Republicans were one candidate away from holding the Senate.
Montana elected a Democrat called Not Conrad Burns. Given a choice between two candidates called Not Conrad Burns there is little doubt Montana would have chosen the Republican.
Unfortunately, and unaccountably, despite the evident popularity of not being Conrad Burns, Republicans ran the only candidate in the entire state who was not Not Conrad Burns.
Our governor, a democrat, stumped for Tester and a lot of people like our governor. That had to help Tester a lot.
The guy that ran against Conrad Burns in the primaries is one of our local distrist representatives and he is GREAT..outspoken, definitely has a spine but he is not well known enough in the rest of the state to have won the primaries. He would have been great againts Tester, I think.
I never heard of Tester before this election except in the primaries. but, I sure got my fill of him by the time elections were over! :(