K | 0.0% |
Every page with ads about Montana, with search and the CSV: the advertisers.
Who was attacked
| Target | Attack spend | Mostly by |
|---|---|---|
| Dan Wilson | $67.6K | No side |
| Alani Bankhead | $30.8K | No side |
| Donald Trump | $22.7K | Democratic side |
| Aaron Flint | $21.1K | Democratic side |
| Kurt Alme | $16.1K | Democratic side |
| MAGA Republicans | $12.5K | Democratic side |
| GOP | $7.3K | Democratic side |
| Barry Usher | $6.2K | Republican side |
Google and YouTube
Google’s register holds 1,071 election ads from 101 verified advertisers aimed at Montana alone since 4 May 2026, worth $5–6.1M by Google’s ranges, and 775 more named the state among others. Most of it came from advertisers with no FEC record: ballot measures, state races and companies.
1,071
Google ads aimed at Montana alone
$5–6.1M
spent, by Google’s ranges
101
verified advertisers
49 / 51
% Dem. / Rep. side, of placed Google spend
| Advertiser | Side | Ads | Google spend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montanans Decide | None | 8 | $453–539K |
| MONTANANS FOR NONPARTISAN COURTS | None | 40 | $379.1–462.6K |
| House Majority PAC | Dem. | 48 | $364.2–436.8K |
| ACLU VOTER EDUCATION FUND | None | 6 | $360–425.1K |
| MONTANA FREEDOM PAC | None | 51 | $283.3–347.3K |
An ad counts for the state only when its targeting named no other; Google’s state split is cumulative since 2018 and is not used. Spend is a sum of Google’s per-ad ranges; a side comes from the advertiser’s FEC committee, or failing that from a web search of its verified name. No ad text is published, so Google ads are not placed in races.
A state’s page counts ads about its races and measures; the state comes from the ad’s text, page and payer, or the candidate’s FEC record. Ads about no single state are not here. Candidates are those whose FEC committees paid; state and local candidates appear through their pages.