Sam Forstag, a union leader and firefighter, is the projected winner of the Democratic primary in Montana's congressional race. Forstag defeated three other Democrats — Ryan Busse, Russell Cleveland and Matt Rains — likely aided by endorsements from prominent progressives Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) and Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-Md.).
Background and Campaign
Forstag, 31, worked as a smokejumper — a firefighter who parachutes into remote areas to combat wildfires — before entering politics. He cited billionaire Elon Musk's cuts to the U.S. Forest Service, which eliminated a quarter of its employees in Montana, as a key motivator for seeking office. “Most of the people that they fired were the lowest-pay workers in our agency, the people making less than $20 an hour swinging tools and conducting the science to keep our roads and trails clear and our air and water safe,” Forstag said at a Missoula rally last week with Ocasio-Cortez.
“When I reached out to our supposed representative, Ryan Zinke, time and time again, I got crickets,” Forstag said. “So after a year of fighting those cuts with my union, while fighting wildfires as a smokejumper, I decided that if they’re going to come after my co-workers and my union members’ jobs, I’m going to come take his.”
Progressive Support
At the event in Missoula, Ocasio-Cortez praised Forstag's heroism, which earned him a photo shoot in Esquire and speculation he could be progressives' next blue-collar sensation. “When something is burning in this state, Sam runs towards the fire, that’s the kind of person he is, and that’s the kind of person we have the opportunity to send to Congress,” she said.
Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders met Forstag when he spoke at their “Fighting Oligarchy Tour” on its swing through Montana last year, before he had announced his candidacy for the House. “He was an impressive guy, and I think that rally had some impact on his decision-making, and he is a working-class guy who I think is prepared to stand up to big money, and is the kind of guy that we need in the house now,” Sanders told HuffPost.
Race Dynamics
Polling last month suggested most Montanans had not heard of Forstag and that Busse, a gun control advocate who ran for governor of Montana in 2024, had a lead in the race. Busse suggested Forstag's support from outside the state would not help him. “The voters we need to win in November live in places like Manhattan, MT, and feel really betrayed by national politicians that fly in from places like Manhattan, NY. I’ll stick with the MT folks,” Busse said in a statement last week to the Montana Free Press.
Forstag will face the winner of the Republican primary in a November contest for the seat being vacated by Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-Mont.), whose retirement has given Democrats hope of flipping the district.
