HELENA — On the final day of filing for Montana’s 2026 elections, former University of Montana president Seth Bodnar confirmed he is jumping into the race for U.S. Senate as an independent candidate.
“For too long, Montanans have watched as the American Dream has been held hostage by a broken political system that allows Washington politicians to divide us and line their own pockets while families across our state face higher costs and fewer opportunities,” said Bodnar in a news release early Wednesday morning. “I’m running for Senate as an Independent because Montanans deserve a leader who bridges divides with commonsense solutions, stands up to political elites in Washington, and answers only to Montana, not national party bosses or DC insiders.”
Bodnar will officially file to challenge Republican U.S. Sen. Steve Daines later Wednesday. His campaign launched with a video posted to Youtube.
Bodnar’s announcement comes after months of rumors that he would get into the race. When Bodnar resigned from UM in January after eight years as president, he said he and his family were considering “whether to pursue a new way to serve our state and our nation.”
Bodnar served in the U.S. Army as a Green Beret. He worked as an executive with General Electric prior to becoming UM president in 2018.
In order to get on the November general election ballot as an independent, Bodnar will need to collect signatures from at least 13,327 registered voters across the state.
Besides Bodnar, four Democratic candidates and one Libertarian candidate have already filed to run against Daines. More people could still get into the race, with the filing period closing at 5 p.m. Wednesday.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
