Montana: One Line, Two Districts, 13 Proposals
Even if you're only drawing a single line, redistricting is never easy.
Topline Takeaways
Montana is one of six states to gain one House seat following the reapportionment process. The 2020 census pegged the state’s population at just over 1 million residents, a 9.6% increase since 2010.
Most consider MT-01 as the state’s “new” district as it is expected to be significantly more competitive than MT-02.
While the commission drew a map that largely followed county lines, Democrats are upset with the decision to separate Helena from MT-01 as its inclusion may have created an even more competitive district.
Who’s In Control?
Montana uses a non-politician commission to draft and select its new district maps. Much like Idaho, the five member commission is chosen by the leaders of the major parties within the state. Members are chosen according to the following process:
One member is appointed by the majority leader of the Montana State Senate.
One member is appointed by the minority leader of the Montana State Senate.
One member is appointed by the majority leader of the Montana House of Representatives.
One member is appointed by the minority leader of the Montana House of Representatives.
One final “nonpartisan” member serves as the chair of the commission and is selected by the previous four members.
Two of the first four members must be selected from counties in the Montana Rockies while the other two must be from the rest of the state.
The commission ultimately entertained 13 different proposals, almost all of which took an east-west divide approach to creating the two new districts.
New District Breakdown
Montana’s new congressional district map creates relatively “clean” boundaries that follow county lines. The only county split between both congressional districts is rural Pondera county in the north, holding just under 6,000 people. While the eastern MT-02 was all but guaranteed to remain in Republican hands, Democrats are upset with the decision to place Helena in the state’s second congressional district as they contend its inclusion in MT-01 would have created a more competitive district.
The bipartisan commission also (unintentionally) kidnapped one of the candidates for the new MT-01. Democratic State Rep. Laurie Bishop lives in Livingston, Montana and launcher her campaign in July before boundaries were finalized. When announcing her candidacy, she proclaimed that she inteded to run in whichever district that eventually held the liberal college town of Missoula, MT. Unfortunately for Bishop, the boundary for her desired district sits 10 miles away from her current residence and places her house into MT-02. While this does not outright disqualify her from running in MT-01, she has instead opted to run for reelection to her local state House seat.
(FYI, the term “kidnapping” is used to describe when district lines are redrawn in a way that moves a candidate outside of the district they’re running in.)