Senator Jon Tester of Montana is at risk of losing his seat in November as Democrats face the prospect of losing control of the U.S. Senate, according to a new poll published on Tuesday.
A new statewide poll conducted in Montana by American Pulse Research and Polling found that Republican candidate Tim Sheehy leads Tester with 50.8 percent support to the senator’s 44.7 percent.
The Montana race could be crucial to deciding which party controls the Senate when the new Congress meets early this year, and the composition of the Senate will be of major importance to the next president.
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The American Pulse Research and Polling survey was conducted on behalf of KULR-TV from August 10 to 12 among 538 registered voters. The survey showed that 3.8 percent of respondents were undecided in what could be a close race.
The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.2 percent.
Monica Robinson, spokesperson for Montanans For Tester, told KULR-TV: “Jon Tester will be reelected in November because of his strong record delivering for veterans, fighting to lower costs for working families, and defending Montana’s way of life. Jon is focused on delivering for Montana families, not inaccurate polls from partisan pollsters.”
Newsweek has reached out to the Tester campaign for further comment.
Jack O’Brien, a Sheehy campaign spokesperson, welcomed the most recent poll.
“It’s clear Tim is winning the ground war by traveling from town to town across Montana, looking Montanans in the eye, and sharing his common-sense agenda to defeat inflation, bring down costs, seal our border, fight for Montana families, and put America First! But, if we’re going to win this race in November and finally retire Jon Tester, who is the number-one recipient of lobbyist cash, it will take every one of us working together to save our country,” O’Brien told KLUR-TV.
This is the second poll in the Montana Senate race this month showing Tester behind. A previous Emerson College poll found Sheehy leading with 48 percent to Tester’s 46 percent, while 5 percent were undecided.
That poll was conducted from August 5 to 6 among 1,000 likely voters in Montana and had a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percent.
A consensus Senate forecast prepared by 270toWin, which describes itself as a “nonpartisan site for people passionate about politics,” shows Republicans on track to have 50 seats to Democrats’ 48 following this year’s elections. Not all seats are up for election this year.
The remaining two senate seats will be decided by races in Montana and Ohio, with both races rated as toss-ups in 270toWin’s forecast.
Tester is considered one of the most vulnerable incumbent Democratic senators, and the outcome of the Montana race could be crucial to deciding control of the Senate where Democrats currently hold a slim majority.
Former President Donald Trump has backed Sheehy in the Montana Senate race and the Republican presidential nominee attended a rally in Bozeman, Montana, on Friday in support of Sheehy.
