Free Republic

Sen. Jon Tester, a liberal Democrat, is attempting to hold off Republican challenger Rep. Denny Rehberg in a tight Montana Senate race. Rehberg is a Power Line Pick Six candidate. For Republicans to gain control of the Senate, they almost certainly need to win this race. Tester has been highly unconvincing in his belated attempts to convince Montana voters that he’s not in the pocket of the Obama administration on all the big issues. In a two way race with Rehberg, Tester would likely be toast. However, there’s a third candidate in Montana — Dan Cox of the Libertarian Party....

President Obama hasn’t visited Montana in years, but he’s casting a long shadow over Democratic Sen. Jon Tester’s re-election chances. In a race marked by jostling over which candidate is the most politically independent, the freshman Democrat has been slammed by accusations that he’s too willing to dance to Mr. Obama’s tune. His opponent, Republican Rep. Denny Rehberg, has all but printed up T-shirts stating that Mr. Tester votes with the president 95 percent of the time. “One of the big themes of this race is, Who’s the real Montanan? Who’s more independent? Who’s willing to buck his party?” said...

Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg continues to hold a modest lead over incumbent Jon Tester in Montana’s U.S. Senate race. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Montana Voters shows Rehberg with 47% support to Tester’s 43%. Five percent (5%) prefer some other candidate, and five percent (5%) are undecided.

Montana remains in the Romney column again this month. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in the state finds likely Republican nominee Mitt Romney with 51% support to President Obama’s 42%. Five percent (5%) like another candidate in the race, and two percent (2%) are undecided.

In at least two counties in Montana, the home of a competitive U.S. Senate race that could tip the balance of power in the upper chamber, massive mail-in absentee ballot irregularities have been uncovered by Media Trackers Montana, a non-partisan investigative research organization with operations in five states across the country.  In Broadwater county alone, where Sen. Jon Tester received only 35 percent of the vote in the 2006 general election, up to 600 erroneous mail-in ballots have been reported. Over a dozen Billings-area voters have complained that they received incorrect ballots.  Yellowstone county officials have also reported numerous complaints...

Republican Congressman Denny Rehberg still maintains a very narrow advantage over Democratic incumbent Jon Tester in Montana’s closely contested U.S. Senate race. The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Montana Voters shows Rehberg with 47% support to Tester’s 44%. Six percent (6%) like some other candidate in the race, and three percent are undecided.